#Jiang Lung

[rufinator]

A quick lil doodle of my noodle Dragon OC as I was trying out @thedawner ‘s Amazing Brushes!! I think these are gonna be my new favourite brushes! <3

Brush Pack Used: https://ko-fi.com/s/47c6b439cc

[zishuge]

Story of Kunning Palace (2023) | Ep. 23

[weirdlookindog]

Jiang tou (1975)

AKA Black Magic

[jongrave]

Poster I did for fun for Spicy Sauce, the recent cartoon I did some work on!

Check it out HERE

[butinacoolway]

is looking for moots something that people do on tumblr as well if so im looking for 18+ moots and im into:

mdzs

tgcf

wangxian

banana fish

yut lung

ash lynx

avatar the last airbender

azula

korrasami

chainsaw man

across the spiderverse

and many other animated shows !!!

[shanastoryteller]

Happy Pride! Can I get some trans content<3

a continuation of 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45

He can’t be pregnant.

The curse mark on his arm tells him that he is living in this body on limited time. Eventually, he will die, the string keeping him inside Mo Xuanyu’s body snapping like a string and sending him back to wherever she summoned him from.

He’d let himself forget, a little. The body he inhabits is so different than the one he woke up in. He’s made her stronger, grown her golden core into a fearsome thing, worked and worked muscles until they swelled and hardened.

It had begun to feel like it belonged to him, liked he’d carved his body from Mo Xuanyu’s. The differences from his old body hadn’t felt important, and still don’t, it’s about how this is the body he worked for and made from the one given to him.

But Mo Xuanyu is dead and her body isn’t his to keep.

If he wants to have this baby, then he must betray Mo Xuanyu and her sacrifice. If he wants to bring Lan Zhan’s baby into the world, he cannot kill Jin Guangshan.

Completing the mission she retrieved him for will sever the connection and he will die again and so will the life he’s growing.

His only hope is that maybe, maybe the thread binding him here will hold long enough for him to both deliver this child and kill Jin Guangshan.

He looks from Jiang Yanli to Jiang Cheng, their fierceness and determination the closest he’s felt to home in a long time. He shouldn’t be letting them do this, shouldn’t be sinking into the comfort of their protectiveness when they think he’s someone he’s not, but he can’t help it. It makes him feel even sadder for Xuanyu, to think that they would have done this for her, if only she’d let them. Hadn’t Jiang Yanli reached out to him that very first day while he was a confused and terrified mess? And here she is now, offering to shield him from his husband, offering to help Mo Xuanyu choose her own path and either continue the pregnancy or have it end here.

He takes a deep breath, trying to stem the flow of his tears. Jiang Cheng’s hands on his shoulders feel like the only thing keeping him in place, like he’s pressing Wei Wuxian’s spirit into place in Xuanyu’s body.

He presses a hand against his stomach, thinking of the life shifting in his womb as the first lotuses that had sprouted from muddy mountainside. If he could grow flowers in the burial mounds, he can grow a child in a borrowed body.

But does he want to?

This isn’t what he’s here for. The best case scenario is that he leaves Lan Zhan behind to raise a child alone, the husband and child of the woman who murdered a clan leader. The worst case is he leaves Lan Zhan behind to mourn a wife and child and he dies without avenging the wrongs done against Mo Xuanyu. Or he can end this here, remove the potential child from the equation and kill Jin Guangshan as subtly as possible, something he has the time to arrange when he isn’t pushing his connection to this world to the brink. Then Lan Zhan will only be the widower rather than the husband of a murderer.

There are no good choices.

But he’s used to that.

He breathes in, holding it at the top of his lungs and letting out slowly.

A-Yuan had been the brightest light in the burial mounds. Anytime he wavered, aching for the life and the people he left behind, it wasn’t Wen Qing or Wen Ning of Granny who hardened his resolve once more, but A-Yuan.

He’d loved being a parent. He’d wished he really could grow siblings for A-Yuan like he’d grown turnips.

Wei Wuxian’s legacy is one of failure, of loss, of destruction. All those he tried to protect fell. All those he had protected turned against him. The last thing he will do on this earth is kill again, even if it is a man who has earned it.

He does not want to leave behind a legacy of only terrible things.  

It could all end horribly. But he’s always been foolish enough to hope for better than he has.

He finally meets Jiang Cheng’s steady gaze.

