#:: ic :: wen chao

[carrotcouple]

“We found him!”

Jiang Cheng pressed his lips together to not cry out in pain as he was pushed roughly to the ground. The holes in his trousers made the stone cut harshly into his knees. He tried to raised himself up on his hands but a Wen soldier kicked his head and down he went again, stars in his vision. He was scared. He was angry. Had Wei Wuxian gotten away alright?

If he had then thank God.

“Oh?”

Wen Chao’s voice.

Jiang Cheng grit his teeth, tears stinging his eyes and anger boiling under his skin.

“What happened to the other one?”

“We couldn’t find the other one, only him.”

“Well, this one is good enough. He is just as guilty of his shixiong’s crime,” Wen Chao snickered.

Bastard. The one with crimes was him, how dare he pretend that Jiang Cheng’s family and Sect had committed sins?

“Oi, Jiang Cheng,” Wen Chao’s boot settled down on top of his head, pushing his face into the blood stained stone under him. Jiang Cheng growled. “Where’s your shixiong?”

“Fuck you,” Jiang Cheng snarls.

Wen Chao raises his foot and then slams it down. Jiang Cheng feels like he hears his nose crack. Warm blood fills his mouth. It hurts, he’s scared, he’s furious. He wants to grind Wen Chao to dust and feed his ashes to maggots.

“Listen to this dog bark!” Wen Chao cackles.

Wei Ying please be safe.

“Someone get him up, he’ll be a good exam-” Wen Chao removes his foot, sounding dismissive and uninterested. Jiang Cheng lunges forward, leaping up and smashing his knee into Wen Chao’s face. If he’s going to die he might as well die fighting like his mother did. He’s the son of the Violet Spider! Wen Chao shrieks, stumbling backwards, hands going up to his nose which is now bleeding like Jiang Cheng’s. Jiang Cheng aims his fist towards Wen Chao’s throat.

“Wen Zhuliu!” a shrill female voice screeches.

Molten fire collides into Jiang Cheng’s shoulder and he hits the ground. He rolls to the side, attempting to shoot back up to his feet, but then he’s kicked in the side. He curls up momentarily, but that’s all that’s needed. Blows rain down on him. He grunts in pain and then bites down on his lips, desperate not to give them the satisfaction of crying out.

He’s in so much pain.

It hurts.

A-Niang.

“Take him inside! I’ll make him scream!” he hears Wen Chao shout.

He’d rather die than do something Wen Chao wants of him. Someone grabs him by the hair and pulls him up, dragging him backward. He whimpers, scrambling furiously, trying to get away. He grabs at the hands in his hair, scratching at it to get free. He scratches at arm guards. They continue to drag him, hair coming out of his scalp and then he’s thrown onto a slightly elevated platform of stone.

Before he can orient himself, he’s being pulled to his feet and his hands are being chained to hold him up. The top of his robes are pulled away and his eyes widen.

“What are yo-”

Wen Chao is cackling in front of him, still bleeding from his nose, an ugly purple bruise on his face. He’s holding a discipline whip. One of Yunmeng Jiang’s discipline whips. Disgust, fury and fear wells up inside of Jiang Cheng. The audacity of the man to hold something only a Jiang elder is allowed to hold. But he is also horrified. He knows what Wen Chao is going to do.

Jiang Cheng is the heir of Yunmeng Jiang. A model student. To be hit by the discipline whip is the greatest shame.

Wen Chao raises the whip.

“Wait! Sto-” Jiang Cheng cries out.

Ice and fire across his chest.

A wail bursts from his lips. He kicks his legs out, arms yanking at the chains, desperate to curl up. Tears streak down his cheeks as agonized screams leave his mouth. He can feel nothing, only flames on his chest, burning a path across his skin. Blood seeps into his brown-gray robes. There is blood dripping down his wrists from how hard he is trying to pull his hands free.

Distantly he hears laughter.

A hand grabs his chin and he’s forced to look at Wen Chao’s face through his tears.

“Let’s hear you apologize for your actions, dog,” Wen Chao says.

“I...hope you rot in hell…” Jiang Cheng grits out.

He is his mother’s son. He will not die begging. He will not beg for a life that he has given up to save one of his loved ones. His sacrifice has been made. There is no point to-

Wen Chao strikes him across the face.

“Wen Zhuliu, teach him what it’s like when people don’t revere me,” Wen Chao spits out.

Jiang Cheng blinks furiously, trying to clear his head. His chest hurts so much. He slowly looks up and sees Wen Zhuliu standing over him.

A-Niang, A-Die…

Wen Zhuliu’s arm lights up with spiritual energy and then before Jiang Cheng can even flinch or close his eyes, it makes contact with his stomach.

Silence.

Jiang Cheng hears something like a deranged wail and then sobbing and it takes him a moment to realize it’s him. His body is cold, like Wen Zhuliu has carved out his heart while he is still alive. An integral part of him has been taken from him. He feels violated and robbed. He wheezes for breath, unable to process what’s going on around him, crying hysterically.

He’s truly lost the only thing that had given him value.

He doesn’t hear Wen Chao and then Wen soldiers laughing at him. He doesn’t feel Wen Zhuliu undo his bonds. He falls into a heap on the floor.

Without his core there is nothing to him.

He’s as good as dead now.

I hope...Wei Ying is safe.

[because-of-a-friend]

Seventeen Reaction: Strange First Impression

Thanks for the request anon!

Gifs are not mine! If you like them, please click through on the link and give their OPs some love!!!!

MASTERLIST

CHOI SEUNGCHEOL

Choi Seungcheol is the type that will bring it up all the time. He didn't even know you when he saw it happen. He was just chilling at a party and turns to see the chaos of someone having overturned the beer pong table by accident, sending cups and booze flying everywhere. He saw you covering your face in shame and laughing. He wrote you off a someone who has simply had a little too much to drink and didn't think anything else of it. But then he met you again through mutual friends. As he gets to know you, he realizes this behavior was nothing like you. So of course he brings it up all the time to tease you and watch as you blush about it. He finds it cute.

YOON JEONGHAN

He watches your face contort into horror and confusion as you mishear the person you're talking to. He can't help but laugh as you talk very heatedly with the person across the table from you, obviously offended not by what they said but by what you thought they said. He falls in love when he watches you burst into laughter after realized your mistake. He continues coming back to the coffee shop and is happy to see that you're a regular too. When he gets the courage to talk to you and then keep talking to you, he realizes it's a habit of yours to mishear people when conversing. He'll make a few jokes about it here and there. One day, several years into your relationship, he'll admit how he fell in love with you and what he witnessed that day.

JOSHUA HONG

He watches in absolute fascination at the entire dance routine you pull out to make a crying toddler laugh. The poor kid had fallen and dropped their ice cream, and you, depsite not knowing the child at all, seemed determined to get him to smile again. He shyly looks away anytime you turn towards him, but he really can't stop watching. He finds the routine as funny as the toddler, but he's also really touched that you'd go that far out of your way to make someone else smile. The next time he sees you in the park, he asks you out immediately. He won't tease you about it, maybe only when he asks if you're going to do the routine for him when he's sad. But he feels ready to settle down with you from the very beginning.

WEN JUNHUI

He's always happy to match some chaotic energy. Which is why it doesn't phase him at all when he sees you dressed in ridiculous costume in the park. It had been a dare from your friends, but you strutted around confidently. When he finds out you have mutual friends, he asks one of them to introduce you. Jun loves having the first impression of seeing you dressed up in the park because he knows you'll be on board to do lots of fun stuff. The two of you always have a very fun time together.

KWON SOONYOUNG

Also not really phased. In fact when you're friend introduces you to each other, he'll bring it up quite casually, "Oh you're that person that was dancing around in that fruit costume on the street corner the other day!" You were absolutely mortified that he had seen that. "Yeah, my boss was trying to advertise a new smoothie we started selling." He finds how flustered you got over it quite cute. And later on in your relationship he most definitely makes up a nickname for you based off of the fruit costume you were wearing.

