Chapter Text
The crackle of energy was definitely out of place, wisps of darkness tinged in red swirling through the air like dust motes in sunlight. Of course, there wasn’t any actual sunlight currently. No, dusk had settled over Qing Jing peak, bringing with it a blissful quiet. Ming Fan had brought him the final meal of the day, quietly taking away the untouched morning dishes. Really, they didn’t need to worry and send him those looks when he skipped the overly bland meals. Shen Qingqiu was perfectly fine. He was an immortal master who didn’t need to eat, and the amount of sleep he was getting was almost within what he could tolerate. Though, watching the mildly beautiful way the dust motes seemed to shimmer and glow had him debating if maybe he should at least try for a bit more sleep. Ah, but the nightmares would ruin it.
He blinked, posture straightening as the swirl of energy condensed, collapsing into itself until it was a distinct point of shimmering red with a cold steel heart. The tip of the blade swept down, Shen Qingqiu scrambling to his feet as what had been calm clear air a moment before tore apart as easily as a screen. Demonic energy flooded over him, Shen Qingqiu slamming a talisman onto the desk, watching as it flared to life. Around the bamboo house the others activated, the wards built by who knows what previous generations flaring into life to trap, to contain, to wash away the flood of energy. Not that it would actually stop Luo Binghe, but it would keep his precious disciples from running headlong into a fight that would only scar or kill them.
Only then did he look up, meeting the deep red gaze of the shadowy figure backlit by the fires of the Endless Abyss. Luo Binghe… in… okay Shen Qingqiu wasn’t going to say all his glory.
What? The protagonist was supposed to look awe inspiring, beautiful, powerful at all times. He was the male power fantasy given life and breath. He wasn’t… he didn’t…
Binghe looked terrible. He had long outgrown the disciple robes he still wore though the original color was lost to the amount of blood, smoke, and general grime on them. Patches covered them, whatever color those were lost and blended until only the seamwork was visible and only that because of the rough nature of the thread used and the mismatched fabric. Not that it had been patched recently, the cloth hanging in threadbare strips. His skin didn’t look any better, covered in caked blood and dirt and ash only further blended and marred by the honest to goodness tears starting to trickle down his face.
Slowly, like he wasn’t entirely sure that it wasn’t a mirage that would break, Luo Binghe reached through the portal. “Shizun?” God, even his voice. It was so quiet, rough and broken as the boy… no man now… swayed forward.
Shen Qingqiu wasn’t fast enough to catch him as he fell through the portal. Xin Mo clattered to the floor beside him as the portal flexed and moved. Shit, shit, shit. Was this… was this the first time Binghe crossed realms?
Binghe barely responded as Shen Qingqiu wrapped his hands in the demon lord’s collars. “Binghe! Come on… come on…” He tore the fabric away. It was ruined anyway. Much like Binghe’s chest. Hundreds of tiny scratches marred his skin, oozing blood. Those were minor though, compared to the gouge across his stomach. That had already started healing but the edges were too dark. Venom. If this… if this really was the first time he opened the portal then Shen Qingqiu had a pretty good idea what had caused the wound which Binghe could recover from but it would take time and somewhere safe.
Of course, safe was a relative term. Nearly anywhere was safer than the Endless Abyss. Hence why, in Proud Immortal Demon Way, when Binghe had defeated the Tunneling Pit Viper Badger, he had in his delirium accepted Xin Mo’s promise to reveal a new ability and take them somewhere safe and the bastard of a sword had dropped Binghe into a field in the demon realm in a rainstorm. Granted, it worked out for the original since the rain had washed away the grime of the Endless Abyss and he had been found by the widow of the late farmer.
There wasn’t a widow here however. In fact, of all the places in the two realms, here was one of the only that was not safer! Especially if that portal stayed open and managed to overwhelm the wards!
“Binghe! Listen to me. Listen!” There, he could see something in Binghe’s gaze. He wasn’t completely out of it. “Stop feeding Xin Mo! Close the portal.” He shook the poor boy, Binghe’s face scrunching in pain. “Come on, close the portal.”
“Shizun?”
He laid Binghe back, spreading his hands across the ruined chest. This was probably going to hurt. Maybe not as much as the venom but still.
Binghe arched under him as Shen Qingqiu flooded his body with qi. “Come on, come on. Binghe, if you can hear me, close the portal.” In PIDW it had taken draining the last of Binghe’s considerable reserves before the portal closed, leaving him with just enough to still draw breath and start healing.
There, the flickering of the demon mark was evening out even if the light from it looked tinged a sickly pale green. Binghe’s eyes were sharpening too. Baring honest to goodness fangs, he reached for Xin Mo.