“I’ll talk to Wangji.”

[rhysiana]

Because I saw a post about how modern AU WWX would probably actually be as tall as LWJ, if not taller, since so many modern AUs don't feature him suffering as much childhood privation as canon, which reminded me of another thought I have had, about how an early life period of interrupted growth can in fact just delay a person's growth spurts rather than eliminating them. Thus: WWX who gets confusingly taller after graduating from college.

3 People Wei Ying Talked to About Suddenly Getting Taller and 1 Person Who Definitely Noticed On His Own

[Now also on AO3]

Wen Ning

Wei Ying looked down at his feet, perplexed. "Wen Ning?" he yelled down the hall. "Did something weird happen to the washing machine that you didn't tell me about?"

Wen Ning popped his head around the door to Wei Ying's room. "No? I don't think so."

"Then why are all my pants suddenly too short?" A new thought occurred to him and he looked up, now delighted. "Wen Ning! Are you actually pulling a prank on me? I know I don't have all that many clothes, but still, this must have taken so much work! I respect the dedication." He held out a fist.

Wen Ning just blinked at him. "I think... maybe you got taller, actually?"

Wei Ying scoffed. "I'm way too old for a growth spurt. Seriously, did Nie Huaisang put you up to this?"

Wen Ning gave up arguing and simply produced a tape measure instead.

~*~

Wen Qing

Wei Ying burst into Wen Qing's lab, which he might have felt worse about if she hadn't been babysitting an experiment while no one else was around. He still received an impressive glare, but he didn't have time to worry about that right now.

"Wen Qing, I need you to test me for every weird kind of chemical exposure you can think of!"

She blinked at him, looking remarkably like her brother for a moment. "Wei Ying, you're in computer science. Exactly when do you come in contact with chemicals?"

"Uh. A leak on the science campus somewhere?"

"What is actually wrong with you? Tell me in the next," she glanced at the clock, "three minutes or leave."

"I apparently grew another inch in the last month without noticing. That can't be natural. I'm 23."

She stared at him for a moment, frowned, and then her expression cleared. "You said once that you had a bad time when you were younger. Stopped growing for a while."

"Why do you even remember that?" Wei Ying asked with an uncomfortable laugh, looking away. He must have been drunk; he didn't usually bring that time of his life up in any detail. It just made people sad.

Wen Qing turned away briskly, ignoring his minor display of emotion, and checked some readouts he was pretty sure hadn't actually changed in any way yet. "Well, that's why. Your growth spurts just got delayed, not erased. It's normal. I'll send you some references tomorrow."

He swept her up in a relieved hug. "Thank you, Qing-jie. Even if this does mean I'm not developing some weird superpower mutation."

She poked him cruelly in the ribs to get him to let go. "Go away, you're distracting me."

~*~

Jiang Cheng

"You what?!" Jiang Cheng demanded at full volume. It'd been a while since they'd managed to get together in person--Wei Ying had nearly forgotten how red with frustration Jiang Cheng could get.

Wei Ying grinned and bounced a little on his toes to really rub it in. "Grew another inch."

"No! This isn't allowed! The universe can't do this to me!"

"What's the problem, little brother?" Wei Ying edged closer so he could prop his elbow on Jiang Cheng's shoulder and really lean on him. "I think I should get jiejie to measure me again and mark it on the door frame. Really make it official."

"Don't you dare!"

"Why don't I ask her now, so she'll be all ready when we see her next weekend?" Wei Ying fished out his phone and then held it up over his head, laughing, as Jiang Cheng lunged for it.

Jiang Cheng's eyes narrowed. "An inch isn't really that much," he growled, and hooked Wei Ying's leg in a takedown they'd both learned when they were 11.

Wei Ying tossed his phone out of wrestling range and turned his full attention to finding a hold that would make Jiang Cheng tap out.

~*~

Lan Zhan

"Wei Ying."

Most people claimed Lan Zhan's voice (and face) didn't have any expression, but Wei Ying could clearly hear the shock underlying his name.

"Lan Zhan!" he returned brightly. "You're back! Did you have a good trip? You've been gone for months and months!"

Wei Ying was used to the intensity of Lan Zhan's regard under normal circumstances--one of the many things he loved about being friends with him--but he didn't think he was imagining that it was particularly intense today.