JEON WONWOO

Tbh, he's a bit intimidated by you. He had seen you before, volunteering to help out a street performer. The performer has you doing all sorts of ridiculous and embarrassing things to draw laughs from the crowd. But you take it in your stride, laughing along and happily going along with the performance. He's in awe of your confidence. So when you actually meet, he's a bit shy around you. But he's interested in you from the start after hearing your laugh that day. He'll never work up the nerve to tell you the first time he actually saw you lol.

LEE JIHOON

Honestly, he's a bit judgmental. Seeing you do a tiktok challenge with friends in public, he thinks of you as high energy and overwhelming. But then he actually meets you and realizes that might be good for him. Your friend had orchestrated the video, not you. But you had gone along with it. He feels like he learns a lot from you and your willingness to try anything. He admires that even if you don't go out of your way to think of new things to try but you're willing to try it out if someone else suggests it.

LEE SEOKMIN

Will also mention it to you right away. But in an excited way. "I know you! I saw you chasing after that squirrel to get your keys back in the park! That looked like fun!" You laugh and tell him it was not as fun as it looked. He loves telling people that story all the time. In a joking way or in a sentimental way, no matter how he's telling it, it's getting told for sure. It's in puns, in introductions, in speeches. Seokmin literally cannot stop telling everyone that the first time he saw the person he loves, they were chasing down a rodent that had stolen their keys.

KIM MINGYU

Mingyu loves when people are able to make him laugh. Your friend had been doing a public art instillation and it led to you being dressed up in some wild bird costume. But then her flyers got caught up in the wind and you went to chase after them. The first time Kim Mingyu saw you, you were running down the street, yelling at people to move as you chased down a flyer, and waving your arms (wings?) dramatically through the air. Since you were in costume, he didn't recognize you when you met each other at a party. He tells the story of seeing a person running around in bird costume as an anecdote. Your friend (who was the one running the instillation) starts laughing loudly and explains that was you. To his relief, you're laughing about the fact that he brought that up. You two hit it off right away. You're the one that tells the story of how Mingyu first saw you all the time. Mingyu likes calling you Birdy to tease you.

XU MYUNGHO

Just kind of baffled by you. If he sees you doing anything strange and out of the ordinary out in public before he knows you, he'll probably avoid you lol. When he realizes the two of you are in the same circle of friends, he'll keep things polite but remain distant. But overtime he'll learn more and more about you and realize he was being a bit too much on the judgment front. He makes an effort to get to know you and not what he assumes about you. One day he'll admit his first impression of you and you'll both laugh about it.

BOO SEUNGKWAN

You know that when he sees you doing a comedy schtick to make your friends laugh, he's joining in, no questions asked. It's weird thing he sees you doing that ends up being the reason you meet. Seungkwan is down for literally anything as long as it gets a laugh. So he's so excited to meet someone as committed to the bit as him. It's the very thing that attracts him to you in the first place.

VERNON CHWE

When he connects the dots that you're the one he saw trying to fly several kites simultaneously that one random day, he is completely baffled. In day to day life you don't seem like someone who goes out of their way to do something illogical. He probably won't bring it up to you unless you do something similar again and give him the chance to reference it. He finds it really funny that most days you seem really chill, then you'll get these random moments where you want to do something completely strange.

LEE CHAN

Would like to think that he's as spontaneous as Seungkwan, but definitely is more like Myungho. When he sees you doing something strange he's probably a bit more on the apprehensive side lol. But he's a lot quicker to warm to you once you actually meet. He'll probably be curious about what he saw you doing and ask a lot of questions about it. He thinks you're pretty cool for putting yourself out there. He doesn't really reference it unless you do first once his own curiosity has dimmed.

[maelstrom-of-emotions]

It's a Wednesday the first time Wei Ying officially decides that Wen Chao needs to die. 

This isn't the stuff of dramatic soliloquies, for unlike what cinematic villainy boasts, murder decisions are not grandiose spectacles replete with brooding monologues and tortured souls grappling with their inner demons.

Reality, as it so often does, refuses to conform to the melodramatic scripts of Hollywood. And as such, Wei Ying's resolve to dispatch Wen Chao to the great beyond is not heralded by ominous thunderclaps or clandestine blood pacts in shadowy alleys.

There are no tragic plays enacted in dimly lit alleyways nor he tender aftermath of heartbreak cushioned by gallons of indulgent ice cream. No, the momentous occasion unfolds with all the flair of a pedestrian Wednesday morning—Wei Ying sips his coffee as he scrolls through the weather reports. 

The truth is most murder decisions, if not all of them, are a choice as matter-of-fact as selecting the next item on the grocery list or deliberating over pizza toppings—a casual decision, devoid of long-winded descriptions and gazing at the abyss. Not everyone has the time or the patience to pull off a fully fledged Shakespearean drama. And so, Wen Chao's days are numbered, not amidst thunderous proclamations, but amidst the monochrome monotony of midweek routine.

[roseclaw]

WIP Wed RBB edition

My @mdzsrbb draft is completed! JC has ~~~trauma :D Here's the intro:

Jiang Cheng took a sniff of the wine he had been offered. That’s what he thought. Plum-steeped wine. That was explicitly forbidden from being served to him. His Head Disciple, Yu Qingyao, had been in charge of that, and she was merciless about it. Yet somehow. Here it was, being offered to him at the start of an important trade negotiation involving water rights and transit taxes. He set it aside and took a deep calming breath, like his doctor had told him to do. Then he stood and stalked from the hall. He would deal with the carnage when his head was no longer swimming, when breathing was less difficult, when the hold on his throat released. He felt like he had been kicked in the chest. His skin crawled as ice clawed up his spine. He needed the warmth of sunlight and open spaces. The sun brand on his thigh burned and pulled at his skin. He needed to remove himself from the situation before he killed someone, which everyone would agree would be an overreaction to being served plum-steeped wine. He needed to be as far away as he could from Wen Chao’s ghost.

[mamoonde]

continuation of part 1

Wei Ying doesn't get the green light from Wen Qing. He doesn't get the chance to.

Even with the cursed item of dubious origins -- er, well, more dubious than usual -- stored under Wei Ying's best containment talismans and protective arrays, he can feel dark tendrils of resentment energy leaking, hissing in his ears.

He ends up closing the shop early, hours before sunset. He puts up more heavy duty protective talismans (albeit self-made, not that they've failed him before) around the shop's walls, doors and windows. Just in time too, as the seals around the puzzle box barely light up anymore on his phone.

Oddly enough, nothing happens either other than pin drop silence.

Well, that's not creepy at all. Wei Ying thinks.

The puzzle box is fairly simple to solve. A twist of the odd knob, a camouflaged panel that slides into an invisible latch, and a couple other easy tricks before the top unlocks with a loud clack.

Wei Ying barely has time to brace himself before darkness engulfs the shop.

"Fuck!"

Having encountered more than his fair share of cursed objects, things filled with resentment, Wei Ying knows what to expect. The ice needles digging in his veins; the heaviness driving his heart to the pit of his stomach; despair that's his and isn't seeping into his bones. He's used to hearing the voices of corrupted souls attached, echoes of the strangers passed, wailing in his head. Those are pretty much par for the course.

He isn't prepared to feel them a thousandfold over, all at once. Nor is he prepared for the strange, bone-chilling feeling of familiarity.

Welcome back, master.

A thousand voices hiss and croon and purr and growl in unison, and it's creepy as fuck.

What the fuck are you?

Inside, sits an iron tiger amulet, nestled in faded silk. Innocuous enough, except, it looks like a replica of the Yin Tiger Seal. It's worn and frankly crudely hewn, clearly not the work of a master toolmaker. For the purported source of evil and chaos that once had the cultivation world in near shambles, it sure doesn't look it.

But given what just happened, Wei Ying doesn't think it's just a mere replica.

In fact, this might really just be the real deal.

(And he's not a fan of the mocking way they call him 'master' either. Yeah, that doesn't seem to bode well for him.)

[alittlelessalone]

My friend and I just had the most cursed MDZS AU idea and now I really want to read it! MDZS as Lilo and Stitch!

