#and half the dramas cease to exist

[anditendshowyoudexpect]

it’s not that Woo Joo wants to protect him (just like Ji An definitely doesn’t love Dong Hoon as early as in ep3), her innate sense of justice doesn’t allow her to stand and watch Dong Jin being abused, she does that instinctively, despite her ridiculous grand plans of revenge. the parallel is other people misconstruing a relationship that puzzles one side of it and has a hidden agenda for the other, very personal for Woo Joo, nothing personal just business for Ji An. so maybe it’s only a matter of time before it becomes an approximation of this:

[cielelyse]

Favourite 5 Saezuru Scenes

I recently reread Saezuru for the umpteenth time and just needed to gush about it like a crazed person who constantly hallucinates about Yashiro being happy and soOooOOooo.................

1. Why now? (Chapter 25)

These 3 panels kill me always... although it's the entire chapter 25 actually, and not just these panels. This broke me when I first read it nearly a decade ago, and it breaks me every time I reread it. I recently just listened to the drama CD for the first time and wanted to hear how this scene played out (a.k.a. wanted to hear Yashiro moan wkegh;ghwle) and I did not expect to start bawling and sobbing uncontrollably when his flashback appeared. WITH THE MUSIC AND EVERYTHING. THEY DID NOT SPARE ME. FUCK. What was supposed to be a tender and gentle and loving and intimate scene between them turned into Yashiro facing the effects of his childhood trauma -- that will never cease to hurt me. Doumeki saying "kashira, kashira, kirei" right before that broke me in a way reading that scene in English couldn't. I WILL NEVER GET OVER THIS and if I keep writing about it I'm gonna cry again so:

2. Car ride back from Kageyama's clinic (Chapter 4)

This is mostly for nostalgic reasons, really. I first read Saezuru in 2013, and I wasn't used to Yashiro at first. I didn't know what to make of him.

So what happened was that I read "Don't Stay Gold" first and was like... there's a manga about this mildly threatening and unreadable yakuza dude who's Kage's friend…? Who played cupid for him in a weird way? HMMMMM dubious, dubious. Would I even like him? It took me a while, but I finally gave Saezuru a shot anyway, and I remember feeling uncertain about Yashiro up until those panels. I remember it so starkly, because this was the instant I fell in love with him. I think it was because this was the first time I understood the depth of his loneliness (since I hadn't read his high school oneshot yet at this point).

There's just something about how Yoneda Kou-sensei draws these kinds of pages that just resonates with me so well. I CAN'T EVEN DESCRIBE IT. It just connects with me the way Yashiro connects with me, and that was pretty much it for me. Obsession sealed. Life signed away. For the next 10 years I would follow the story closely and routinely check every few months for updates. Yashiro became one of my only 3 comfort characters, and rereading Saezuru always gives me a catharsis and sense of peace that I didn't know how to find elsewhere.

3. "To go on living this strained existence... no longer holds any meaning to me." (Chapter 34)

This scene is one that I come back to every time I'm down. AM I A MASOCHIST? I really like the June translation too: "To go on living this strained existence no longer holds any meaning to me." I think the way the panels divided up those thoughts were brilliant!

This especially hurt me because for the entire manga up to this point, Yashiro has stated that he completely accepts himself and he's happy with who he is. It wasn't until his realization during the sex scene with Doumeki and how much he's said/done hurtful things to Doumeki afterwards -- who he considers pure and sweet and good -- that he thinks this.

4. "Falling in love feels like this" (Chapter 33)

The first time I read this, I had to set my PC down, go out to my apartment balcony, and just silently stare out into the night and resist the urge to smoke (that was half a joke) (I did feel a pang in my chest though) (and I did have to fight very hard not to smoke lwkehg;hge). I love the dialogue right after these panels too, when Yashiro said, "Your sister was lucky that you were there." That, along with Doumeki's reaction, hurt.

This was such an intimate scene between them. Yashiro was so vulnerable. So was Doumeki. I hadn't realized this until I reread Saezuru this year, but these two have always had such intimate scenes right from the start. It was a slow burn, yes, but they had always been instantly drawn to each other: Doumeki thinking Yashiro was beautiful and captivating, and Yashiro doing something he doesn't normally do with his subordinates the first time he met Doumeki. And it didn't clue in for me back in 2013, but their conversations with each other were much more intimate than the conversations they'd have with anyone else, right from chapter 1. I find that so precious.

5. Dream (Chapter 40)

I couldn't not include a scene from post-timeskip, BECAUSE I LOVE POST-TIMESKIP. I love Darkmeki and I love Yashiro and I love that the theme of post-timeskip centers around "change". Wish I could include that conversation Yashiro had with Tsunakawa about it, because I thought that drive-home was brilliant. I really appreciate that Yoneda Kou didn't have Yashiro and Doumeki get together right away after they have sex, and I really appreciate that the question was raised of: Do people change? Can people change on their own, or would you have to force them? Or are we always the same at our core? And I think the answer is of course a mixture of all of it, and that it's very much circumstantial and subjective, but I love how we're able to see the shifts in both Yashiro and Doumeki. How both men aren't quite the same people we knew pre-timeskip. Ten years ago I didn't think I would meet a version of Yashiro that wouldn't talk about sex 24/7, but here we are.

(Not to say that they're completely different now. They're still our Yashiro and Doumeki of course; I just wanted to gush about how well Yoneda Kou were able to flesh out her characters in such a complex, multidimensional way.)

ANYWAYS, I went on a rant without even mentioning these panels of Yashiro's dream. I love everything about it: Doumeki's face not showing, Yashiro running away and turning back to see Doumeki not there anymore, and that last panel of him standing in the middle of nowhere, lost and empty and lonely -- all of that was so incredibly told in pages of no words. UGH YONEDA KOU IS A GENIUS. It reminds me of that page of Yashiro looking at a mother and child in the rain; it's one of my favourite scenes too.

Honourary Mention (Chapter 4):

I should end with a more light-hearted one. THIS WAS CUTEEEE. I remember reading this for the first time and thinking Yashiro was just salty that his roleplay got ruined. But upon second reread (and maybe I'm delusional here), I thought he might've been happy to hear Doumeki say that.

We know Yashiro gets angry and irritated whenever he's happy to hear something sweet from Doumeki (like that extra when they ate together LOL), and that he had the same reaction of kicking the chair when Doumeki said he can't touch Yashiro's hair anymore. Which was cute to say. So I thought Yashiro might've lashed out in annoyance because he was glad that Doumeki doesn't mind. (I tried putting myself in Yashiro's shoes so many times trying to imagine how I would feel if Doumeki had said this............. and somehow came up with "happy" xD)

...........or maybe this was obvious to everyone and I've just been clueless. AAAAAAAA THIS IS WHY I LOVE ABOUT SAEZURU SO MUCH. It never spoon-feeds you information and lets its readers interpret :")

[a-araiguma-a]

Between the serving and Her smile

Pairing: Oliver Wood x fem!reader Warning: mutual pining, drama, first love, jealous a/n: sketching an idea, I hope you will be interested in it and I will continue to develop it.

Start - Prolog (Episode 1 - Episode 2 - Episode 3 - Episode 4 - Episode 5) - Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6

The noise of the wind, cut by brooms at high speeds, became a familiar background for Oliver Wood. Quidditch was not just his passion, but the very essence of his existence. He was the captain and keeper of the Gryffindor team, and his quest to win the Quidditch Cup became an obsessive goal. All his thoughts revolved around tactics, training and strategies, but sometimes his own heart reminded him of another, equally important side of life.

[Your name], a girl with surprisingly deep eyes and a radiant smile, burst into his life as suddenly as a gust of wind on the field. She was a half-breed, her father was a Muggle, and her mother died in childbirth, but it didn't matter to Oliver. Her intelligence, kindness and support captivated him, and he could not resist her charms. Their friendship began innocently, with nighttime gatherings in the library and help with homework. In the fifth year, someone noticed the sparkle in their eyes for the first time, but then none of them understood it. It wasn't until his sixth year that Oliver realized he couldn't imagine his life without her. That after completing their studies, their paths may diverge.