"It was as I texted you," Lan Zhan said shortly, and then, surprisingly, continued before Wei Ying could get a teasing reply in. "Wei Ying... did you get taller?"

"Oh, that!" Wei Ying felt himself start to blush, for some reason. "Yeah, I did. It was so weird at first, but Qing-jie assures me it's normal, and I've almost gotten used to it now. It was just an inch but I had to go buy all new... pants..." He trailed off as Lan Zhan pushed into his personal space much closer than he ever had without Wei Ying initiating it first, as far as Wei Ying could recall. "Hi?"

They were nearly chest to chest now, and he could see it when Lan Zhan actually had to tilt his chin up just a bit to meet Wei Ying's eyes.

"Hello," Lan Zhan said, grave and low and very, very focused.

Wei Ying wasn't entirely sure what was happening right now, but he was pretty sure he was into it.

[pianocat939]

(Feral Jiang Shi Donnie because yes)

Tw: breaking in, Donnie briefly attempts to bite MC, he's a little feral-

In the middle of the night, someone rips the screen door connected to the yard, a few snarls and hisses escaping the being's mouth as it enters. It lifts its head briefly to smell food, its fingers twitching with anticipation and desire. His eyes glow a dim purple, a vengeful glint in his pupils as he explores the house on all fours like an animal.

"Sniff sniff...smell meat...smell...me?" He sits on the wooden floor briefly, raising an eyebrow while thinking: confused by his own thoughts. After a few seconds, he shakes his head, standing up on his legs this time, "No...smell human. Human smell...like grass." He scratches the hat on his head a bit before running up the stairs on all fours, like how a child would climb them up faster.

When he arrives upstairs, his pace drastically slows, and he starts to creep around, inspecting the corners and rooms. His eyes then narrow when he sees a figure laying on a giant cushion of some sort. He clicks quietly a few times before lunging onto the bed, his jaw unhinged: wide open. "Demon! Eradicate!" But he's surprised when a hand holds his throat, keeping him back.

"What the fuck! What are you! Bitch I am not dealing with this today!" For a moment he continues his growls and attempts to bite their face, but suddenly stills. His pupils dilate, to the point one would think something is wrong with him. He then starts to churr, his jaw closing and only his elongated fangs poking out from his mouth.

"Love! Hold...me!" He chirps, and before they could do push him away he uses his entire body weight to lay on them, preventing them from moving. He nuzzles his snout against their cheek, "I would...destroy...anything for you!" But then, their phone lights up, showing a notification that just came through.

Before they could look over and see what it is, it was instantly thrown against the wall. "Evil! Must...protect!" He bounds off the bed and starts to bat at the phone while screeching and clicking furiously. He seems pissed at the phone.

"Yeah ok- how about we not-" He whips his head back and glares at them as if daring them to move, "Ok- never mind then..."

They awkwardly sit in bed, watching the strange creature that broke into their house snarl and hiss at their phone. Even amused if it weren't for the fact it's their cell phone.

"What kind of feral animal are you-"

(We heart feral, dum dum Jiang Shi Donnie)

[riptide0602]

Ninjago hcs

Kai's(Smith-Jiang family's) eye color hcs:either amber,brown or sea-green eyes just like Maya's,while Nya has brown(I think this one is canon) and Ray has amber/brown eyes

After unmerging with the sea Nya's eyes started changing colors to match the nearest body of water:sea-green when near the ocean,grayish when near something like a bottle of water or sink water and etc.They will also turn glowing blue when she uses her powers on a large scale (they once turned blood-red bc she was treating an injury and blood has water in it)

Post-Crystallized:sometimes parts of her body would turn into liquid during the adjusting to being a human again(during which her eyes would be white like the foam)

After unmerging with the sea her powers became even more stronger and easier to control.After all,Nya was one with them for an entire year

The reason Nya couldn't get out the water in Jay's lungs during Seabound was because all of it kept responding,including blood and the water in Jay's body and she couldn't risk drawing out too much water and/or blood to help Jay

Pixal has Jay saved in her contacts as "extra charger"

The pink clothes Nya wore during Prime Empire shorts were given to her by Cole(they used to be Lilly's)

Nya makes the best coffee,not even Zane can match her skill there and surprisingly enough, Cole is a close second when it comes to drinks

The public didn't know Nya used to be Samurai X until a new one showed up and ninja had to answer some questions during interviews