Shen Qingqiu fell forward at the pull the moment Binghe touched the sword. Damn parasite. Not only was it sucking Binghe’s power dry now it was trying to do the same to Shen Qingqiu through Binghe.
Oh… wait… Shen Qingqiu closed his eyes, focusing. Connecting with the sword was considerably harder to do than any time he reached for Xiu Ya but he didn’t expect it to be easy. It should still be possible though, through the channel it had already established. Xin Mo’s energy surged through him, the aura of rot and rage and so many tumbling emotions threatening to choke Shen Qingqiu. Powerless. He always felt so frail, so powerless, so vulnerable.
“Fuck off and CLOSE!”
His own power flexed, Xin Mo’s resistance ringing through his arms like he had blocked one of Liu Qingge’s blows, and then the portal wavered.
Shen Qingqiu slumped forward as the portal closed, shakily breaking off the connection. His entire body was shaking and honestly, he wasn’t sure he could have gotten up at that moment if he had tried. So, he stayed straddling the completely filthy Luo Binghe while the wards cleansed the demonic aura from the house.
It wasn’t like it mattered. Binghe was out cold, the hand he had at some point gripped Shen Qingqiu’s thigh with sprawled beside them. His other hand still held a loose grip on Xin Mo, the sword radiating a sort of mixed aura. A whisper that it had found something it liked, little flickers of it still inching their way up Shen Qingqiu’s arms, into his mind. It wanted more, could give so much. It wouldn’t even be hard to take it right now. Luo Binghe was defenseless under him. It would be so easy, to just… to just take ownership of the sword. All he had to do-
“Shut up.” Shen Qingqiu stumbled to his feet on grit alone. Focusing on the spite, the fanboy rage at what this damn blade had done to his favorite character, his precious white lotus disciple. He kicked the thing. Xin Mo made a very satisfying clang when it slid across the room and up against the wall.
[ System Activation successful!
Physical confirmation, universal key: Luo Binghe
Download and installation of update complete
Thank you for continued subscription! ]
Shen Qingqiu drew in a deep steadying breath and he ran his hands down his face. Fuck, now I have to deal with you too? He had definitely not missed the too loud notification or the google translate voice.
What did he even do with this whole mess? Luo Binghe, the darkened protagonist, was lying bleeding on his floor. So fresh out of the Endless Abyss that Shen Qingqiu could smell him. God it’s going to take so long to get that scent out of the house. Can I maybe just replace that section of floor? Shen Qingqiu snorted. Why did he even care? It wasn’t like the state of the floor was going to matter when Luo Binghe woke up and realized where he was.
Maybe Shen Qingqiu could just… flee? Binghe was down and out for the count right now. It would take him time to clear the venom from his system. Combined with having even his impressive reserves drained… In the original Luo Binghe had been out for three days the first time he opened a portal across realms and that was to the relatively nearby demon realm. Not past all of Cang Qiong’s wards, the bamboo house’s wards and into Shen Qingqiu’s lap.
Okay… so three days. He had three days to figure out what the hell to do because… he wasn’t ready. Binghe was supposed to break out into the demon realm, build up his power there, and then get picked up by Huan Hua to make his grand reappearance 5 years after he was thrown into the Endless Abyss not…
Shen Qingqiu blinked. What… 2 years? Binghe! Too many shortcuts! He wasn’t supposed to be out of the Endless Abyss at all let alone at Cang Qiong!
Okay.. .okay, think calmly. This is a good thing right? Maybe… maybe he could convince Binghe to go easy on him. Something like… look, I didn’t kill you while you were down and out so you won’t torture me right?
Shen Qingqiu groaned, running his hands down his face. That was a shit plan but… He sighed heavily. Maybe he should just run, but if he did that… He gathered his courage and glanced back like he had been distinctly avoiding. His poor white lotus remained exactly where he had been, lying on the floor looking terrible. Shen Qingqiu couldn’t leave him like that. It was absolutely going to break Luo Binghe’s reputation. He shouldn’t even be seeing it. If Luo Binghe could lose points for being OOC he definitely would be right now.
Plus, his demonic traits were on full display. The demon mark was no longer actively glowing but it showed clearly even past all the muck. The matting of his hair managed to display the ears that while not a full demonic point were certainly close enough for someone like Liu Qingge. Shen Qingqiu groaned. Yeah, he definitely had to worry about that. The wards may have caught the demonic energy, and were still keeping the wisps leaving Binghe’s form hidden from outside eyes but the moment Liu Qingge pulled his usual stunt and kicked open the door…
Luo Binghe couldn’t die. The protagonist couldn’t die. He could however be nearly killed over and over again. Shen Qingqiu couldn’t leave Binghe like this, defenseless and OOC. He’d debate the merits of running or begging for mercy later. He had three days after all.