Love turned out to be more complicated than he thought. Oliver would do anything for [Your name], but Quidditch remained in the first place in his life. He devoted his days and nights to training, forgetting about meetings with her, postponing dates and leaving her alone on holidays. He didn't do it on purpose, but when he had so many thoughts about strategies and victories in his head, time ceased to exist.

Oliver knew she was in pain. She never complained, but he could see the longing in her eyes when, once again, he left her for Quidditch. And it tore at his heart. He wanted to be with her, but the desire to win was too strong.

Back then, as a freshman, Harry joined the team as a Catcher, Oliver felt relieved. He finally found someone who could help the team win the Cup. But with that came new difficulties — early morning workouts and even more hours spent on the field. This further alienated him from [Your Name], and jealousy began to gnaw at him from the inside.

Oliver couldn't help but notice that other guys were starting to hang around her. Books will be delivered, flowers will be presented, and someone else will invite you on a date. He felt his heart constrict when he saw her with others. These thoughts haunted him, and he knew that he had to act, but how? His day was scheduled by the minute — study, training, tactics. There was no time for a personal life, and it tormented him.

When Oliver overcame all difficulties and misunderstandings, he tried to be the perfect partner. He took care of her, supported her in everything, but with the onset of the seventh year, everything became more complicated. There were final exams ahead, crucial Quidditch matches and their relationship.

Anxiety for the future increasingly consumed him. He was afraid of losing her because of his obsession with Quidditch, but he couldn't give up on his dream. His love for [Your name] and passion for the game pulled him in different directions, tearing him apart.

Oliver stood on the edge of the field after another practice session, watching the sun slowly set over the horizon. He knew that difficult trials lay ahead, but he believed that love and Quidditch could coexist in his life. He swore to himself that he would do everything possible to preserve these two treasures, even if it required the impossible from him.

[pansysgothgf]

I’m thinking about how this season THEYRE revisiting everyone’s worst traumas: (spoilers)

Bobby- his family’s death (the cruise and 7x08 from the trailer and episode descriptions)

Athena- Harry being involved in an incident at a convince store that could’ve ended up with him dead, similarly to how her fiancé died at the connivence store (correct me if I’m wrong, it’s been a hot minute)

Hen and Karen- their adoption going through, the same way it did with Nia

Chimney- Kevin and Doug (in 7x06 specifically)

Maddie- Doug (in 7x07 specifically)

Eddie- the Shannon of it all

Which leads me to like, what’s in store for Buck? I would say maybe it’s already been addressed (we’re seeing his fear of being replaced (with Eddie in 2x01 and then with Tommy in 7x04) and then his abandonment/intimacy issues in the context of his relationship with Tommy) but…

When I think about Buck’s biggest traumas, I don’t necessarily think about Abby or Ali or Taylor.

When I think about Buck’s biggest traumas I think about him getting blown up. I think about the embolism. I think about the tsunami. The lawsuit. The shooting. The lightning strike. And of those ones, I think his relationship with Christopher is a big part of why they’re so impactful. Christopher gives him the card before he throws a clot. Christopher is with him when the wave hits. Eddie tells Buck that the lawsuit is affecting Chris. Eddie gets shot and Buck finds out that not only would he have been Chris’ temporary guardian while Eddie was in a coma, but his legal guardian in the event of Eddie’s death. While Buck’s in his coma, the person who Buck feels the most guilt over leaving behind in that twisted reality is Chris (not his parents, who finally love him. Not Daniel and Genevieve who will cease to exist. Not Maddie who doesn’t know there could be better. Chris, who asks Buck for help and for the only time so far in the show, Buck has to refuse. Because that’s not his Chris. He needs to get back to his Chris, because that’s the boy he promised to always be there for).

After the truck bombing, every major trauma Buck lives through is at least partially centred around Chris, and we see how their relationship develops through these traumatic experiences.

So, pray tell, what the hell is going to happen to Buck and Chris and how the fuck is Eddie going to cope with it when we’re already watching him devolve into… madness? The death of his moral compass? Desperation? Whatever it is, it’s dark.

(I would also argue that Eddie’s biggest trauma after the death of Shannon was his s5 breakdown, so. I wouldn’t be surprised if we revisited that)

(Also also, I think Hen’s biggest trauma pertaining to the job was the civilian who she hit with the ambulance, and I would LOVE to see that touched on again for angst’s sake. Or you know: Hen’s dad, Eva, Denny’s bio dad, Karen’s journey with infertility, that time Karen got a little blown up, Hen’s med school friends, that time Hen seriously considered letting go of her morals to watch Eva die because that would be the only way to free her family of the mess she created. You know, any of these could work. All I’m saying is that ABC home of Grey’s Anatomy and 9-1-1 and its love of secret siblings and half siblings COULD throw us a curveball and give Hen a secret half sibling on her Dad’s side. For the drama)

TLDR: if we’re gonna talk about the 118’s trauma, Buck’s needs to centre around Chris. Burn down the loft with Buck and Chris in it, Tim. I dare you.

[dangermousie]

Dramas for the first half of 2023

Now that we are six months into 2023, time to do one of these posts. I am gonna include both Korean and Chinese dramas, because why not and any drama I even checked out is on it.

DRAMAS WATCHED

29. Romance of Twin Flower  (China) - make it cease existing! My favorite het web novel got murdered and then had its grave spat on.

28. Dominator of Martial Gods  (China) - if MST3K still existed, this drama would be prime material for it.

27. Wanru’s Journey  (China) - acting. Try it!

26. Royal Rumors  (China) - they tried acting. But forgot to try having a functional screenplay on top.

25. The Last Princess  (China) - acting is nonexistent and the story is trash but it never aspired to be what it wasn’t and was kinda cute.

24. Oasis  (Korea) - great acting in a story with a screenplay that goes round and round fruitlessly like a hamster in a cage.

23. The Trust  (China) - the OTP in this one swaps bodies but it would have been better for everyone if whoever made this and an actual competent writer swapped theirs.

22. Snow Eagle Lord  (China) - yet another drama in which Xu Kai does his best to keep acting opposite a wooden costar and through a terrible screenplay. There is something seriously wrong with that man’s career choices.

21. Heartbeat  (Korea) - the good: it’s harmless. The bad: it’s harmless.

20. Back from the Brink  (China) - ummm the people are pretty? And if I were 10 I’d be all about this show but as is...

19. Joseon Attorney  (Korea) - slightly less fun than reading a legal treatise.

18. The Starry Love  (China) - the definition of a xianxia playing it safe and pastel; I did love the secondary couple a lot but it was not enough to save that snoozefest of a drama.

17. Chong Zi  (China) - badly acted and a screenplay that somehow manages to be both repetitive and disjointed. But I am a sucker for the shizunfucker trope so here we are.

16. Island  (Korea) - a mess but Kim Nam Gil is hot with a sword.

15. Circle of Love  (China) - rationally, a hot mess. But so entertaining and addicting and fall of make outs of epicness!

14. Lady Durian  (Korea) - makjang from the Queen of Makjang and with that scrumptious cast! This is gonna be GOOD!

13. The Forbidden Marriage  (Korea) - sweet and oddly charming despite nobody in it bothering to act much.

12. Pledge of Allegiance  (China) - the way they had to edit it likely due to censorship made it less than it what could have been but still more than most dramas this year.

11. Choice Husband (China) - delicious cliches and tropes and angst in the rain!

10. Hidden Love  (China) - to make ME of all people to care about a fluffy modern is a bona fide miracle but the two mains are chemistry machines who portray longing so well.

9. Gone with the Rain  (China) - wildly uneven but our heroine and the sexy general she eventually chooses are pure gold!

8. The Secret Romantic Guest House (Korea) - how to do youth sageuk right. Everything about this just works!

7. Alchemy of Souls: Light and Shadow  (Korea) - it has flaws but is so gorgeous and full of longing and grief and everything good!

6. Tale of the Nine Tailed 1938  (Korea) - a sequel/prequel that is almost as good as the original, how often does that happen?