Kai is a history nerd

All the ninja know basic first-aid,though Nya and Zane are the best medics.Kai is/was good with taking care of dragons

For a while after he learned that he was a nindroid,Zane didn't know how his body functioned beyond the basics.It's after HoT that he started learning more about himself instead of relying on Pixal,Jay or Nya all the time

All the ninja wear a bracelet that is made of interwined threads of their colors (gray for Nya,purple for Pix,gold for Wu and the rest are obvious)

Nya loves animals(this one is based on Wu's teas ep and how she seemed to like Zippy in the Island)

All the ninja+Pix see Wu as a father figure(even if some of them already have fathers)

Same with Misako

Mrs.Benedict constantly scares Lloyd by appearing out of nowhere in the weirdest places

Mrs.Benedict loves Nya and Pixal the most out of the entire group

After Seabound-Crystallized Nya always smells like sea and the salty air of the beach

Wu and Misako are best friends(the love triangles/angles in ninjago are a pain,so I'm ignoring them),but when it comes to history they're rivals worse than Oni and Dragons,FSM and Overlord combined.It's always fun for the ninja to watch their debates(especially when Misako is right bc those are the times when Wu says that he was there when the events happened)

Garmadon and Maya were best friends,same with Ray and Wu

Wu is Kai's godfather,Garmadon and Misako are Nya's

Wu anonymously helped Smith-Jiang siblings when he heard that their parents were gone,but he didn't take them in for two reasons: he wasn't doing well after Garm's banishment and he didn't have a legal identity to prove that he could take the siblings(not that it would have stopped him,but the first point stands)

Jay and Nya weren't in a relationship until s6, they weren't a couple during or before s3,but did go on dates or hangouts

Nya has a green burn-scar thing from Tiger Widow venom

Nya misses being a part of the sea and hates herself for it

Zane sometimes missed the cold of the Never-realm and how close he was to his element as Ice Emperor

Nya still has marks all over her body from merging with the sea and sometimes they glow

Elemental masters are naturally more durable and stronger than humans(the reason Cole managed to survive the Oni clouds) and once they master their powers,they age slower too (they look younger than they actually are)

[incorrectly-quoting-mxtx]

Jin Ling: I am decayed. My lungs are full of thorns and mildew. My bones are held together by vines. I am fragile, be gentle with my corpse.

Jiang Cheng: Get out of bed. You’re going to school whether you like it or not.

Jin Ling: I REFUSE!!!

[whumpbby]

I really like the idea of JC with NMJ during the Sun shot campaign, the big belly is really doing it for me. But also, it's during (or soon after) Sunshot, so both WWX and JYL would be alive to see it, later on JL would have siblings and NHS would be an uncle. I wonder how it would change the plot, would anyone survive thanks to baby fever or would it somehow cause more deaths. Would NHS involve JC in his plotting now that he's family or can having family distract him from his grief enough to not plot. What if NMJ didn't die (unlikely but still). Also I can't use question marks for some reason.

Anyway back to the actual babies, of course they're big. Biggest babies you'll ever see with lungs that can scream your ears off. They will be given the most appropriate and lovely names possible of course. JYL will get to pick one.

I have so many ideas now about thisTT more or less sad/happy

How about just after Sunshot, when WWX is being dumb and staying with the Wens and JC is desperate to save him. Desperate enough to go to the one man that stood in his way - and the one that he had a chance of convincing, the one he had something to offer to...

He goes to NMJ and offers him an heir.

There's not a lot of gentry omegas left after the war. There was never many of them, but the Wen liked to target them to demoralise their families and so there's just a few left and they're all staunchly protected by their packs.

Jiang Cheng knows that the Nie are traditionalists, that their heirs are meant to be born from an alpha and an omega. He knows that the Nie don't have any omegas of an age and position appropriate for Nie Mingjue. He knows that for all his sect being a shadow of what it was, he's a perfect option for the alpha - he's an omega from a good bloodline, he has proven himself in the war, he's young and has a chance of carrying well, their characters are compatible. His pack is small, but dedicated to him and through his sister he has ties to the Jin sect.

Nie Mingjue will have problems finding a better carrier for his heir.

"Most importantly, do you even have the time to wait for another match, Nie-zonghzu?"