Binghe did not weigh nearly enough as Shen Qingqiu gathered his precious broken disciple into his arms. Eternally grateful for the sheer physical strength of cultivators, he hauled Binghe up and to the washroom. There he set to carefully stripping away the ruined clothing and exposing the true extent of the damage.
He hesitated at Binghe’s pants but ultimately… they were ruined as well. One of the lower legs actually had to be cut away, Shen Qingqiu carefully laying a towel over Binghe’s prone form.
Calling Mu Qingfang was out of the question. That would raise way too many questions. He just… had to trust Binghe’s healing abilities. He’d try to make it better of course. He had some medical supplies and had studied all of the medical field training his own disciples were expected to know. Surely it would equal out roughly to what an old farmer’s wife knew right? Especially when combined with modern cleanliness practices. Though… with Luo Binghe’s general immunity to things that might not matter.
He would exhaust the kit in the washroom in moments. Better to gather everything he had before getting started.
This was going to be so much work. And for what? To get killed the moment Luo Binghe woke up. It’s not worth it. He paused, eying the stain in the main room. He’d need to clean that up. So much blood. He’s barely holding on. Even if by a thread, Luo Binghe would always hang on. Then sever the thread, save yourself.
Shen Qingqiu scowled at the sword lying in the corner. “Get out of my head.” Did Binghe have to deal with that all the time? No wonder he was so prone to lashing out in PIDW. The sword had never had a previous owner live through the process of the sword being taken away. Maybe it could be done though. If the mind and soul was broken. Trained into exactly what Shen Qingqiu wanted.
He peeled his lip up. “Hey, if I throw you into the lake, will you finally get the hint?” No wonder the damn thing was in the Endless Abyss. Maybe he could just throw it back there. Ah… but I don’t know what that’ll do to Binghe. The stupid cursed thing soul bound to whoever its owner was. He couldn’t very well leave it lying on the floor though. For one thing it was clearly a menace to anyone in the room, who knew if it could reach weaker minds from further away. Plus, it couldn’t be good to have that thing on one’s back which was generally where Binghe carried it.
His hand scrubbed down his face. What to do, what to do. Maybe he could put it away? Would that hurt Binghe? Hey System, you’re up right?
[ Answering Host: System is running at optimum functionality and all processes have been restored! ]
He nodded, moving through the room to root out the bandages stored off in the corner. Cool, cool. That includes inventory? He’d made ample use of that before for a number of items that were better off not found by anyone but which he might still want or need. In fact it had been a bit of an issue when he lost it so suddenly. He’d had to buy new copies of three different books without getting caught or questioned.
[ Answering Host: Inventory is available!
View inventory items? ]
The screen pulled up before he even got the chance to answer, Shen Qingqiu pausing to stare at it. Ah… he had… forgotten about the key item being int here. Binghe’s pendant. The last piece of his mother…
He should uh… probably give that back. He clicked on it. Go ahead and give me that.
[ Host wishes to use Key Item “Fake Jade Guanyin”
Warning, this is a single use item. ]
He blinked at the warning. Single use? Obviously he could only give it back to Binghe once. Sure, whatever. It’s not like it’ll lower any of my stats will it?
[ Stats granted by acquiring Key Item “Fake Jade Guanyin” can only be applied upon first acquiring the item and cannot be removed. ]
Then it didn’t matter. He clicked confirm, rolling his eyes at the load time. Whatever, it wasn’t like it mattered. So the Inventory can hold whatever right? He’d used it on hunts several times to hold nasty things so he didn’t have to go through the process of cleaning. Corrosive or poisonous things too…
[ Answering Host: That’s correct! Any non living item can be stored in inventory for an indefinite amount of time. See details on perishable items? ]
Nah. Though… he should someday. He had put food in there before and it kept kind of like a fridge. Can you hold Xin Mo? For a moment there was silence, then a distinctly cheery ding.
[ Place Legendary Key Item “Xin Mo Sword” into inventory? ]
It’s not going to cost me or do anything weird like corrupt you right?
[ Answering Host: While in inventory all items are placed in stasis and abilities are inaccessible until item is removed from Inventory.
System comes equipped with anti-virus, anti-hacking, and anti-corruption features as part of the base package! Please feel free to use our services with the utmost confidence! ]
Right… He shrugged, accepting the offer to put the sword into inventory which unfortunately required touching it. Xin Mo immediately latched onto him, cursed energy coiling up his fingers until the thing screamed. In a flicker of blue light it was gone, the icon for the sword appearing in the inventory panel. Ringing ears aside, the air immediately felt cleaner and his shoulders lighter.
[ Congratulations, congratulations, congratulations!
Acquired Legendary Key Item “Xin Mo Sword”!