5. See You In My 19th Life  (Korea) - wacky and grieving, delicate and odd, this is everything I ever want in a kdrama.

4. Call It Love  (Korea) - a truly exquisite story of trauma and loneliness and healing and love.

3. Till the End of the Moon  (China) - gloriously messy in every way this is just MORE. The ending is enraging and there are issues but when it hits, it hits so hard the rest of it does not matter - the dark characters, the dysfunctional love story, the battles, the insane visuals, the EVERYTHING of it. This is what fantasy should be like.

2. Chang Feng Du/Destined  (China) - came out of nowhere to own my heart via its story of growing up and finding love and slow organic relationship building and keeping your soul in a world of horrors.

1. The Ingenuous One  (China) - the best one, so I am gonna talk about it below.

FAVORITE DRAMA

The Ingenuous One - so impossibly solid, from acting to visuals to screenplay to EVERYTHING! Adult characters with adult issues and choices, both moral dilemmas and battles equally compelling. The love stories, the friendships, the shades of grey. This is utterly and completely adult.

WORST DRAMA

Romance of the Twin Flower - if I could make one drama cease to exist, this would be it.

FAVORITE MALE CHARACTER

Tantai Jin, Till The End of the Moon - the best character this year hands down - by turns (and timelines) unhinged monster, a contained saint, a victim of abuse trying to attain being viewed as human, a schemer, a ruler, grief personified, curiosity and monstrosity and nobility all mingled.

Runner up: Jang Uk, Alchemy of Souls - sunshine boy gone dark and grieving, but still with that same core of steel.

FAVORITE FEMALE CHARACTER

Shim Woo Joo, Call It Love - she’s damaged and impulsive and relationship-phobic and revenge driven and glorious!

Runner Up:  Shu Ya Nan (The Ingenuous One) - allowed to be tough and dark and with her own agenda and not a member of a good sect and just so cool.

NEEDS TO BE MURDERED

Han Dong Jin’s Mom, Call It Love - that woman was horrifying and the source of so much of his trauma; a real realistic monster petty in all ways except for the damage she inflicted.

FAVORITE SHIP

Gu Jiusi/Liu Yuru, Chang Feng Du - wholesome and helping each other grow and talking it out but also there is blood feeding and midnight rescues and everything. They are good but not in the least boring.

Runner Up: Woo Joo/Dong Jin, Call It Love - two wounded souls finding such slow but such amazing healing with each other.

FAVORITE SECONDARY OTP

Su Ming Yu/Ke Menglan, The Ingenuous One - there’s actually been a lot of good secondary OTPs this year (General x Fox in TTEOTM, Investigator x Princess, TIO, Rang/Mermaid, TOTNT1938) but these two owned my heart - gentleman merchant x gambling hostess ftw.

NOTP

Romance of Twin Flower - they took my favorite het novel OTP, smart and coldblooded and forces of nature and turned them into THAT?

SHIRTLESSNESS AWARD

Xiao Hong Ye, Circle of Love - guy was a terrible abuser but those pecs were the real sin!

CRAZIEST FUNFEST

Circle of Love - screenplay written by rabid monkeys and populated by a bunch of psychos but such ridiculous, irresistible fun!

FAVORITE SCENE

Tantai Jin confronting Li Susu in jail, Till the End of the Moon - the energy, the intensity, the darkness the EVERYTHING.

BIGGEST CRUSH

Li Gong Quan, The Ingenuous One - yeah whatever, I realize he’s a minor character but I loved him so much! The whole having to bring down your benefactor who’s gone evil tho you are in love with his daughter should have been a whole other drama!

BEST SCENE STEALER CHARACTER

Chen Wende, Gone with the Rain - most of this drama is not that exciting but whenever his King of Trolls hot general shows up, I sit up and pay attention. I am 35 eps deep because of him.

NEEDS A SEQUEL

The Ingenuous One - I am dying to see what happens to royal investigator and supposedly dead princess, how our OTP will travel the world, the merchant and his lady, Ten Taels and his orphans and his girl and just everything. I loved these people so!

NEEDS A DIRECTOR’S CUT

Till the End of the Moon - it was clear they cut a BUNCH in the last third to fit the ridiculous new “40 eps or bust” rule and it would flow so much more smoothly if it was allowed to breathe.

NEEDS SCISSORS TAKEN TO IT

Romance of Twin Flower - it should have been shredded into nonexistence sorry not sorry.

TOO MANY SCISSORS TAKEN TO IT

Pledge of Allegiance - this drama was good but had gaping lacunae where too many scissors were taken to it for censorship reasons; I am surprised even what’s left was allowed to air tbh but still...

TROPE THAT NEEDS TO DIE

Shrill = cute - I see it every year, I hate it every year.

FAVORITE TROPE WE’VE SEEN A LOT OF

Hot Men Whump - come one, TTEOTM alone would fill the quota but we also had CFD, Call It Love, See You in my 19th life etc etc.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT

Back from the Brink - it’s based on a novel by an author whose other novels (Zhao Yao, Blue Whispers, Mulberry Song) I adore and the novelist was the screenwriter so I was so excited. But it was a juvenile, flat mess that de-powered the heroine and taught me that yeah, sometimes the writer should not adopt their work.

BIGGEST GOOD SURPRISE

Chang Feng Du - I loved the novel but the trailers were a fluffy bland disaster and I checked it out with zero expectations. However, this is a glorious adaptation, a lesson in how to transport a massive novel on screen into slim 40 eps and to account for changes in medium and stricter censorship restrictions for dramas versus books while keeping the essential vibe of the original.

BEST NON-2023 DRAMA I’VE WATCHED IN 2023

The Imperial Doctress (China) - the pining the pining by the Hot Emperor! This is like all my web novel dreams come true!

MOST ANTICIPATED

A Journey to Love/Prisoner of Beauty/My Journey to You/Kunning Palace - maybe one of them will air before the world ends.

[green-tea-in-absinthe-bottle]

THE NIGHT BELONGS TO YOU

Blade x fem!reader fanfic

MASTERLIST

Summary - in this chapter we accidentally get entangled in political drama, Blade appears in second chapter but this one is very important for the story. Reader discovers her special ability that she will use a lot in next chapters, slight romance with side character.

CHAPTER 1 - In turning divine we tangle endlessly  

Sounds of heavy breathing filled the room, sultry air felt thick in her lungs. Y/n turned around in her sleep, visions of thousand futures kept her in a chokehold, made her want to scream. She begged this being to release her, to just stop this torture, but this half-insane deity she suspected to be Terminus, Aeon of Finality never really paid attention to her or her pleas. They seemed to only look through everything in front of them, engulfed in foggy memories of futures long gone and inverted prophecies. Y/n was sure she would end up the same if she listened to them any longer. Their partially incomprehensible incantations were carved into her mind.  

She felt her heartbeat speed up to the point at which she was sure she's dying. Drewing in a sharp breath, she waited for her end with dull headache and violently trembling body. It didn't come.  

Her eyes opened.  

Oh, how she missed the days when the only topic of her nightmares were the last weeks of her planet’s existence, Yaoshi's abominations  destroying the world she used to know. Her beautiful Arkona, burning and decaying. Forests she grew up wandering turned into graveyards, mountains she watched through windows of her home split in pieces, songs only she in the whole universe remembered never to be heard again, monuments turned into dust. The most painful day of her life. Still, she begged the constellations from her memories, so cherished and worshipped by her folk, to save her from prophet's madness even if she has to relive this suffering every night. 

She got out of bed and hurried to the nearest workshop. After Arkona ceased to exist Y/n found save place to live on Xianzhou Alliance’s ships as well as the chance to get revenge on abominations, she spent her days in nearby forgery, infusing swords and arrows with magic, power of Lan's blessing flew through her fingers and echoed in every spell.  

 - Is everything alright? - concerned voice of Zhang, blacksmith she cooperated with today barely reached her mind. 

Nothing was alright, she couldn't shake off feeling of unease and she could still hear words of Terminus, ringing in her ears. She couldn't hold herself together but for the sake of getting the work done she pretended it was fine. Y/n looked up at tall craftsman, admiring his tanned face and shoulder-length black, silky hair tied with black ribbon at the top of his head. 