Nie Mingjue scoffs and wants to call Jiang Wanyin shameless, but the truth is... no, he doesn't. He knows he doesn't have as much time as he'd like to have - not only to sire a child, but to raise it, to see it grow, to prepare it for the role it will take in the future. He didn't think about it during his youth, because he was focused on raising Huaisang, and during the war there was simply no time.... but now, when they're all focused on rebuilding and repopulating their ranks, the idea of a child came back. His advisors mentioned a heir a time or two already and Nie Mingjue knows it will keep happening more and more as times goes by. He is expected to sire a child, and soon.

And yeah, maybe Jiang Wanyin is desperate enough to shamelessly sell his body for a group of Wen dogs and the shixiong that abandoned him, but Nie Mingjue is just as desperate to not leave his brother in the position he never wanted to be.

Can he weight his hatered for the Wen against his responsibility to his pack?

"I can't advise you on that, da-ge." Huisang's face didn't show a sign of sour, but his fingers were tellingly twisting the tassel of his fan. "Jiang Cheng is a good man, he sticks to his word. If you think he will be a good option, I will have nothing against it."

"It's shameless," Nie Mingjue said sourly. "For an omega to use their body in a trade."

"Certainly. A pitiful thing, to resort to such means," Huaisang looked at the wall as he spoke. "Alphas certainly don't need to lower themselves in such ways."

His little brother, so scathing in being of offhand.

"I'm certain your sworn brothers will have more insights into the situation than me, da-ge. I don't really know about politics," Huaisang noted with a sweet smile "You're lucky indeed to have their support."

Ah yes, quite cutting, his didi.

They didn't exclude Jiang Wanyin from their brotherjood on purpose - they just... didn't think of him at the time. The Jiang sect was non-existent and Jiang Wanyin was chasing shadows on the battlefield, searching for his shixiong, staying on the outside, tending to his hatchlig sect and costing up to Jin Guangshan...

"After all, I'm an omega myself, brother, I cannot be expected to keep up with all that, right?"

Not like Jiang Wanyin, who was raising his sect from the ground on his own shoulders, with little help from anyone. Was it a wonder he wanted his shixiong back, then? Even at the cost of his own body, was it a wonder he was desperate for the support from the last of his family left?

Mingjue burned to consult with Lan Xichen, who was always so balanced and objective when it came to inter-personal politics. But he didn't. Lan Xichen, raised in righteous and prohibitive sect, wouldn't understand. Romantic as he was, Zewu-jun wouldn't approve of the idea - whereas the Nie sect was fine with having their pups born out of wedlock, the Lan were conservative enough to demand marriage and mating before the offspring could even be discussed.

They could not marry, they could not mate - not two sect leaders. What Jiang Wanyin was offering him was a business transaction, borrowing his body for nine months in exchange for shutting up about a handful of Wen dregs.

He could carry on his vendetta against remnants and follow Jin Guangshan's lead, a case he had nothing to win in. Or he could have a strong heir born out of a strong omega of good blood. Jin Guangyao was his sworn brother, but Jin Guangshan was nothing more than a slimy, greedy, distasteful little man that needed someone to cut him at the knees from time to time. Jiang Wanyin was young and inexperienced, but Yunmeng had a strong trading history, with all the rivers going through it, and getting his hands into it ahead of time was just good politics. Once the Jiang sect recovered, good trade deals would put the Nie ahead of others in terms of recovery from the war.

Lan Xichen and Jin Guangyao were his sworn brothers, but his father taught him to never put all his eggs into one basket.

And Jiang Wanyin was in no way hard on the eyes either.

(Mingjue could only imagine the spark in his father's eyes as he smacked his shoulder in glee and approval. The same spark he saw the few times when his father looked at Jiang Furen during sect conferences she deemed to be present at, to argue for her sect when Jiang Fengmian was happy to settle for less.)

("A good omega." Mingjue remembers his father saying. And somehow it didn't sound the way everyone else used these words to diminish the gender, didn't sound pitying or off-hand. These were words of admiration, a rare thing from his father.)

In the end, he'd be a fool to decline the offer.

-------

It can go two ways ;) Either the happy ending when the pregnancy changes things: WWX sees how much JC is willing to sacrifice to help his case and comes to reason, NMJ gets himself roped into saving the Wen and that leads to Wen Qing helping with his health, so he doesn't die and so he can raise his child and slowly fall for the omega that birthed it.