Okay. So it started with the Nie brothers being Nani and Lilo. Then Meng Yao become Stitch and Lan Xichen became David. Then it just spiraled from there. This is what we decided (in the order we decided it):

Jumba - Wei Wuxian

Pleakley - Lan Wangji (mainly just to pair with Wei Wuxian)

Wen Qing - Cobra Bubbles

Jiang Cheng - the guy with the ice cream (we promise we bully him out of love!)

Wen Chao - Myrtle

Jin Zizun, Su She, Wang Lingjiao - Myrtle’s friends

Jin Zixuan - Captain Gantu (accounting for his redemption)

Mo Xuanyu - Reuben (625)

Jin Guangshan - Hamsterviel

Jiang Yanli - she can sell the ice cream for Jiang Cheng

Wen Ning - Mrs. Hasagawa

Qin Su - Angel (I mean, it’s technically incest here too…)

Lan Yi - Grand Councilwoman

Baoshan Sanren - Elvis Presley

Wen Rohan - Leroy

All the juniors can be various experiments

At this point we realized we had more MDZS characters than we did Lilo and Stitch ones we actually know and stopped

Clearly we got a little carried away by the end, but it still a fantastic AU and I’m so happy we created this nonsense! And everyone would be happier in it! Although I certainly never expected to ship Stitch with David and Nani, but I guess in the one VERY SPECIFIC case, I’ll allow it!

[the-monkey-ruler]

Could you please tell us about the kings of the Underworld, their functions and if there is a kind of rank? I don't know if you talked about that. I just remember that one of them really liked pumpkins.

I can't say that I really know much about the ten kings off the top of my head. Most of my knowledge comes from Wukong threatening to beat one of them if they didn't get his underworld paperwork fast enough.

But I'll post what I can read what I can.

In the first palace King Guang of Qin, Jiang Xin, specializes in longevity, premature death the registration of, birth and death in the human world; unified management of punishment in the underworld, and good and bad karma in the next life. The Ghost Judge's Hall is located in the middle of the sea, outside Wojiao Stone, and due west on the black road of Huangquan.

In the second hall, King Li of Chujiang, Li Wen, at the bottom of the sea, under the Wojiao Stone in the south in charge of the Great Living Hell (i.e., the Ice Hell of Peiyi Pavilion). The criminals who fall into this category are those who have violated moral ethics, violated the law and discipline, committed countless crimes, and will not regret it until death.

In the third hall, Emperor Yu of the Song Dynasty, Yu Qin, at the bottom of the sea, under the Wojiao Stone in the southeast in charge of the Black Rope Hell. Those who commit chaos or create disputes in this world go to this hall.

In the fourth hall, King Lu of the Five Senses, Lü Dai, is in charge of the Hell at the bottom of the sea, the land of Hell under the Wojiao Stone in the east. Responsible for the Great Hell and the Blood River Hell. People who evade taxes and commit economic fraud go to this temple.

In the fifth hall King Yama, Bao Zheng, at the bottom of the sea, under the Wojiao Stone in the northeast also in charge of the Great Hell. Originally in the first hall, but because of his excessive sympathy for sinners, he was transferred to this hell. Those that fight for fame and gain, use any means to deceive, seduced the public, was ungrateful, repay kindness with hatred, or was a rapist is treated like a beast.

In the sixth palace King Bi of Bian Cheng, Bi Yuanbin, is in charge of the bottom of the sea, the Great Hell under the Wojiao Stone in the north. Responsible for summoning hell and the city of vain death. Those who complain about heaven and earth and urinate in front of the north go to this hall.

In the seventh hall, King Taishan, Dong He, is in charge of the great seabed, the great hell of Renu under the Wojiao Stone in the north of Ding. King Taishan is in charge of the brain-heating hell. Those who use corpses to make medicine and sow discord between relatives go to this hall

In the eighth hall, King Dushi, Huang Zhongyong, is in charge of the Great Hell at the bottom of the sea, under the Wojiao Stone in the west. Specializes in the hot brain hell. If people in the world do not know filial piety, do not care for their relatives, do not bury their relatives when they die, or make their parents and aunts frightened, depressed, and troubled, etc.

In the Ninth Hall, King PingPing, Lu You, is under the Wojiao Stone in the southwest. In charge of the great undersea world, the Abi Hell. Those who have committed the "Ten Unwholesome Deeds" will in the Abi Hell suffer eternal suffering.

The tenth hall, The King Xue Qi, Xue Li, the palace is located outside the Wojiao Stone in the underworld, due east, facing the world of five turbidities. Is responsible for distinguishing reincarnations based on the reports from the above hells.

I can't say that I saw anything about pumpkins in these but I did just mostly skim the material. I would say read each of the individual articles (I put the link in their names) yourself if you wanna get more detailed but otherwise, this should cover their responsibilities and which hall belongs to who. I can't say if this is a 'rank' as they are all kings but the numbered hall can show an urgency of which king takes on a more suitable role for themselves. They all work together after all so there isn't really a rank of higher or lower, just different departments.

[sillygoofyqueer]

The Untamed review: episode four!!!!

My name, so this one better be good

I love the intro but it's so FUCKING LONG

Wei Wuxian, there's no way you're going to be late for this, oh my god

Also, sleeping in papers, what a guy

Lan Wangji is stealing the show so much

GUYS, SYNCHRONISATION IS KEY

Fuck me, you're going to read them all out???

I'd cry

WEI WUXIAN YAWNING ALREADY

stop yawning so much.

The fuck is that sound????

IS THAT NIE HUAISANG?????

Also, pulling that look is so amusing

Lan Wangji with the side eye, you can tell he gets it from Lan Qiren

Wei Wuxian looks so confused, poor bastard

Literally all whispering as if it means nothing

WEI WUXIAN STOP ENCOURAGING HIM!!!!!!

This is getting funnier by the deconf

The cheeky little smile and wave Wei Wuxian gives Lan Wangji, I too would be shaking in my 'gay denial' boots

Bro got iced out 😔

FUDDY-DUDDY HAHAHAHAHAHAAA

This is the look of a great friendship

The fuck is Jin clan doing??? Jin Zixuan, you aren't that important

Oooooh, bribery

I thought the Lans hated fancy things

Also THE FACE WEI WUXIAN PULLS IN AGREEMENT OF JIANG CHENG I'M CACKLING

That's right, listen to Jiang Yanli, she's the boss this time

NIE CLAN'S TURN!!!!!

This is going to go kind of bad. Or Jiang clan's, I haven't decided yet

My ass could not stand this long

The man making sure his hair is okay, literally cackling

My ass could also never be this synchronised

MENG YAO?!??! AS IN-- AS IN JIN GUANGYAO???

You know, you can tell. He has this dead look in his eyes and such a rubbery smile, it can only be one from the working class.

BRO'S ARE GOSSIPING ABOUT MENG YAO? (I don't like him, but he is tragic to be honest)

LAN XICHEN YOU ARE A WHORE AND I LOVE YOU FOR IT

Flirting fr

Also, Lan Xichen's jawline is insane, I can see why Lan Wangji mews. Has to catch up with his brother somehow.

AGH, IT'S THE WENS. SHOOT THEM DEAD NOW.

Kill Wen Chao. Kiiiiill.

WEN NING, MY LITTLE BUNDLE OF JOY!!!! YOU LOOK FUCKING TERRIFIED!!!

Y'all, literally crashing the party.

DUDES, YOU CAN'T FUCKING KILL HIM! HE'S ON FIRE HOLY SHIT

Wen Chao, when I get my hands on you *insert grumbling here*

Wen Qing, you're so pretty 😔 you and your brother are holding the entire Wen clan on your backs

Wen Ning closing his eyes, my little man, nooo 🥺

HELP THE POOR BASTARD

Oh thank god, Wen Qing, I love you.

The fuck you gonna do, Wen Chao?? She's the best.

Kill hiiiim.

Lucky.

INTERRUPTING FUCKING JIANG CLAN??? YOU BASTARDS.

Wen Ning looking down at the ground, I feel so bad for him 🥺

KILL HIM. KIIIIILL.