 - You worry too much, I'm fine, it's just... I had a nightmare again. 

Compassion in his gaze surprised her, after all he had a reputation of a cold man. For a second he had an expression on his face like he wanted to hold her, but quickly it disappeared, leaving no trace on his face.  

 - I understand. Maybe you should take a break today. 

 - Absolutely not, if I have nothing to keep myself busy with all those memories will overcome my thoughts, trust me. It will only make things worse. - Y/n lied only partially, she truly hoped to find solace in her work, but it wasn't past she had to run away from today, it was the future.  

 - If you say so... Well, looks like it's your turn. Do your magic, charmer. - Zhang spoke as he stepped away from the newly crafted weapon.  

Y/n took still warm sword in her hands. Inhale, exhale. You did this so many times, she tried to convince herself. But something felt awfully wrong and familiar in the worst way possible. Ignoring how tense Zhang looked observing shakiness of her hands, she chanted. But what came out of her mouth terrified her to the core. 

 She could barely recognize her voice, words she heard in her nightmares seemed even more alien when spoken aloud. By her. And she couldn't do anything to stop it. Her own tongue seemed foreign to her, her lips no longer obedient. She could only watch how the sword levitated mid air, glowing with ominous light. At last, the chant came to it's end (or was it beginning?), strong hand of Master Zhang caught the falling sword and y/n's world stopped turning.  

She exchanged anxious glances with him . 

 - I will bring it to Furnace Master immediately - Zhang declared with serious look on his face.  

[stromuprisahat]

I know that the show retconned and changed a lot of things in its canon as well as the book canon, so this won't matter at all, but Shu Han and Ravka were at war with each other, and it never really ended in the books. In the show, Alina is to become queen, and she's half Shu. I wouldn't expect that to go down well at all in a well thought out story, like I would expect an assassination attempt or an attempted poisoning or something. A half Shu queen on the throne along with a king who is already being gossiped about because his parentage is suspect would actually make for an interesting court drama but the showrunners are cowards who won't think about this ever. What are your opinions on this?

Totally.

I also found hilarious their "solution" of getting the sword from Sankta Neyar. Woman doesn't give a flying fuck about anything but her husband (or is experimentation on Grisha also non-existent in the show?!), but agrees to give the Crows her sword, because they mentioned it's for Sankta Half-Shu? I'm sure the anti-Ravkan sentiments didn't exist 400 years ago. Or Neyar's just not a racist, only doesn't care about anyone but her own...

I almost burst a vein laughing, when Alina was like "I'm gonna be SO different Queen. I'll make friends!" at the end. I mean... making friends in politics?! I'm certain no one thought about it before! (I believe it's called "diplomacy", and it tends to be used before violence, but don't tell her. It's her first day and she's trying...)

Then again, this season's writing considering, I wouldn't be surprised if the Shu realized they're treating Grisha horribly and ceased the fighting to worship Sankta Alina. Probably begged her to rule them too...

[quickdeaths]

@more-than-a-princess continued from here

Shinobu bristled. She was used to being misunderstood. Anzu would argue that it was due to the way she spoke, that she didn't make being understood a priority. There was truth to that, they supposed, given how little they didn't offer correct anyone who had taken their words the wrong way. And yet... There was something about this particular interaction that pushed them to ensure their words weren't misconstrued.

"You've misunderstood me, Miss," Shinobu murmured, hands crossed over their chest as they found further space for themselves under the covering. "When I spoke of tourists, it wasn't literal." She was obviously not Japanese, so perhaps Shinobu's words had offended, but even that seldom mattered to her. A veiled accusation of impoliteness, though, was one thing Shinobu couldn't stand. She was an unkind person, truly, but rudeness was a step too far.

"Rather, this event is for the benefit of music, visual arts, and other traditional pursuits. In the modern era, those who strive for excellence in such fields operate at society's fringes." Shinobu herself understood that feeling, though her icy heart repelled any attempt at shaming or belittling her. Even for a master of an art like herself, societal pressure would so often rather see her as a businesswoman.

Perhaps Anzu was a better example, a peerless, generational talent, a genuine genius in an art that many people forgot existed in the age of television dramas and imported American films. How many times had she heard that she should switch careers, to give up her craft in favor of modeling hand soap or being the twenty-fifth chair in a morning variety show? Small-minded idiocy.

Again, they bristled, questioning for what purpose they were even bothering to explain themselves. "The eccentricities and the dedication of such figures is derided by the society at large. For those socialites whose livelihoods depend upon stamping out that dedication to then surround themselves with art and play at a night of creativity, only to wash their hands of it in the morning as though the ambition of the most dedicated among us were dirt upon their palms, strikes me as shameless behavior."

Most of the time, Shinobu considered herself restrained, and though she hadn't shown anything, she could feel the smallest of embers burning inside of her, directed not towards Sonia but rather many of the fundraiser's organizers. A lifelong businessman, a scandal-ridden politician, the heir to a telecommunications empire, all using a fundraiser as a stepping stone to boost their own reputations.. "I have no issue with those whose appreciation is genuine. It's those who fake their appreciation in the name of status, that I find distasteful, regardless of national origin."

She did not enjoy being worked up, and Shinobu forced herself to cool off, extinguishing those small embers without mercy or reservation. The offered card and pencil provided the excuse to cease speaking long enough to return to their typical, frigid state. Rather than write her name, though, Shinobu simply began to sketch in the designated area. Never would she call herself a visual artist, but something simple wasn't beyond her capabilities, and as she handed the pencil back to Sonia, her drawing was revealed: the head of a deer, one half furred and alive, the other half simply a stripped skull. The in-between.

There wasn't time to say much else before Sonia was whisked away. Shinobu was left alone, until her phone began to buzz inside her jacket pocket. Anzu. "Shinobu-chaaan~ How's the fundraiser? Are you having fun? Making friends?" Shinobu scowled. "You're obnoxious, Miss Tachibana." Over the phone, Anzu gave a weak, whimpering sound. "Miss Tachibana, huh? You ARE mad." Whatever faux-gloom had settled into Anzu's voice dissipated quickly as she let out a soft giggle. "Sorry, sorry. I've just had so many shows recently, and fundraisers can be so stuffy! Much easier just to spend time being adored at the host club."

Shinobu's expression didn't improve at all. "You said you weren't feeling well." "Oh, did I say host club? I meant hospital ehehe..." Anzu gave a weak, fake cough. "But enough about me, don't dodge my questions!" Shinobu let their eyes flick upwards, looking back into the ballroom. "Neither fun nor friends, no." "Really? I'd thought you'd be popular. You haven't talked to anyone?"

"I should return home." "She's totally dodging the question! You did talk to someone! A girl? Did your Rules come up? Oh, tell me ab-" Shinobu sighed, rubbing at one temple with her free hand. "You're obnoxious, Miss Tachibana. I will text you later. Goodbye." End call, power off. What an annoying companion, she thought, even as she dried herself once more with Sonia's handkerchief and returned to the ballroom. It would be rude to leave after having signed Sonia's card, they supposed.

[inked-out-trees]

Tell me about fixed point my friend. In return I offer a monologue from one if my stage scripts, Matthew's Marvelous and Mystifying Magic Act (ironically preceding my knowledge of magic goes wrong)

Matt Thank you, to those of you who have stuck around to see the latter half of the production. We’ve had a few minor hiccups, but the show must go on, as I have to fulfil a contractual obligation to our sponsor: Wowzafresh cleaning products; scrub away your past with the all new ultra deluxe exfoliator, not safe for human use. Anyways, it seems my parents have still not arrived, though upon checking my email I’ve found that in response to the tickets I sent my mother she has sent back a link to a two year course in Accounting. Perhaps she is hoping I will one day take after my younger sister, a rather successful paralegal, in having a career she can tell her book club about and not receive condolences in return. Still, as a brief note the rabbit has been captured and safely returned to its cage and Sasha and I will be arranging a carpool after the performance to get rabies shots. I would highly encourage any of you who may have come into contact with it to do the same. Now, back to the magic!