Or it can go as canon goes: the seed takes, but WWX still looses his mind and kills JZX, and the siege happens, with a pregnant JC leading the charge and then birthing the pup in bitter resentment of its life making no difference... all he had sacrificed, and it still wasn't enough. The Nie get the pup, but NMJ still gets murked, and Huaisang makes a production out of not knowing how to take care for a pup, so he hands them over to JC to raise and so JC is a lonely omega of Lotus Pier, raising two heirs of sects that won't be his...

[curiosity-killed]

always running after you

[ALT ID: A digital illustration of Jiang Cheng from MDZS standing waist-deep in a lotus pond, one hand cupping a glowing lotus blossom still rooted under the water and the other hand reaching forward as he lunges in that direction with an anguished expression. A tattered red ribbon flutters just out of reach and leads to the faint depictions of Wei Wuxian, Jiang Yanli, Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan walking away from Jiang Cheng into the dark.]

[weirdlookindog]

Gou hun jiang tou (1976)

AKA Black Magic 2, Revenge of the Zombies

[jcs-singular-slut-strand]

Damn Jiang Cheng, you really gonna stand there and watch as someone else lunges at your ex boyfriend shixiong in a homoerotic manner

[thatswhatsushesaid]

Why didn't Su She just grab JGY and teleport out of the temple? Was his cultivation level really low? Did he need a recharge??

it's funny you should send me this ask, anon, since it does form the basic premise of a fic I am working on (kind of).

sms's cultivation level and martial arts skills are quite good! before uncovering his identity as the mystery swordsman responsible for absconding with xue yang's body and, presumably, the stygian tiger tally, wwx is impressed by his techniques and capabilities. during the second siege of the burial mounds, sms is the one who leads his moling su disciples in performing the altered song of vanquishing to seal the spiritual energies of everyone else present at the siege--and, once he is found out, he makes use of a teleportation talisman to escape (abandoning his own disciples in the process after tricking them--not a good look, minshan). he's using these talents towards a terrible purpose in this moment, of course, but this speaks to someone who does have a strong cultivation base; his own guqin isn't named in the text, but it is described as a first class spiritual tool comparable to lan wangji's. just because he isn't lan wangji, lan xichen or nie mingjue doesn't mean he isn't a strong cultivator! he's just not a cultivation prodigy.

(though, as an aside, it takes a different kind of gumption and courage to go from being exiled from your sect and branded a coward, to establishing your own sect in mdzs's jianghu.)

so, bearing in mind that he did just exert a considerable amount of that energy during the second burial mounds siege, I do think he was 'running low,' as it were, and didn't have much left in the tank. that said, I do think it's possible that minshan could have made use of a teleportation talisman for both himself and jgy, just because of how much spiritual power he pours into nanping [edit: not nanping!! i forgot that lwj already shattered nanping earlier in the confrontation. so this is a different sword, but i think my point still stands] in his final attack on nmj moments before his death. I am glad that this moment was included in the donghua and very sad it was changed in cql:

(highlighting that short paragraph up top just to indicate the short-sightedness of huaisang's revenge vision quest here. nmj's fierce corpse is a danger to everyone in this confrontation, not just jgy; moments earlier, he'd not only lunged towards both jin ling and jiang cheng, but even towards lan xichen and huaisang himself.)

I love this paragraph; I love that in this moment, minshan's martial prowess and his strong cultivation base get to shine, because he is a character who has gone through the entire novel belittled and mocked and denigrated by everyone around him because of his cowardice, his inconsistent control over his spiritual abilities, and his decades-long grudge against the gusu lan (and lan wangji specifically). all of that remains true, and in this moment, he is incandescent and capable and putting every scrap of remaining power that he has into this attempt to strike down nmj and protect jgy. it's beautifully and vividly written and demonstrates just how unwavering his devotion is to the only person in the text to consistently treat him with respect and dignity.

that said--

the moment of his death unfortunately encapsulates his achilles' heel, both as a character and as a cultivator, imo. minshan's problem isn't that he has a weak spiritual core and weak martial arts: it's that he is impulsive and prone to extremely poor judgment in the heat of the moment (case in point: he curses jin zixun for the unforgivable crime of... wounding his pride. I mean, I too think jzn is a cunt, but like, come on minshan). he pours so much dazzling spiritual power into his sword that it shatters, rendering him defenceless in the face of nmj's attack.

imo this is a pivotal moment in the final confrontation in the guanyin temple where both sms and jgy could have escaped exactly as you suggest, anon. if sms has enough spiritual power remaining to accidentally shatter his sword, he probably has enough spiritual power to activate a teleportation talisman (either while nmj is still staring at the empty coffin or after forcing him back with that initial sword thrust) and escape through it with jgy in tow. but he didn't, because that isn't the judgment call he made in the moment.