Lan Wangji ready to fucking square up hahahaha

Lan Xichen, I know politics and that, but it'd be so funny if he decked him, just let Lan Wangji take a swing and see if Wen Chao can get up from that.

Nie Huaisang literally gossiping, he's the best. Also he looks so prettyyy. And his fan??? I want.

Damn, Wei Wuxian, I know you've got balls, but the Wen Clan?? You brave dumbass.

HANGDOG?!???!? BRO COULD TAKE YOU DOWN WITH ONE ARM, YOU TAKE THAT BACK, YOU POMPOUS PRICK!

I love how Wei Wuxian just sighs and throws his hands up when he gets called a nobody. Truly the thickest skin.

That's right, stand up for your brother.

DAMN WEI YING, DAMN

I'd like to see you try, stuck up bastard.

WEI WUXIAN WAS ACTUALLY CARRYING HIS SWORD THIS WHOLE TIME??? I DEADASS THOUGHT IT WAS A STICK

Haha, an impasse. They'd sooo beat you down.

I like how they're so good at catching their swords. I wish I could.

Hahaha, Lan Xichen looks so done with everyone's shit. God forbid something is easy for once.

Catching everyone's attention with his badass flute playing.

L there goes the swords

They all look baffled hahaha

Nie Huaisang being gay with that look

Listen, he's an icon, okay. A massive icon.

BRO IS BASICALLY TELLING HIM TO PUT A MUZZLE ON HIS SHIT HAHAHA

Wen Qing sliding in to save the day, I love her.

Wen Ning looks so scared 😔

Don't be mean to her on WEN CHAO'S behaviour

Thanks Lan Qiren

TELLING HIM TO SCRAM, LAN XICHEN YOU ICON

"Be on time!! 🤭☺️"

I love when they gossip

Stoooop, he's ego's already immense enough as it is

"resisting evil guys is an endless joy" oh, Wei Wuxian, my beloved dumbass

Hahaha, it's stupidity, not courage.

YOU ARE SUCH A BAD INFLUENCE

"Stoooop, let me have fun"

Look, Lan Wangji, it's your boyfriend! Don't... DON'T IGNORE HIM!!!

Wei Wuxian never learns

"I fought him last night" and Nie Huaisang looks like he's about to pass out

They are such gossipers

Jiang Cheng stomping his feet as he follows haha

They obviously have alterior motives, Lan Xichen is sooo smart

He's catching on so fast haha

Lan Qiren gets his brain power from tea

I want to tug his beard tee hee

He's just dropping lore at this point

MENG YAO LOOKS PETRIFIED

Aw, they're going to be besties. What could possibly go wrong? (Foreshadowing foreshadowing)

He looks like he's about to cry, stoppp

Lan Xichen may also be having his own love crisis

WEN QING!!!!!

What you up to, guuurl?

Oh shit, you plotting. I'll leave you to it

They're having so much fun in the lake, they're literally best friends.

They share one brain cell haha

Hahahaha, the way that Nie Huaisang just takes Wei Wuxian's word as gospel

One day you'll catch a fish

Hehe, watch him pout

HE'S PLOTTING!!!

HAHAHA, DON'T LET HIM WIN

I love how he immediately goes serious

Don't just ditch Nie Huaisang like that

HOW ARE HIS ROBES DRY ALREADY???

He's so unaware of the danger he's in, that cheeky little smile

He's going to be such good friends with her, just you wait

He will get the answers he wants, he's like a fly that doesn't leave till he gets what he wants

Nice, turning it back on him

"I have serious business 😠" and she looks at him like 'what is it?' "catching fish 😌"

He's a loveable dumbass

SHE NEVER ANSWERED WEI

I wish I could dance like that. Oh, he's training, my bad.

Y'all, Jiang Cheng is so baby girl

He just feels inferior, leave him alone 😔

"You're both the same, you're dumbasses together"

Jiang Yanli, I love I live I adore

Everyone loves her soup xoxo

TAKE THE FISH, JIANG CHENG

Stoooop, he's teasing him, they're family

I hate fish but they seem to enjoy it

Goofy goobers I love

Mmm, guqin playing makes my ear drums vibrate

Everyone looks bored as shit

WEI WUXIAN IS LITERALLY SLEEPING

I want a group of randos to follow me around

HE WAS BEING POLITE!!! MOCKINGLY SO, BUT STILL

Jiang Cheng trying to wake up Wei Wuxian is so wholesome to me

NIE WAKE UP AGAIN

They're besties oh my god

PASSING NOTES IN CLASS, AND EATING!!!!

Even Lan Wangji looks ready to fall asleep lmao

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA

The glare, they're literally in love

All of the rules are boring

WEI WUXIAN, LMAOOOOOOOOOOOO, I LOVE HOW NIE HUAISANG IS EGGING HIM ON

Wei Wuxian is literally a genius, don't try and catch him off guard

Hehe, I'd do anything for Jiang Yanli to look so proud of me 😌

Literally targeting him, get over yourself

Lan Wangji himself can see his greatness first hand

THE LITTLE NOD NIE HUAISANG GIVES HIM AAAAWWWWWW

he can be proud if he wants, leave him alone

This is where it goes insane

Wangji, you show off, he does know he's just plotting

Shut up, he's just fucking calling on his star pupil to show off

Fuck off Jin Zixuan, you didn't know it either

Wei Wuxian, you are opening a whole can of worms

Lan Wangji, always there to answer his boyfriend's rival's queries

(side note: eating chicken and it's banging 😌)

Wei Wuxian, always picking things apart

Shut up Jin Zixuan, square up

Lan Wangji's side eye hahahaha

Wei Wuxian is just asking questions dude

THE SHOCK ON NIE HUAISANG'S FACE WHEN SOMETHING GETS LOBBED AT WEI WUXIAN

HE TRIED TO SHUSH HIM HAHAHA

Everyone is tryna shut him up lmaooo

He makes a point though

A THOUSAND TIMES HAHAAAAAA

He looks like a scolded child

Lan Wangji looks like it's a punishment for him as well

WEN NING MY BABY!!!!!

You're so good at aiming bbg

GO ON BABY!!!!!!

Wei Wuxian going in to compliment right away

He's forming his crush hahahaha

I love them both

"Why aren't you in the lecture?" "I'm too young, you?" "I got kicked out ☺️"

Adjusting posture? Makes for a great gay moment...just saying....

His first friend!!!!!!!

Wen Ning looks so flustered

WEN QING I LOVE YOU BUT YOU THREW HIM OFF!!!

Go on Wei Wuxian, saving the day

Wen Ning standing up for his new friend!!!

I love them

POSING HAHAHAHA

He looks like a kicked puppy

Lan Wangji is like a little stalker haha

THE ENDING IS SO LONG AS WELL

[asymm3]

the urge to write the world’s weirdest, angst-ridden carrie underwood inspired mdzs fic (stay with me here, i promise i’m not that crazy)

lan wangji gets married off to wen ruohan fairly early on to try and prevent the wen from doing their whole conquering the cultivation world thing

it doesn’t really work

wwx and lwj don’t meet again after wwx departs from the cloud recesses with his siblings and jiang fengmian until the wen indoctrination

lwj has been ordered to be there for the indoctrination as a show of the wen’s power. look at how they’ve cowed and broken the second jade.

wwx can’t really believe what has become of his friend(?). lwj’s cold facade is now completely iced and hostile. there’s an edge to him that wasn’t there before. wwx almost doesn’t recognize the man in front of him, who aggressively ignores him. (it’s too painful for lwj to see wwx and imagine what could have been)

slaying the xuanwu happens roughly the same. lwj gets left in the cave by wen chao bc wen chao is a little bitch. in treating lwj’s wounds, wwx discovers horrific scars as a result of wen ruohan’s treatment of him.

lwj returns to wen ruohan in a vain attempt to prevent any further escalation. it does not work.

everything else is pretty much the same (as much as it can be with lwj not in the picture) until the final battle

instead of meng yao/jin guangyao delivering the final blow, lwj comes out of nowhere and kills him instead. viciously. that’s what he gets for treating lwj like shit.