(He is visibly startled by the smoke bomb this time, not managing to exit before it dissipates. Instead he just waits for Sasha to open the curtain.)

man i'm starting to think that you didn't find the goes wrong franchise... the goes wrong franchise found you

as a (fictional) scientific concept, the fixed point theory is a maxim of time travel that suggests that the progression of events is relatively immutable - summed up in the phrase anything that has happened will happen, and anything that will happen has happened. mainly, if a person goes back in time to do anything, whatever they do will ultimately contribute to the version of the "future" they know. vanessa speaks to this rather confusingly in the first chapter: "if she went back and time and killed her grandfather, she wouldn't cease to exist because her grandfather wasn't actually her grandfather, and this was how time was and he would always die like that. or something."

specific events are known as Fixed Points - moments in time that everything surrounds, like nails in a string, things that Cannot Be Changed, even as little bits and pieces shift and twist. most of what we know as history consists of fixed events. the shattering of the cornely drama society is also a fixed point.

this reminds us, as time travelers, that despite the freedom and adventure that comes with it, all our choices still have lasting effects - you can't go back and change it once it's happened. as a bonus, it means that the cpds didn't fuck anything up when they went to the seventies 😁

(also, it's just very important to the plot.)

thanks for the ask you're the best!!!

[imarawbu]

It looks like I will be coming into contact with F soon unfortunately.

His mother requested us to bring an item from my husband's home country. It's easily available on Amazon, which I've told her and its the exact same product. So I actually ordered from Amazon because our suitcases were full. I asked her when she wanted my husband to bring it to her and she wants to invite us and her son and daughter in law. It may be tomorrow or it may be next week. It will definitely be soon and I do not want to see any of them or interact with them. It also gives them the chance to poke and find out more stuff, since they are not safe people, I don't want to discuss it and it gives F an opportunity to tell my husband or whatever. This will be a disaster if that happens. I am unsure what to do, I don't interact much with F anyways, so there is no chance he will ask me anything beyond, "how are you doing." His wife may ask though, his mother doesn't know as far as I know.

I have had a bad feeling and a sense of impending doom since yesterday. I don't think this is it. This is very minor. I think something else is going to happen. Things are either going to escalate or he's going to do something to me. Or maybe it's just that I've been watching too many crime dramas and true crime...

It's very clear I am slipping further into depression and hopelessness. There really is no way out of this once Ino longer have a job. Yes, I like the idea of not having to work shitty slightly above minimum wage jobs, remote or not. But this is not how I wanted it to be. I wanted to enjoy being a housewife. Trying new recipes, playing with my daughter, finding new experiences for her to try, increasing my knowledge in other areas. As it is, I barely have the energy to do the basics. And I have to deal with basically being treated as a slave, emotional and verbal abuse, etc. I will effectively be trapped. I will be totally financially dependent. Let's be realistic. Getting a second job is more realistic than my husband getting a half million dollars in investments to pay off the house. Now, this is probably my only hope, which is nothing lol, it will certainly not happen in the next year or less, if ever. But I have no job, no hope of getting one, and would have a new set of challenges as a single mom. Very honestly I just want to cease to exist. It's clear I am not a good mother, I would damage my daughter the way my mom damaged me. I have no chance of improving my life with a small daughter: no going back to school, no chance of remarriage (not that I am even remotely interested in that), no friends or making new, good ones, nothing. My life is wasting away anyways. I will be turning 26 in a month.

[jhnanino08]

I recall lying on the sand as a kid and being amazed by the splendor of the sky and the birds soaring above it. Our house was near the seaside, and as it turned out, it became my refuge from the perpetual pressure. But the adults used to persuade me as a kid that millions of axes would come down on me and slash me to pieces. Obviously, I trusted them.

Gazing at myself, it has grown into half of my aloof memories of my youth, but presently, as I've gotten older, I see it was merely an embellished tale that many adults would impart to us in order for us to blossom into what they meant us to end up being.

This is the portrayal of an adult young man who was more deeply cherished by his maternal grandparents than by his birth parents. A story of a young man who was encouraged to conform to the standards set by society and who dreaded snapping pictures because he was skeptical that he seemed lovely in them. This youthful individual, who is progressively tracking down what they truly are, is a young adult who has ceased caring about how others see him.

Hey there. I'm Irish, and this is my way of welcoming you to my domain and getting to know me.

Age, 20. Occupation? I am still pursuing my academic degree in business administration. My SOGIE is cisgender male and at present resides in Antique, the realm where the mountains meet the sea. Currently, the inside of my chest is brimming with feelings, as are my thoughts on what I am going to compose next because it's been years, I suppose, since I hadn't created a blog.

I've recently grown more self-sufficient (due to my shift to college). It's been unbearable for me to be away from my family while looking out for myself. Fortunately, having become an enlightened and optimistic individual, I was aware of it all. I am fond of enjoying pieces of music that make me feel like the main protagonist, inventing scenes in my head in which I am the mastermind of my own personal drama. Taylor Swift is a top-notch musician, and Fearless is one of my indispensable recordings. In reality, my concert hall is my bathroom. I have the volume on my speakers switched up to 11 and shake to each and every note of the music. Genuinely savoring the present moment because I am the moment, and it is of no importance because I own it.

I cherish individuals. Growing up, I was fostered by a family of conservatives, and the wisdom they imparted in me has been with me all my life. In this vein, I radiate excellence in my academics. I had been playing badminton throughout fifth grade and had competed at the level of provincial competition. Unfortunately, I got merely a bronze medal. Being a wannabe photographer, I've constantly been collecting visuals since then, and the rush of adrenaline and pleasure it offers me exceeds anything I couldn't have imagined. I came across personally as adept at multitasking and had recently been enjoying online games such as Call of Duty as well as reading Manhwa, which is my ultimate guilty pleasure.

I've been accustomed to the affluent and underprivileged dimensions of my environment my whole life. I had no idea the manner in which to be affectionate (at least not until I met someone exceptional), which makes me plainly emotional. Yet on rare occasions, I enjoy wanting to fantasize about anything. Isn't it awful that I make up my own contexts in my imagination around the term "romantic"? If I were to tell my younger self just one statement, it would be, "I'm proud of getting you this far." At some point, I realized that I had little authority over my abilities. I am fond of sci-fi stories, and oftentimes I wonder, "What if a parallel universe exists?" To assume you've spent an agonizing existence here, in this Milky Way galaxy, elsewhere in the center of infinities and coincides for the better part of your life.

I anticipate I hadn't composed so dramatically, but I think that's it; there could be more later, or I don't know. Thank you for consuming your time to read this; it's good to be alive. Xoxo.

[thenightstroll]

Why the silent treatment, tblr...pqx...rst?

I've been blocked. Yet another day well spent, even if quite not so. Honestly, I've tried to make a honest conversation. S#i7 happened, drama commenced, in short, it turned out as usual. Yet again. I would rather honestly have some "[USER] can't stand your existence, please cease and desist the process of bothering [USER], you creepy s#it br@in. In the connection with the some, or all of above, you've been excluded from any and all options of interacting with a [USER] ever. Have a good day." As sad as it can be, I'd like some of that, rather than some mysterious server errors I've been encoutnering ever since, that seem to be impossible to resolve by the otherwise ever skilled and vigilant crew of the service, for the last half a year, or so.

I feel reassured from staff's care about me not ending at mental collapse, because someone on Teh Interwebs finds my quite blatantly awkward and authistic (even I, myslef find them so) efforts (and what an effort those are!) to be bothering enough to bother themself to block me. However, I am not quite easy to shatter, so I would appreciate nice feedback, even on not-so-nice topic as being ignored. And to anyone, who really find me good/bad enough to be worth this extra step of willful hitting the "ignore" button, please humour me, be so courteous, and send me notice. That would get the message come through faster, spare me the effort of checking the genuinity of the alleged "error messages", and some bad PR to the service crew. Who are kinda awesome. I mean the crew. And the service. Also the ignore messages. Although the messages aren't, because there are none. But those would be awesome, if they existed. Even if they wouldn't be the "ASESOME" awesome.... Damn. Brain. Now we stahp. That's EXACTLY why I can have no nice chat, you see. Anyway,

TL;DR Do what you need, because you can. But do it in style and gusto.