Host Mental Resistance +200!
B Points +200!
Improved Inventory Option Unlocked! Purchase for 1,000 B Points? ]
His eyes narrowed. What is ‘improved Inventory’?
[ Improved Inventory features include: Expanded inventory slots, additional details of items placed in inventory, Host entered descriptions of items, and limited access to abilities of Key Items within inventory slots. ]
His eyebrow raised. So what… if I purchase that I can access Xin Mo’s teleportation ability?
[ Answering Host: Correct! ]
Well that was just… okay honestly that was kind of amazing. Wait, for only 1000 B Points I can get that? What’s my current total?
[ Answering Host: Current B Point Total 3,240 B Points ]
He stared. “How?”
[ Review notifications received during hibernation mode? ]
Oh… so… he’d just been farming points this entire time? Who knew? Shaking his head slightly, he refocused. Later. For now… he had a protagonist to get back to his shining self. Actually, before he closed out of all the windows he clicked accept on the whole improved inventory thing. His luck the System would snatch it away later. Maybe with Xin Mo’s ability he could try begging for mercy first and then if it didn’t work portal himself elsewhere. Cheerful music played while he gathered the rest of the medical supplies.
Binghe looked just as terrible as before when he carefully looked into the room. Prone, weak, miserable, and all his fault. Swallowing, Shen Qingqiu piled the medical supplies where they wouldn’t get wet and started to carefully clean off Binghe. At least many of the small wounds had closed already.
It took forever and that was with mostly leaving the matted hair alone. It seemed like it was just layer after layer and at times he had to stop and carefully consider if he was scrubbing away dirt or if it was a bruise. He had to stop for a long time when he uncovered the scar over Binghe’s heart. A true honest to goodness scar. Binghe is a Heavenly Demon… Heavenly Demon’s don’t scar. Not unless they wanted to. Not unless they forced it to scar. And this scar… it was clearly made by a blade… the placement. Shen Qingqiu brushed shaking fingers over it. Binghe had let Shen Qingqiu’s betrayal scar him, a badge to be worn forever more. Maybe I can’t beg for his forgiveness…
Eventually he was confident enough to haul Binghe up to the side of the tub. His own robes had long been discarded, although he found himself wavering in front of the water. No… he’d keep the underlayers on while he carefully tried to unmat and clean the tangles of hair. Hopefully none of it was beyond saving.
By the time he was done he was exhausted. At least it was late enough that no one questioned him throwing on his robes to the bare minimum and heading to the supply shed. The robes he came back with were basic, but workable enough. He’d figure out what to do about something like outer robes later… maybe. Maybe it’d slow… no… in Proud Immortal Demon Way there had been a few instances of Binghe not even taking notice of his state of dress as he charged after someone. Usually much to the delight of every woman in the vicinity.
He got Binghe dressed, with the same steady mantra of ‘ignore it, ignore it, ignore it. Just ignore the heavenly pillar.’ that he had used while cleaning, and laid the demon lord out on his own bed. Why his bed. Well, first and foremost he wasn’t entirely sure that Binghe would fit on his disciple bed. Secondly… Shen Qingqiu desperately wanted some modern amenities and had done his best to recreate the feel of the modern mattress. Thus, his bed was probably the softest on all the peaks and had enough pillows scattered around to make it almost easy to position Binghe in what he was pretty sure was the best pose to heal in such a way that the man would mostly stay that way.
He sighed, scrubbing his hands down his face. At least Binghe was breathing easily, and while Shen Qingqiu was no expert doctor and curse breaker, he had enough of a handle on checking meridians to tell that Binghe was starting to recover power. He was also pretty well developed in both his cores. More so than Shen Qingqiu would have expected for rushing things.
Satisfied that Binghe was pretty much as comfortable as he was going to get for his recovery, the peak lord set his own exhaustion aside to deal with the things that would definitely turn problematic if someone saw them. Namely, the pool of grime and blood in his main room.
He had no idea how his little lotus had the patience to scrub the entire house. Shen Qingqiu was mentally done before he even got a hand’s width cleaned. In the end he kind of scrubbed it enough that it wouldn’t be overly noticeable and then dragged a mat over. If someone questioned why it was in the middle of the floor well… because he wanted it there.
The bathroom he spent even less time on. Enough to be passing. Then he stumbled to his room and realized an issue. He had mostly been thinking that he was done and was only too happy to flop into his bed and pass out until it was time for his life to end. That however… would mean sleeping right beside Luo Binghe.
Fuck it. The man was going to be out cold for another two days. Shen Qingqiu drew up a ward to hide Binghe’s demonic energy so whoever brought breakfast wouldn’t notice, slapped it on the man’s forehead to cover the faintly glowing demon mark, and tucked himself in.