(i’ve listened to far too many carrie underwood songs about murdering your abusive husband)

the sects are baffled. lwj returns to the lan but struggles to return to his previous way of life. when wwx rescues the wen remnants, lwj goes with him. lwj has already been faced with his “what is black and what is white” dilemma as a result of his suffering under wen ruohan for “the good of the cultivation world.” wwx is doing good, despite what the cultivation world says, so he follows him. they establish the burial mounds settlement together. their relationship develops slowly as they grow closer.

lgy doesn’t rise to (as much) power bc he didn’t kill wen ruohan. he still tries to get up to his “orchestrating people’s deaths” bullshit

however, lwj travels with wwx to jin ling’s 1 month celebration. (edit: fixed wedding to the one month celebration. i have scrambled eggs for brains and got my timeline confused) jin zixuan does not die, but jin zixun is killed by lwj for attempting to kill wwx. there is adequate political fallout. nobody knows what to do as lwj sacrificed so much in trying to prevent the war, as well as killing wen ruohan, but he also did kill jin guanshaun’s nephew

the cultivation world settles into an uneasy peace as the new yiling wei sect rises from the remnants of the wen, headed by wwx and his (eventual) husband lwj.

lwj does not need to kill this husband

[wutheringskies]

Hi,.....if you don't mind me asking, can I ask your top 5 (or top 3) favorite characters from MDZS? And why you loved them? And your top 5 favorite moments from the series? Sorry if you've answered this question before....Thanks....

Hey! Thanks for your ask. I've never before really thought of ranking them all but here we go:

Top Five Characters (and WHYs)

1. Lan Zhan

"Lan zhan, are you hurt?" / "Of course not." | Just thinking about why Lan Zhan is my favourite makes my heart come out of my throat; but the things I absolutely love is: he's such a handsome beauty; so pretty, the zen-like state, the way he speaks so calmly, the "Mn, I'm here," the assurance and stability he possesses, the way he wouldn't even glance at people who are not worth his time, wordlessly he will help everyone he can without asking for anything, the true empathy he has, his dry humor and his displays of love, and his childish behavior and cuteness and just how strong he is; and just how he faced terrible, terrible shit and still decided to be kind.

for Lan zhan, I think of him, with his eyes soft, standing tall; taking in 33 strikes yet not admonishing wei ying who is gone, demanding to add wen Yuan to the Lan An line, drinking yet only hurting himself, not others, kneeling for 2 days for punishment for getting drunk (when he's injured) and willing to accept more punishment for injuring himself; think of his patience, gentleness, righteousness and his great sense of duty.

how he doesn't wish to indebt wei ying, how his love is so pure. "sunlight over snow"; I just feel like Lan Zhan is so good, so pure, and I love how he's so well rounded with giving him all these kinks, and passion and cold anger. I love him.

2. Wei Ying

Genuinely one of the most charming characters I've ever come across, definitely the one who suffered the most in the book yet could smile about it. he's confident, he's willing to face things, he's brave not for lack of fear, he teases and whines but is so comforting? his presence in the book is like, "don't worry, he's there. he will figure it out." though even he has limits.

just showing up to his own death planning party with 3000 cultivators asking and shouting for his demise and speaking out his mind; about righteousness and wrongs. I like to think of wei ying putting on his armor and marching straight to battle, the fire to Lan Zhan's ice. The darkness to his light and the smile to his sorrow.

3. Wen Qing

in my head I've already written such a long AU of wen qing being summoned back to life haha. i love tsunderes. i love girls. i love protective older sisters. i love doctors. wen qing is that, and more.

her genius is constantly downplayed in this fandom, but along with Wei ying, she was one of the brightest minds of their generation. i think of how brave you have to be, standing up along for your branch of people against a tyrannical relative you have, even in the throes of war, sticking to your duty. never harming, only healing. think of how she fainted when she wen ning dead, how she cried, how she was burnt to death to fulfil her duty to wei wuxian - she was one of the righteous ones. she could have killed WY and JC in the middle of the golden core transplant, dumped them to the Wens and asked for protection. but she went with crazy as fuck ideas; she helped build a home on a cursed hill. she adapted to everything and gave up everything and was kind, was nice, was fun, was brilliant and was loving.

My fourth favourite would be Mianmian (servant girl rose up to high ranks during the war, abandoned it all for a righteous cause, now goes where the chaos is with a husband who loves her, being hot and pretty af, gods) followed by Wen Ning (ah... Wei gongzi I'm sorry... I might have killed a couple hundred people) followed by the juniors.

Top 5 Favourite Moments

It's really hard to rank the moments because the plot is very well-tied. But, going by instincts:

1. If he catches me, I'll...

The whole scene beginning from the point wei ying and Lan zhan decide they don't wanna deal with the shitshow of insulting JGY and instead go to the night market, Wei ying wanting to show lan zhan every detail about his childhood, "i climbed this tree!" / "you have climbed every tree on our way here (fond)" / "but this one is special!!" and Lan Zhan asking "did it hurt?" (broke my heart goodness) and Wei Ying just having a flurry of thoughts and jumping down and saying yes it did, but now you caught me WHICH IS THE WHOLE THEME AHH.

2. Nightless City

Fuck. I'm sorry. Wei Wuxian is fucking breaking right now; it's his descent. We've seen him go through thing after thing and now he's finally shattering. He stood up against 3000 cultivators who wish to kill him, wearing robes dark as the night and he's crying and laughing and throwing back arrows and talking about right and wrong and I just. damn.

"Oh,” Wei WuXian helped him analyze, “If he wanted to to kill me, he didn’t have to think about whether it was a fatal blow or not, and if I died, it’d be my own bad luck. If I wanted to protect myself, however, I had to think about this and that not to harm, unable to take even a single strand of hair away from him? In conclusion, you all could pull a siege on me, but I’m not allowed to fight back, am I right?”

Wei WuXian’s voice dripped in ice, “Just who is the one mixing the black and the white? That’s right. If I wanted to kill him, I would’ve done it a year ago. I didn’t have to keep him until now. Or else, I’d forget such a person in no more than three days, much less a year.”

the fact he gains back control of his corpses and STOPS. he finally stops fighting back!!! just like everyone wanted!! because of which Jiang Yanli dies.

and then he snaps.

sexy.

3. Phoenix Mountain Hunt Kiss

there's something about Wei Wuxian throwing flowers at Lan Zhan, shooting blindfolded, proudly accepting the challenge to hunt like that, and going up a tree after taking 1/3rd of the prey to play Wangxian, and Lan Wangji just having enough, unable to reel his desires in and kissing him; something about Wei Ying stopping his resistance because the "maiden was trembling," and his legs being weak, about him finding Lan Zhan and Lan Zhan losing it and shouting, "GO AWAY", and Wei Wuxian's eyes getting teary and feeling insecure before his heart, which has always been soft for Lan Zhan, asking about him, if he's fine and "tell me if something is wrong :((" and Lan Zhan calming down and Wei Ying mourning the loss of his first kiss and probably thinking it could never be Lan Zhan.

4. Koi Tower

sorry I just think it's supremely hot to walk into the koi tower, take the alcohol they were forcing upon your pretty little boyfriend and throw it back down your throat and talk respectfully and then impatiently and then be a man with no status and yet scare the fuck out of everyone and walk out with your to be lover chasing the sight of you and asking "was he wrong tho"

5. Everyday is Everyday (Extended Chinese version scene)

"No need of sorry and thank you between us" followed by all the yearning for two decades resulting into a messy tumble and idk their dynamic just shines here; "you could pin me, you could - narrates explicitly what he wants to be done to him - and I wouldn't be able to resist!" -> Lan Zhan making him pay for every word -> Lan Zhan losing control and apologizing and bejng confused if Wei Ying wants it or not before understanding -> Wei Ying asking Lan Zhan for sex advice (relax...) -> their smiles and the teasing and the dialogues and the kisses and Lan zhan being jealous about that kiss and the revelation about his burn mark 😭

Hkdjsjsk I feel like I'm missing so many scenes here like the "I'm sorry for being presumptous / no, I was out of line" or the "Let losses and gains remain uncommented upon" or the whole conversation they have in Yueyang "I cannot comment without the whole picture / Lan Zhan, I admire you" or the "I was only gone for a few hours..." (I LOVE THIS ITS TOP 5 IDK WHERE BUT). Also the "ah, he doesn't know what to do after retirement? don't worry I will think for you... so we will get a house and he will cook..." or Lan Zhan drinking an empty cup of tea because he's panicked gay or Wei Ying running circles through his mind over "1 bed? 2 rooms? 1 room? 2 beds?"