[sounmashnews]

[ad_1] Badhaai Ho reworked the course of Gajraj Rao’s profession. Ever since, the actor has been impressing us along with his immense expertise. He now stars alongside Madhuri Dixit in Anand Tiwari’s movie Maja Ma, which is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video. In a candid chat, he talks about his journey, the zone of cinema he belongs to, and his motivation to work in Maja Ma — Madhuri Dixit. Excerpts: What about Maja Ma appealed to you probably the most? It’s a household drama and although the colors and spirit have a Gujarati vibe, it isn’t stereotypical or language-centric. The title Madhuri Dixit was sufficient for me to do that movie. The biggest motivation was her presence within the movie. Unko itna dekha hua hai, unko itna admire karte hai, so to have the ability to work along with her and be supplied an vital half alongside her was a giant deal for me. I'm from Delhi, and because the time I used to be doing theatre there, I bear in mind flocking to cinemas to observe her motion pictures like Hum Aapke Hain Koun and Prahaar. I really feel Madhuriji’s journey is harking back to Rekhaji as each had been capable of strike a positive stability between stylised industrial cinema and hard-hitting movies (like Mrityudand). The manner they easily switched their persona for various sorts of cinema was admirable. Did you ever assume that someday you'd be paired reverse Madhuri Dixit on display? I by no means thought it was potential. When Anand Tiwari first supplied the function to me, I assumed it have to be some half, however once I learn the script, I figured it was Madhuriji’s husband’s function! My pals within the US couldn’t imagine it. They known as to ask, “Gajju, are you sure that you have been paired alongside Madhuri Dixit as her husband? You are her hero!” I instructed them it’s not a hero-heroine story. It’s a household story. I don’t belong to the Shah Rukh Khan, Anil Kapoor hero zone. You want a sure expertise and traits for these roles, and I don’t have it. I can act a bit of, and I'm glad I bought this half. I come from a theatre background, and the universe I belonged to solely permitted me to admire somebody like her from a distance. Being such a proficient actor, why did you are feeling that working with somebody like Madhuri was a protracted shot? Agar aap gully cricket khelte ho with a tennis ball, and somebody tells you, ‘Gajraj, now you get to play a proper match with Sachin Tendulkar at the Wankhede Stadium’, this was that feeling. Madhuriji is to movies what Tendulkar is to cricket. They each have excelled of their craft. The expertise of working along with her and being round her for promotions surpassed my expectations. When she enters a set, she ceases to be Madhuri Dixit. On set, she was Pallavi Patel (her character in Maja Ma). She is aligned along with her character on and off the digital camera. Are you glad that cinema is lastly shifting away from the everyday hero-heroine topics to character-driven tales like Maja Ma? Event movies, like Baahubali, demand larger-than-life characters as a result of they're made on a sure scale. I like what Tom Cruise, Shah Rukh Khan or Tiger Shroff carry to the desk. You want that hero-like charisma for these big-ticket entertainers, and we want such tales, too, as a result of they're aspirational. Aap hero ko filmon se hata nahi sakte as a result of actual life mein hero bahut kam hote hai. Like a parallel universe, two sorts of cinema can co-exist. Amitabh Bachchan dominated as a famous person, however on the similar time, there was additionally Amol Palekar who the widespread man may establish with. Rekhaji did potboilers, but in addition did Umrao Jaan. There is house for each sorts of cinema. Has OTT modified the sport for actors, and would you say that the medium is extra age and gender inclusive? OTT has democratised issues as a result of there is no such thing as a Friday strain. Theatres want huge faces for large openings. Audience shaayad Gajraj Rao, Ritwik Bhowmik, ya Srishti Shrivastava ke naam pe theatre mein nahi jayegi.

Niche viewers aayegi, however most might not flip up. So, theatres want actors who're proficient and have sure stardom. OTT doesn’t have these restrictions, so you may inform a narrative freely. You can solid actors strictly on the premise of their performing calibre and never stardom. The script is the brand new hero on the net as a result of folks have the ability of a distant. It’s a golden interval for actors and technicians. Look at Raveena Tandon, Sushmita Sen and Juhi Chawla…they're doing such good work on OTT. Maybe it was tough to put in writing related elements for them in industrial cinema attributable to field workplace calls for. Good writers at the moment are in demand as a result of they've that freedom. The story of Maja Ma revolves round a household. What was the temper like on set? The bonding and interplay between the relations within the movie — Madhuriji, Ritwik and Srishti (who play out youngsters) and me is unbelievable. There was heat, love and laughter on set. No one rushed house as soon as the shoot was over. We performed antakshari and dumb charades, and big credit score goes to MD for bringing that power on set. With different stars, their entourage will be overwhelming, however her crew is sort of a fly on the wall. They’d quietly sit within the nook. Unlike many profitable stars, she doesn’t put on her famous person standing on her sleeve. Working along with her felt like a lovely dream. [ad_2] Source link

[conarcoin]

r/hobbydrama masterpost

i love this subreddit so much i read it way too much when i’m bored. so i decided to compile a list of some of the most batshit insane writeups from this subreddit

Four for the Price of One: How a venerable furry artist pulled off a harmless long con that lasted 30 years

Creatures, or how the US Navy genetically engineered an animal to only feel pain.

The bisexual genderswapped JFK abortion Zootopia fanfiction webcomic trilogy drama, and an explanation of how those words actually go together

Cease and Digest: One man’s quest to erase all men from his Skyrim vore mod

The admin who created 80,000 pages about titties

That time a female chess player was accused of hiding a supercomputer in a tube of lipbalm

How Destiel made everyone on Tumblr and Twitter regress 6 years and go fucking bonkers

“Space Buns”: How an Animal Crossing player’s hairstyle led to doxxing, death threats and destruction

The ongoing drama behind unconverted Neopets

Neopets introduces NFTS, burns itself (and its goodwill) to the ground

How history and gay porn defeated a sci fi alt-right takeover

How a decade of teen obsession with an incel created a thrilling horror mystery plot

So what happened to the guy who made Minecraft, anyway?

“Sexy times with Wangxian”: How one hated fanfiction and its record-breaking (and computer-breaking) number of tags caused mass protests on one of the internet’s largest fansites

The legacy of Wifemas 2020, or how a transphobic grinch accidentally caused a Christmas miracle for LGBT+ Neopets players

Controversies, death threats and hacks: The story of Minecraft Monday

Dream and the Glow Squid: how one of Minecraft’s most famous creators brigaded a poll and started a backlash

The tale of how someone spent $1500 in game currency on r34 art

How a Discord of Tumblr “real witches” banished a bunch of “fluffy witches” to the Weenie Hut and then vanished

A chance of 1 in 7.5 trillion - The time Dream (might’ve) cheated

The HIV+ high school AU/cannibal mermaid Hamilton fanfiction incident

The furry that sold for $20.5k

Yogventures: How a group of YouTubers attempted to crowdfund a Minecraft clone and threw half a million dollars down the drain

“The haters need to BLEED for their crimes!!” - The s(ae)ga of Sonic.exe

How two moderators hacked their own forum to spite the admin

How over 200 characters were wiped from existence: the Ken Penders story

[pudding-parade]

Me, attempting to get back into doing the Tumblr thing. Me, seeing EA’s announcement about CC monetization. Me, LMAO and glad I don’t play TS4, since that seems to be where most of the “early access” nonsense is.

EA was so, so stupid to allow that nonsense. Copyright exists for a reason, and one reason is to prevent dishonest people from making money off of a property that you own. Because this “permanent paywall” crap -- not to mention the doxxing and whatnot -- is exactly what happens when you allow that kind of crap. I’m pretty sure EA stepped in with T$R in their badder old days to rein them in, and now the very same thing is happening because of the “early access” nonsense that EA allowed, only this time it’s not just one site of assholes, it’s multiple assholes all over the place. 