[shanastoryteller]

Happy Halloween something with Ron Hermione and Viktor and Wangxian?

a continuation of 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

By the time Wei Wuxian makes it to the top of the waterfall, it's solidly morning and he's sore and exhausted and every step causes pain to shoot up his legs and every breath threatens to turn into a cough.

Perfect.

In the Jiang, they drown their children.

Wei Wuxian, thanks to his time on the street, hadn't been forced to endure that particular training very often. Nothing grows a core faster than fear. Than desperation. Than terror.

Madame Yu had thought that Shijie's weakness was because she was too soft on her. She hadn't made the same mistake with Jiang Cheng.

It's easier with kids because they think they're really going to die. Older disciples know better, know that their elders are carefully watching them and the water and that a dead disciple doesn't do anyone any good.

No one wondered how the undisciplined Wen managed to produce such powerful cultivators.

Wei Wuxian already had a decently impressive core before his parents died, and then the months as a beggar child meant that that pressure ballooned his core even more.

He's exhausted and the cliff pokes through the water in places and from this height, the impact in the water will kill him before the cold even has a chance.

There's a very real chance that this will kill him. But frankly, he's on borrowed time in a borrowed body, so it's not like that matters.

He grips his sword, takes a deep breath, and jumps.

Flashes of the last time he fell off a clip flash in front of him and his breath hitches in his lungs. It's cold and miserable and the water is approaching him rapidly. He should pull out his sword and slow his fall, but he's too far away still, he's sure that he'll be okay, so he has to wait until he's not so sure.

He has to be afraid.

The space between him and the water gets smaller than smaller and he's sure he's going to end up with broken bones if he even survives this. He's not scared enough yet. He has to wait.

Then there's an arm around his waist, jerking him upright and away from the water.

He reacts without thinking, unsheathing his sword and twisting in the grip and rolling his attacker over in midair. He shoves his blade against a pale throat, heart beating too fast in his chest.

Lan Zhan is holding him upright, pressing him against his chest and his eyes, normally cold, are furious and he's unnaturally pale. "Xuanyu! What are you doing? Have you lost your mind? If the patrol hadn't told me where you were headed-"

Irritation melts away the shock. Wei Wuxian wrenches himself out of Lan Zhan's grip and pushes him away. Lan Zhan lunges for him, but Wei Wuxian jumps onto his sword and keeps himself out of reach.

Damn. He couldn't have done that this easily before, and he definitely shouldn't be able to do it at all with how thoroughly he's exhausted himself. Lan Zhan has actually done him a favor by stalking him for no reason.

"If I want your help, Wangji, I'll ask for it," he says acidly. He hasn't used just Lan Zhan's first name since they've married, knowing how he'd feel about it, but right then he just doesn't care. "Why were you following me? It's not like you've paid me any interest."

Which was a good thing, really. He needs to do his research and it's not like Lan Zhan wanted this marriage and it should be fine for both of them.

If Wei Wuxian is a little resentful that he doesn't get the chance to even be Lan Zhan's friend while he's his wife, that a him problem.

"So you just throw yourself off a cliff?" he thunders.

"What I get up to isn't your concern," he says. "Mind your business."

He turns, intent on flying back to Cloud Recesses, or at least trying to, when there's a hand holding his wrist in a vice like grip and keeping him in place.

Lan Zhan fingers are probably going to leave bruises behind, but Wei Wuxian can't focus on that with Lan Zhan holding him so close and looking at him so intently. He's not even falling. What is Lan Zhan doing?

"You are my wife," he says severely, "you are my business."

Wei Wuxian's eyes narrow and he sends out a shock of cultivation energy to get Lan Zhan to loosen his grip. "Then act like it."

On his way back to Cloud Recesses, Wei Wuxian thinks that was probably a mistake and he's going to regret it.