Hehe! this was really long. Thanks for such a good ask, it was really fun to answer. Have a good day!

[apiratefellinlovewithastar]

🌹🌹🌹!! - 🐠

3 random wip sentences for u, fishy!

He ignores the voice at the back of his head going TSUNA NO!

“If we get there early enough Wen Chao will ignore us to go torture some other unfortunate soul to avoid the lectures himself, so I can sneak out to Caiyi for some wine!”

Byakuran laughs at him and pats his back, pushing Tsuna’s iced tea closer with his other hand.

[deathfavor]

@piscesiawave said: ❛ i’m here for you. don’t forget that. ❜ // peiwen !!

soft & sweet sentence starters

Ling Wen has long lost any ability to feel in her hand, numb from the amount of work she's been working through as her punishment for her role in everything. She's not even sure how long it's been - whether it's been three days or three months. It's all blurred together between fixing the communication arrays and presiding over them, and hundreds of thousands of scrolls and other tasks to do. She's pretty sure every god except the arts gods has dumped their paperwork onto her, and they only hadn't because they had none. Sometimes she thinks execution would have been a far kinder ending. She still half expects it for when she's caught up. If she ever does.

A wounded noise leaves her throat when she feels Pei Ming grab her hand and slowly uncurl her fingers from her brush. He's being gentle, but she's been holding the brush for so long that it feels like her hand has lost memory of doing anything else. It's like something frozen in ice that still only remembers that shape once the ice thaws. Her eyes squeeze shut, head bowed while he uncurls each one of her slender fingers one at a time, his thumb pressing into her palm and slowly massaging the muscles. It hurts but she knows it's probably best he does this. She does not retract her hand even when the pain feels agonizing. She also can't bring herself to look him in the eye right now.

" I know. " Ling Wen manages to murmur, head bowed and her forehead pressed against her wrist. He's stubborn and persistent despite everything she's done and everything that is said to him from others. He's always been the best of the three of them, the least deserving of being lumped in as the Three Tumors. Two now. " You're very adamant on reminding me. You always have been. " She chuckles, a barely present sound when she lifts her head to look towards him. Ah, he's worried. She can see it in the furrow of his brow.

Her gaze turns to watching him try to coax her hand into a more relaxed state, like it's the first time she's noticed how bad it is. It probably is, and if her hand is this bad, she doesn't even want to imagine her shoulders or back or legs. She moves her thumb to brush over the back of his hand, a small gesture that holds weight to it.

Her lips part to remind him there's a banquet starting soon that he should probably attend - all the martial gods sans Xie Lian are going to be present after all. But he probably knows that. He doesn't look like he has any intention of moving any time soon either. Instead her lips tremble, an act so small that anyone who didn't know her wouldn't even notice it. Even those who did wouldn't see it - only those closest to her would be able to perceive the break of character.

Ling Wen stays still for a moment longer before she sinks forward until her forehead rests against his shoulder. The way her muscles protest the change in position draws out another low noise of pain for a split second before she quiets again, shoulders slumped and pretense of the unyielding Ling Wen evaporated. He's so warm compared to the cold air, and his familiar scent offers an amount of comfort. It's a level of vulnerability she supposes they haven't had since before Shi Wudu's passing among the chaos that ensued after. She doesn't say anything, she doesn't cry and she doesn't complain, but the simple act of letting her facade fall is more telling than anything else of her trust in him, and her acceptance of his reminder that he's here for her.

[mdzs-owns-my-ass-i-guess]

Three times you pushed me away (and the one time I left you)

Previous parts: Forgive me and Closure

I.

The night Wei Ying returned had been cold - so cold that it felt like the wind had nestled into Lan Wangji's bones, replacing his marrow with ice and crawling up his nerve endings. It shouldn't have been so cold, he shouldn't have been feeling anything but the warm embrace of his lover and the heart-melting relief of finding him alive.

But Lan Wangji was cold. And Wei Ying kept his distance.

The moment Wen Chao, his dog and his mistress were finally dead and Wei Ying stepped out into the fresh air, Lan Wangji followed, aching to ask him, to touch him, to love him.

He was two steps away from reaching to hold Wei Ying's hand - something he used to love so much, tightly entwining his fingers with Lan Wangji's - when Wei Ying widened the distance between them with another two steps.

His expression betrayed nothing - an easy smile, self-satisfied, his grey eyes shining a faint red. But his arms were crossed, one of his feet behind him ready to step back if Lan Wangji attempted to come any closer. He was anything but open, warm, loving - the traits that Lan Wangji had so irrevocably fallen in love with.

"Wei Ying."

Lan Wangji had tried so hard not to sound desperate and yearning, had tried not to let his voice betray how hurt and confused he was to be denied any form of attention and affection. But the moment he heard himself, voice so filled with emotion, broken and confused, he knew he had failed.

He knew that Wei Ying could tell he was trying to ask him what happened? where had he gone? why was he so distant?

"Lan Wangji." Came the reply, curt, polite, emotionless. It hit him like a sword to the heart, a sharp, merciless blade into the softest parts of him. He recoiled on instinct.

"Wei Ying..."

"What is it? You keep calling my name but not really saying anything."

I love you, please, look at me, see me, why are you like this?

Words had never been heavier. "I have... waited. I've been worried. For you."

Wei Ying let out a breath, closed his eyes for a moment. The night wind flowed through his long tresses of hair and Lan Wangji's eyes caught onto the red ribbon that held some of it back.

"Wen Chao captured me and threw me into the Burial Mounds. I've spent the last three months trying to get out." He spun Chenqing in his right hand, his fingers long, deft, but slightly bonier than Lan Wangji remembered. "This is the result."

There was a pause. Lan Wangji couldn't tear his eyes from his beloved, taking in all his features. Still so very beautiful, but so visibly hurt.

"I've also had a lot of time to think." He interrupted, a bit harsher, still smiling, still distant. "Going through hell and back gives you a lot of perspective on life and relationships."

Lan Wangji could not hide how scared those words made him. "What are you trying to say?"

"I think you know. I know you know."

Lan Wangji reached forward, heart beating wildly in his chest, in his ears. "Wei Ying-"

He stepped away again, barely out of reach. "It's better this way, for both of us. Don't make this any harder than it has to be."

"Wei Ying, why-"

"Do you really want to make me hurt you?" Wei Ying cut in again, the smile wiped off his face by an angry expression. "There is no time or place for us to be anything but allies in the war against the Wens. And even if there was no war, whatever we had isn't something I want anymore."

"Whatever we had?" Lan Wangji couldn't help repeating the phrase, incredulous, hurt, angry. "You aren't making any sense, Wei Ying. You said we would have a future together, I thought we-"

Wei Ying's expression darkened, his eyebrows knitting together.

"Don't." And he brushed past, attempting to enter the supervisory office in a flurry of robes and resentful energy.

But Lan Wangji caught his wrist in passing. Wei Ying pulled away instantly, as if the other's touch burned. It was impossible for Lan Wangji to hide his hurt.

"Why won't you... why won't you let me near you?"

"I have no reason to."

Lan Wangji had never felt so cold in his life.

--

II.

"Something is troubling you, Wangji." Lan Xichen said, offering his brother a cup of tea as they sat on each side of the modest table in their tent. They had just finished a military meeting for an upcoming battle in the Sunshot Campaign, drafting up plans and objectives, strategizing to defeat Wen Ruohan.

Representatives from all the major sects had participated, including those of Yunmeng Jiang. Namely, Wei Ying had been there, and the mere sight of him had Lan Wangji distracted, quieter than usual, wounded.