The community just reaped what EA sowed, and it sucks. It sucks especially for the non-asshole creators who thought they could have a nice little side hustle (which they shouldn’t be able to do at all, but I get why people went for it and I get the emotional reasons why people want to support others that way), and now it’s yanked away from them, which is probably especially bad in these economic times. But, really, the only legitimate way EA could have done what they did would be to have CC creators who want money for their stuff to become official licensees, generally meaning they’d have to share some of their profit with EA. EA could remove the license at any time if the licensee misbehaves. That’s why licensing exists. There’s accountability that way. EA should’ve known better than to do this half-assed shit because if you give some people an inch, they will take 100 miles.

OTOH, I don’t see how EA is going to enforce this. Are they going to waste their legal department’s time sending out cease-and-desist demands to everyone who gets money for their CC? Are they going to be investigating every report to make sure that the reported person is actually doing something wrong and isn’t just the victim of a pissed-off drama queen? Somehow, I don’t think so. But I guess we’ll see.

[translations-by-aiimee]

The Husky and His White Cat Shizun - Chapter 32

Original Title:  二哈和他的白猫师尊

Genres: Drama, Romance, Tragedy, Xianxia, Yaoi

This translation is based on multiple MTLs and my own limited knowledge of Chinese characters. If I have made any egregious mistakes, please let me know.

Chapter Index

Chapter 32 - This Venerable One is Coaxing You, It's Alright

Through the heavy lotus leaves, Mo Ran reacted like he had been struck by lightning. He was frozen in shock, all the conflicting feelings in his heart going wild, his expression unable to hide his emotions.

Shock, anger, bitter jealousy, irritation; all burst in him like fireworks. He moved his lips but was so angry, he couldn't even get a word out. He didn't even know what he was angry about. There was only one thought going through his head --

This Venerable One has slept with this guy. You think you're worthy enough to touch him?

Chu Wanning, you arrogant, egotistical, lewd slut! You, I can't believe you . . .

He didn't react at all. In this life, Chu Wanning didn't have the slightest passion or desire to engage with him. In an instant, something in his mind snapped.

All in all, it had been more than ten years, a lifetime, from birth until death.

When he was in his right mind, he was able to play it off easily, pretending to be calm.

But under the circumstances, his thoughts were chaotic and the truth was revealed. He still subconsciously believed that Chu Wanning belonged to him. Even now, he realized that he could even remember the taste of Chu Wanning's lips when they kissed . . . not to mention their desire-fueled, lustful interaction and passionate sex.

It was something that he didn't dare think about after he was reborn.

Until he saw Chu Wanning's naked back, saw that familiar figure, - broad shoulders and long legs, tight muscles, thin and powerful waist - immersed in the clear water.

These things that he had deliberately avoided, the lingering feeling he tried to forget, burst through his mind and swept away any resolve.

Mo Ran's mind went blank.

. . . This body made him react.

And it was a strong reaction that couldn't be contained at all. Just looking at it, a fire burned in his belly.

When he came back to his senses, he angrily shouted: "Chu Wanning!"

Chu Wanning actually ignored him.

The two people on either side of him held his shoulders. Steam rose from the lotus pond making it hard to discern the specific identity of the two people. But they are very close together, the distance between them dubiously close.

Mo Ran cursed. He plopped into the lotus pond and waded towards Chu Wanning—when he got closer, he realized —

I-It was actually two mecha men made of metal and redwood!

Even worse, they seemed to be taking advantage of the spiritual energy of the lotus pond water, channelling that energy into Chu Waning. Mo Ran, foolishly jumping into the water, had completely broken the spiritual energy flow . . .

He didn't know what kind of array Chu Wanning was using. He was unconscious, supported by the golden light coming from the metal palms of the two mechs. Those rays kept surging upward and converged on the wound on his shoulder, clearly healing it.

Mo Ran's intrusion caused the golden light to quickly dissipate. What was even more unexpected was that the array actually started to undo!

As the golden light dissipated, Chu Wanning's wounds began to rapidly spread. He frowned, stifling a grunt, and coughed out a mouthful of blood. Immediately, all the scars on his body began to tear open. The blood spilled out like smoke, seeping across the flower pool in an instant.

Mo Ran froze.

This was Chu Wanning's "Flower Spirit Sacrifice Technique"!

He realized that he might . . . be in trouble . . .

Chu Wanning's spiritual flow is a dual system of metal and wood. The metal energy was like "Tianwen", focusing on attack and defence. The redwood energy was used for healing.

Flower Spirit Sacrifice was one of those healing techniques. Chu Wanning could gather the spirits of hundreds of flowers to heal wounds. However, during the process, no other people should enter the array, otherwise, the spirits would scatter. Instead of healing, it would exacerbate the injury. In serious cases, Chu Wanning's spiritual core would most likely be snatched up by the spirits of the flowers.

Fortunately, Mo Ran had dabbled with the Flower Spirit Sacrifice Technique in his previous life and immediately severed the energy flow from the spirits. Chu Wanning, who had lost the support of the array, fell down and was steadily held by Mo Ran.

The unconscious shizun's face was pale, his lips blue, and his body was as cold as ice.

Mo Ran dragged him onto the shore. It was too dark out to see anything else. He half-held, half-dragged Chu Wanning back to his bedroom and lay him on the bed.

"Shizun? Shizun!"

After calling for him several times, there wasn't even the slightest tremble in Chu Wanning's eyelashes. Other than the slight rise in his chest, he looked dead.

Seeing Chu Wanning in this state reminded Mo Ran of his past life.

Inexplicably, his throat constricted and his heart raced.

In the last life, there were two people who died in Mo Ran's arms.

Shi Mei and Chu Wanning.

The two of them, one the love he had endlessly longed for, the other an enemy he had been entangled with all his life.

After Shi Mei was gone, Mo Weiyu ceased to exist in the world.

After Chu Wanning?

Mo Ran didn't know. He only remembered that, on that day, he guarded the person in his arms as he grew cold. He didn't cry, he didn't laugh; joy and sadness became out of reach.

After Chu Wanning was gone, Mo Weiyu no longer knew what the world was.

The lights were bright, illuminating Chu Wanning's exposed upper body.

Yuheng of the Evening Sky typically wore tight clothing. His overlapping collar was folded tight and high, and his waistband was wrapped around his waist three times, proper and simple.

Therefore, no one had seen how injured his body was after two hundred strikes . . .

That day, while he was being punished in the Court of Discipline, Mo Ran saw the beating wounds on Chu Wanning's back with his own eyes. At that time, he only knew that it was bloody and extremely grotesque. But then he saw that Chu Wanning walking around like normal and thought that he probably hadn't been hurt that badly.

Only at this moment did he realize that Chu Wanning's injuries were far more serious than he had imagined.

The five holes left by the Master of Ceremonies Ghost had fully reopened, the deepest of the holes even exposing some bone.

Chu Wanning probably didn't let anyone help reapply the medicine. He did it all by himself. The ointment was unevenly applied, and some places that he couldn't reach were inflamed and ulcerated.

Not to mention the bruises from the cane. They covered his entire back, almost no skin left unmarred. Plus, with the backlash from the array, now Chu Wanning's wounds were all torn open, blood flowing, staining the sheets underneath him.

If he didn’t witness it with his own eyes, Mo Ran wouldn't have believed that the person who insisted on wiping the bridge pillars and opening a huge rain-blocking barrier for the disciples was the person in front of him - this kind of serious injury could be classified as "debilitating".

If Chu Wanning hadn't lost consciousness, Mo Ran really wanted to grab him by the collar and ask him——

Chu Wanning, are you really that prideful?

If you bow your head and give in, who will stop you? Why do you have to be so stubborn? You're an adult. Why don't you know how to take care of yourself and treat yourself better?

Why are you so reluctant to ask others to help treat your wounds?

Why would you rather have two mechs help you with a healing array rather than ask for help?

Chu Wanning, you're delusional!!

Are you that stubborn?