"Does it have to do with you-"

"Wei Ying and I are no longer... together." Hearing himself say those words felt nauseating. All Lan Wangji wanted was to never have to say them again, and for them to never be true.

Surprise passed Lan Xichen's features, followed by sympathy. "I am sorry to hear that, Wangji. Wei-gongzi seems to be going through... many changes. Perhaps he will reconsider-"

"He will not. Wei Ying no longer-"

A familiar voice interrupted the conversation. "Sect Leader Lan, Jiang Ch- Sect Leader Jiang sent me with the documents you requested. May I come in?"

Lan Wangji paled, his expression cloudier and sadder than before at the sound of his former lover's voice.

Lan Xichen sighed. "Yes, you may come in, Wei-gongzi."

He bowed shortly and handed the sealed paperwork, never sparing a glance Lan Wangji's way. Just as he was about to leave, a Nie disciple hurriedly asked for Lan Xichen on behalf of Nie Mingjue for an important matter, nearly dragging the Lan sect leader out of his tent with urgency.

"Please wait here for a moment, Wei-gongzi, I will return shortly."

And so Wei Ying and Lan Zhan were left alone in the large tent, neither willing to make eye contact or start a conversation for quite a few minutes, tension too thick for anything.

Lan Zhan sighed, deep and pained, before speaking in a level, polite voice.

"Would you like some tea?"

"No, thank you. I just took a hold of some wine and I'll have that later." A little smile. "I don't suppose you'll want some?"

"Drinking is forbidden-"

"-in the Cloud Recesses. But we are not there right now, are we?"

Lan Zhan looked away, overcome with bittersweet nostalgia. The memory of them chasing one another on the rooftops of the Cloud Recesses played in his mind - Wei Ying's mischievous smile, the way Lan Zhan's heart skipped a beat, their shared first kiss under the moonlight...

In his peripheral vision, Lan Zhan could see Wei Ying reminiscing too, his eyes soft - and he let his gaze lock with his, wordlessly sharing in the memory together.

Then the softness in Wei Ying's eyes was gone and Lan Zhan swallowed back his tears.

"Wei Ying... why?"

His fingers clenched into a fist and he turned away. "I've already told you why."

"If...If you don't wish to be with me any longer..." a breath, stuttered, "...then at least allow me to be your friend."

Wei Ying huffed, glancing over his shoulder with an unreadable glint in his eyes. "You know that could never happen. We could never go back to being just friends."

"Then-"

"No."

Lan Wangji shrank back, defeated. Wei Ying sighed, turned back to face his ex, tired and almost bored. "It won't do you any good to hang onto the past like this. Just let go. Let me go. I'm not coming back."

Lan Wangji feels himself grip his sword, attempting to grip his emotions. "Was it all... a lie then?"

Wei Ying's eyes widened for a moment, a tiny expression of vulnerability in his otherwise unaffected demeanor. It was gone before Lan Zhan could look through the cracks, behind the mask.

"It wasn't. I didn't... use you or take advantage of you. I did genuinely have feelings for you back then. I just... moved on."

Lan Wangji didn't know whether he felt angry or despaired. "Was it - was it that easy?"

"My life hasn't been easy for a long time." Wei Ying responded, frowning, not blind to the implied accusation. "Nothing has ever come easy for me."

"I could have helped you. I could still help you, just come with-"

"I don't need anyone to help me!" Wei Ying burst. "I am doing very fucking well on my own!"

"You're hurting yourself!" Lan Zhan responded, just as angry, just as frustrated. "You're angry, you're unpredictable, your health is declining! And you won't let anyone-"

Wei Ying slammed a hand into the table, eyes red. "I don't fucking need anyone to worry about me! And I especially don't fucking need you!"

He stormed out of the tent just as Lan Xichen walked back in.

Lan Wangji left just as hurriedly, in the opposite direction.

--

III.

Victory had not come easy that day. Although the flag of the Sunshot Campaign pridefully waved in the wind, the decimated cultivators under its emblem carried nothing but injuries and irrecuperable losses.

In the straggling crowd, Lan Zhan noticed Wei Ying clutching his shoulder, the black of his robe wet with blood. An enemy had attempted to severe one of his arms and render him unable to play his flute and rouse corpses. He had failed, of course, but his sword had left a deep gash on Wei Ying - and he seemed to have a hard time healing himself.

With his cultivation base and the strength of his core, that should have never been a problem. But Lan Zhan figured maybe Wei Ying was too drained from using his new path to mind his injuries.

After a shorr debriefing on the battle, cultivatirs scattered towards their sect's camps, hungry, injured.

Many people knew of Lan Wangji and Wei Ying's relationship, very few knew of their breakup - so nobody said anything when Lan Wangji entered the Jiang camp and let himself inside Wei Ying's tent.

"You shouldn't be here, Lan Zhan." He said, hastily throwing his robe on the moment he sensed somebody else entering. He had not been quick enough for Lan Zhan not to see the many scars and bruises on his body, or the healing marks of a powerful whip.

"You are hurt." He replied, setting a little medicine box on a nearby table and elegantly rolling up his sleeves.

Wei Ying stood up and tightened his inner robe around his body. "I can handle it."

"Do not be unreasonable. You cannot reach that far. Infection can be fatal."

"I'll just tell a nurse to help if I can't do it myself."

"I'm already here. Undress and turn around."

"No."

"Wei Ying."

"Leave."

"No."

They stared at one another, determined, neither backing down.

"Why won't you leave?" Wei Ying spoke, irritated. "We're not together anymore, so-"

"You said we would be allies. I am helping you as a fellow cultivator."

Wei Ying opened his mouth to say something but decided against it. Lan Zhan took the opportunity to finally get close to Wei Ying, to maybe even-

"Don't- don't touch me." His voice was alarmed, scared almost, the moment Lan Zhan reached to slide his robe down his injured shoulder.

"Wei Ying. I've seen all of you before, there is nothing-"

He nearly ran to the other side of the tent, wisps of resentment guarding him.

"And I don't want you to see me or touch me again!"

Lan Zhan's heart squeezed into his chest, so painful, so shocked and confused. Wei Ying used to be so physically affectionate, so clingy, so... different. Now, Wei Ying was running away from him, acting like Lan Zhan was going to harm him if he came close enough.

"Wei Ying!"

"Leave! I don't want you here! I don't want you around me! Not now, not ever! Why don't you get it?!"

"Because I love you!" Lan Zhan burst at last, tears gathering into his eyes. "I love you and you couldn't care less!"

"And I'm done loving you!" Wei Ying shouted, the resentment around him swirling with his distress. "I don't need you to care for me or protect me or touch me or whatever me! I'm done, I've moved on! Do the same!"

"I can't! It cannot be anyone but you! It's only ever been you! How can you expect me to give you up-"

"Why do you have to always make me feel trapped?! I won't let you lock me away like your mother was!"

A long pause followed. Lan Zhan couldn't believe his ears and the hatred that Wei Ying had spoken those words with. Such a hard thing to talk about, such a breach of trust to throw it out in the open like an insult.

"I never meant to make you feel like that." Lan Zhan began, a lot calmer, masking his hurt behind icyness. "All I ever wanted was to love you. I'm sorry I couldn't live up to that."

He left before the mask came apart and the tears started falling.

---

IV.

It was strange, to know he was dying. The pain of it was blinding, overwhelming, but somehow Wei Ying could still think, could still divorce himself from the harrowing feeling of being torn apart. Dissociation had been one of the few skills the Burial Mounda taught him.

It was strange to know he was dying a liar. He didn't regret it, no, he had to make sure Lan Zhan was safe, away from the scrutiny and the opprobrium of the cultivation world. Away from Wei Ying. Acting like he'd fallen out of love, cruel and disinterested, was the best way he could think to do it.

Lan Zhan would surely find someone else to love and to love him in return. Such a beautiful, refined man would definitely catch the eye of equally as desirable and compatible people. He would fall in love and marry that person, maybe even have children or adopt some. He would be happy and he would forget about Wei Ying.