He cursed to himself while he quickly tapped some acupuncture points to stop the bleeding. Then he fetched some hot water and wiped away the bloodstains on Chu Wanning's back . . .

The sharp knife was quenched and cut off the flesh that had completely festered.

For the first time, Chu Wanning groaned in pain, and his body jerking subconsciously. Mo Ran held him down, irritated: "What are you moaning for? Haven't been fucked recently? If you make any more noise, I'll stab you straight in the chest. If you die, it won't hurt anymore! It'll all be over!"

It was only at a time like this that Mo Ran could reveal his violent nature and scream at him like he did in his previous life.

But there were too many places where the wound was white and rotting. He gradually cleaned it while Chu Wanning was muttering and panting.

Even if he was unconscious, he worked hard to suppress his discomfort. He didn't shout or cry out in pain, simply covered in a layer of cold sweat. His body, which had just been wiped clean, was soaked in sweat again.

After working for almost an hour, he had finally applied the medicine and bandaged the wound.

Mo Ran helped Chu Wanning into some clothes and grabbed a thick blanket to cover the fevered shizun. He breathed a sigh of relief. Remembering that Madam Wang mixed medicine was still sealed in the paper bag, he took some boiling water and brewed a bowl of medicine, bringing it to Chu Wanning's bedside.

"Come on, take the medicine."

He picked up the sleeping person with one hand, letting him lean on his shoulder, and spooned the tonic with the other hand. He blew it and tried a sip first.

Mo Ran immediately frowned, his face screwed up: "Damn it, it's that bitter?" But he still let it cool and feed it to Chu Wanning.

Inevitably, after just half a spoonful, Chu Wanning couldn't stand it. He choked and coughed, spitting out the concoction, most of which splashed on Mo Ran's clothes.

Mo Ran: ". . ."

He knew that Chu Wanning didn't like anything bitter. He was almost afraid of it.

But if he was in his normal state of mind, the stubborn Elder Yuheng would definitely push through his disgust, swallowing the medicine in one swig. At most his face might pucker afterwards and he'd secretly eat a piece of candy.

Unfortunately, Chu Wanning was currently unconscious.

Mo Ran couldn't help it. It's not good to lose your temper with someone who's unconscious so you have to be patient and feed him small sips. From time to time, you have to use a handkerchief to wipe the tonic from the corner of his mouth.

This wasn't a difficult chance for Mo Ran. After all, in his previous life, for a while, he regularly had to feed Chu Wanning. At that time, Chu Wanning resisted, and Mo Ran slapped him in the face. Then he'd grab his chin and roughly kiss him, his tongue rushing in, blood flowing . . .

He didn't dare think too deeply about it. The last few spoonfuls Mo Ran fed him were a bit sloppy, almost half of them coughed up by Chu Wanning. Then he put the man to bed, Chu Wanning harshly twisted the covers.

"I'm so kind. Don't kick the blankets off, you'll get a fever. If you're not careful, you'll catch a cold again . . ."

Halfway through his rant, he suddenly lost his temper and kicked the leg of the bed.

"Forget it. What do I care if you catch a cold? I hope you get sicker and sicker and die.""

After speaking, he turned and left.

When he reached the door, he felt a tug in his heart and couldn't ignore it. So he turned back, thought about it, and put out the candle for him. Then he left again.

This time he walked to the edge of Red Lotus Pond. Looking at the increasingly beautiful water lilies that had been dyed with Chu Wanning's blood, the annoyance in his chest only grew.

He was annoyed but still returned to the bedroom.

He stiffly walked around the room like a rusty and ageing mecha before he finally reluctantly stood next to Chu Wanning's bed.

The moonlight peaked in from the half-open bamboo window, the silver glow fanning across Chu Wanning's handsome face.

His lips were pale, and his eyebrows were slightly furrowed.

Mo Ran hesitated and closed the window for him. It was very humid overnight. Sleeping with the windows open at night was always bad for a person. After doing this, Mo Ran inwardly cursed:

Just walked through the door and leave, you damned dog!

So, just as he walked to the door, with a bang, Chu Wanning actually kicked the blanket off.

Mo Ran: ". . ."

How could this person's habit of kicking the covers off the bed be changed?

In order not to be a dog, the sixteen-year-old Emperor TaXian had the backbone to ignore it and walk away.

He was true to his word and would never walk through that door!

A few moments later.

-- The wise and powerful emperor opened the window and tumbled in.

He picked the blanket up off the floor and covered Chu Wanning again. Mo Ran listened to Chu Wanning's soft painful groan. He twitched. Watching him curl up in the corner of the bed, no longer looking even half as fierce as he normally did.

His lips were cursing that he "deserved it", but, out of his compassion, he still started moving.

He sat by Chu Wanning's bedside and stood guard. He wouldn't let him kick the blanket off again.

It was late at night. After an exhausting day, Mo Ran couldn't keep his eyes open. His head slowly nodded down and he fell asleep.

It wasn't a good sleep. Chu Wanning kept tossing and turning. In his sleepy state, Mo Ran seemed to have heard him humming lowly.

Through his drowsiness and restful sleep, Mo Ran could barely distinguish between what was day or night. Somehow it had become natural to lie next to Chu Wanning and hold his twitching and trembling figure. He squinted his sleepy eyes, subconsciously stroking his back. He held the person in his arms and muttered softly in his sleep: "It's alright, it's alright. It doesn't hurt . . . It doesn't hurt . . ."

Mo Ran fell asleep, murmuring, as if he had returned to the Life-Death Peak of his previous life, back to the desolate and empty Wushan Hall.

Since Chu Wanning died, no one had slept beside him.

Even if their intimacy was bred out of hatred, those days after days spent in the cold made him think of nothing but his heartache, like ten thousand ants were devouring his heart.

But when he thought about it again, Chu Wanning couldn't come back.

He lost the last flame in his life.

On this night, Mo Ran embraced Chu Wanning, half-asleep and half-dreaming. One moment it was clear that he was living a new life, and in another, it was like it had been way back then.

He suddenly couldn't bear to open his eyes for fear that he would wake up tomorrow to an empty pillow and cold sheets. He was the only one left in a long life in this uncertain world.

He undoubtedly hated Chu Wanning.

However, when he held this person in his arms, the corners of his eyes grew a little moist.

He was the thirty-two-year-old Emperor TaXian, holding the warmth that he thought he would never find again.

"Wanning, it doesn't hurt anymore . . ."

His mind was hazy. Like before he had been reborn, Mo Ran stroked the hair of the person in his arms, muttering softly, unconsciously blurting out such a tender line.

He was so sleepy that he didn't even realize what he had said or what he had called the other. He spoke the words without any thought. They had just slipped out naturally. Mo Ran's breathing evened out and he plunged into an even deeper sleep.

Early the next morning, Chu Wanning's eyelashes fluttered and he leisurely awoke.

He had a strong cultivation base and the high fever that he had gotten overnight was already gone.

Chu Wanning drowsily opened his eyes, his mind still a bit fuzzy. He was about to get up but suddenly realized that someone was lying in the same bed as him.

. . . Mo-Mo Weiyu???

His shock wasn't something trivial. The colour drained from Chu Wanning's face. He couldn't remember what happened last night. What's worse, his movements had woken up Mo Ran.

The young man yawned. With a smooth and delicate face with a healthy blush that was typical of a sound sleep, he raised his confused eyes. He glanced at Chu Wanning lightly, and languidly said: "Ah . . . let me sleep a while longer . . . Since you're awake, go and cook me a bowl of preserved egg and pork congee . . ."

Chu Wanning: ". . ."

What was all this nonsense? Was he talking in his sleep?

Mo Ran was still out of it. Seeing that Chu Wanning didn't move, nor did he urge others to get up to cook the congee, he lazily smiled. He stretched out his hand and lowered Chu Wanning’s face, giving him a familiar kiss on the lips.

"It's okay, you don't have to get up. I just had a nightmare. In my dream . . . ah . . . nevermind." He sighed and embraced the man who had become completely lifeless and stiff. His chin rubbed against the hair of the person in his arms. He muttered, "Chu Wanning, let me hold you again."