Somehow, the thought of Lan Zhan forgetting him hurt more than death.

---

"Did you ever believe me, back then? When I said I was done, and all that stuff." Wei Ying asked as they strolled along the beach that bordered the town they last night hunted in.

"I did not want to believe, but I did not want to be in your way either." Lan Zhan responded, fingers tightening in Wei Ying's hold.

"At Nightless City, why did you still protect me?"

"Even if Wei Ying said he hated me, I could never return the feeling. I would always love Wei Ying and protect him."

The sun slowly slid down the horizon. Wei Ying watched, quiet for a while, eyes sad.

"I'm sorry I hurt you. I didn't want to drag you down with me and I thought it would be easier for you to move on if I was despicable."

Lan Zhan stopped walking and pulled Wei Ying into a tight hug. "It is the past. No need to say sorry."

A small laugh. "You're right. I just felt bad remembering it, knowing I never apologized... I hope you know I was just acting. I never stopped loving you."

Lan Zhan kissed his forehead with a rare smile. "Wei Ying can be a very convincing actor."

"I promise I'll only ever use my talents for good from now on. For example, I can work on my helpless virgin maiden impression-"

A sweet kiss shut him up before he could notice Lan Zhan's ears burning.

[eleanorfenyxwrites]

FTH 2024

Fandom Trumps Hate bidding is live as of today and this feels like a good time to tell y'all that I'm offering two gift works this year! I had to skip last year as I had just way too much going on, and while I guess technically I'm still just as busy I really missed writing as much last year so I'm prioritizing it now. But anyway - my offerings! Here's the link to my offering page itself if you'd like to look there or think about donating, but for the full breakdown (and a bit of explanation) click the readmore 😌

So as I said I'm offering two works this year, one 5-10k words and the other 10-20k words. The minimum bid for the smaller fic is $5 and for the longer one it's $15. My ships/tags/special interests/etc. are the same for both, and for those of you who are familiar with what I write I'm sure you can guess what they are lol but I'll put it all here anyway!

Ships I will write (and they are listed in order of personal preference for writing): 3zun (or any pairing within it), Wangxian, Chengqing, Xuanli, Junior Quartet

Especially interested in: Fix-its, AU's (specifics can be discussed), Canon Divergence, Slice of Life, Fluff, Angst with Comfort, Smut, Gender Fuckery™, Rule 63/Cisswap

Ships I don't want to write: SongXueXiao or any pairing involving Su She, Wen Chao, Wen Xu, or Jin Guangshan.

Unwilling to address: Angst with No Comfort, Bathroom Kinks, Underage, Rape (I can make exceptions at my discretion depending on context)

Other notes: I can be fairly flexible! I've worked before with a bidder who wanted an extra written for one of their own stories, I can write requested extras or missing scenes for any of my existing stories/universes, or we can come up with something completely new. I prefer specific prompts, but please allow me some wiggle-room for my own interpretations, we're working on this as a team!

Special interests: F/F ships, Poly ships, Genderswap/genderbending, Canonically trans or nonbinary characters, Trans or nonbinary interpretations of canon characters

This year I've chosen to select specific charities I'd like donations to go towards, and I chose ones that take international donations and that focus their efforts on people of color, children/youths, and LGBTQ+ issues.

Organizations this auction benefits:

In Our Own Voice ["...lifting up the voices of Black women leaders at the national and regional levels in our fight to secure Reproductive Justice for all women, girls, and gender-expansive individuals..."]

Middle East Children's Alliance ["...organization working for the rights and the well-being of children in the Middle East...They are currently responding to the Gaza crisis with medical supplies and emergency assistance for displaced families."]

Never Again Action ["A Jewish-led mobilization against the persecution, detention, and deportation of immigrants in the United States, NAA takes on campaigns against detention centers and ICE training programs, and organizes mutual aid and deportation defense."]

Sherlock's Homes Foundation ["...provides housing, employment opportunities, and a loving support system for homeless LGBTQ+ young adults so that they can live fearlessly as their authentic selves..."]

And that's it really! I'm really excited to be doing FTH again, I loved it the first time and I love feeling like this ridiculous hobby does some material good in the world in a way that's a bit more targeted and magnified than the writing usually does on its own. Financial contributions to good causes isn't something I've been capable of managing in a very long time, but I can spend my time writing a thank you gift for those who can and do ❤

[mamoonde]

continuation of part 1

Wei Ying doesn't get the green light from Wen Qing. He doesn't get the chance to. 

Even with the cursed item of dubious origins -- er, well, more dubious than usual -- stored under Wei Ying's best containment talismans and protective arrays, he can feel dark tendrils of resentment energy leaking, hissing in his ears.

He ends up closing the shop early, hours before sunset. He puts up more heavy duty protective talismans (albeit self-made, not that they've failed him before) around the shop's walls, doors and windows. Just in time too, because the sealing pouch he’d stored the box in looks decidedly faded. He’ll have to make a new one after this.

The puzzle box is fairly simple to solve. A twist of the odd knob, a camouflaged panel that slides into an invisible latch, and a couple other easy tricks before the top unlocks with a loud clack.

Oddly enough, nothing happens either other than pin drop silence.

Well, that's not creepy at all. Wei Ying thinks.

Wei Ying barely has time to brace himself before darkness engulfs the shop.

"Fuck!"

Having encountered more than his fair share of cursed objects, things filled with resentment, Wei Ying knows what to expect. The ice needles digging in his veins; the heaviness driving his heart to the pit of his stomach; despair that's his and isn't seeping into his bones. He's used to hearing the voices of corrupted souls attached, echoes of the strangers passed, wailing in his head. Those are pretty much par for the course.

What he isn't prepared for is the sheer magnitude of resentment that buffets him. Nor is he prepared for the strange, bone-chilling feeling of familiarity he gets from it. 

Welcome back, master.

A thousand voices hiss and croon and purr and growl in unison, and it's creepy as fuck. 

“What the fuck are you?”

Do you want revenge once more?

“What? No! What are you talking about?”

You’re so weak now, don’t you want power? We can make you powerful once more—

Wei—

Untouchable

—Make everyone fear you—

Wu—

Invincible

—Obey you—

Xian—

Kill everyone who did this to yo—

“Shut up!” Wei Ying shouts through the din.

Immediately, the shop flickers back into view, a ringing silence filling the space. Wei Ying’s head pounds; his nose and cheek feel wet. When he rubs at it, the back of his hand comes away with dark blood stains. Belatedly, he realizes he’s on the floor, the puzzle box open in his bare hands. When had he taken off his gloves…?

Inside, sits an iron tiger amulet, barely the size of his fist, nestled in faded silk. 

Innocuous enough, except, it looks like a replica of the Yin Tiger Seal. It's worn and frankly crudely hewn, clearly not the work of a master toolmaker. For the purported source of evil and chaos that once had the cultivation world in near shambles, it sure doesn't look it.

But given what just happened, Wei Ying doesn't think it's just a mere replica.

In fact, this might really just be the real deal.

[jiaoji]

Suddenly want to write this:

Wei WuXian is pretty interested on the scene happening in front of him and Lan WangJi.

Wang LingJiao and Wen Chao are screaming at each other in the middle of the ice cream shop, like two dogs barking, the motive is some futility, like the way one talk or because one didn't listened to the other.

He drink his milk-shake, looking at Lan WangJi with his boring vanilla ice cream. They never fight, actually they never had a reason to have a fight before. Every one say that is normal fighting in a relationship, but...

Wei WuXian, "Lan Zhan!", he calls and his boyfriend immediately look at him, "We never had a fight, right?"

"Mn. This is a good thing."

"It is! I can't imagine fighting you Lan Zhan, doesn't even make sense in my head!"

"Me either. We know how to talk.", his front frowns when the screams get a bit louder.

Wei WuXian wants to go out, also wants to know what the end will be. But even when his gossip side is screaming, he takes Lan WangJi's hands and guide him out, passing by the screaming couple.

The way home is a confortable silence with the scream sounds getting more and more distant, they are holding hands and all this warm Wei WuXian's chest.

They never had a fight.