Chapter Text
Liu Qingge had become more trouble than he was worth, and in Luo Binghe’s opinion he wasn’t worth much to begin with. Their latest fight over Shen Qingqiu’s corpse had been brutal with both men taking and delivering blows that would render any normal person maimed or dead. As usual there was no clear winner as Luo Binghe failed to kill off Liu Qingge, and Liu Qingge failed to retrieve Shen Qingqiu’s body.
However Luo Binghe did manage to render Liu Qingge unconscious, and without the constant barrage of sword glares from the warrior, an idea formed in Luo Binghe’s mind as to how he could dispose of the man. He knew he wouldn’t be able to permanently get rid of Liu Qingge—the man seemed to be blessed with the inability to die—but at the very least Luo Binghe could stall the man and give himself a couple days or even a week of reprieve from the man.
The first choice was to throw Liu Qingge into one of the demon realms so he could be hunted for sport, but that wouldn’t work given how strong he was. Even injured from their daily brawls Liu Qingge managed to match Luo Binghe every time, so pitting him against regular demons would be sending them to slaughter.
Another option was to just slit Liu Qingge’s throat right there and end the War God, but that just didn’t sit right with Luo Binghe. Yes, Luo Binghe stole Shen Qingqiu’s body, regularly fought and wounded Liu Qingge, and he forcibly took Mu Qingfang in hopes the doctor could find a solution to Shen Qingqiu’s…condition. But something that wasn’t Meng Mo told Luo Binghe that killing a peak lord would set off a chain of events that would be too troublesome to manage.
So option number three it was. After making sure Shen Qingqiu was resting well—his body still regal in its beauty despite the cold lifelessness that surrounded him—Luo Binghe dragged Liu Qingge by the collar through a portal cut by Xin Mo to dump him in some remote village or forest. As luck would have it, Xin Mo’s portal opened up to a beautiful series of lakes and rivers peppered with lotuses and boats. Luo Binghe had to pause to admire his surroundings and made a silent promise that as soon as he revived Shen Qingqiu, he’d bring the man here to enjoy the sights.
But first he had to dump his rival.
Liu Qingge had begun to rouse, and Luo Binghe needed to act quickly. Stepping onto Xin Mo, Luo Binghe flew above the lake and held Liu Qingge over the water.
Groggily Liu Qingge pawed at Luo Binghe’s hands as if he were trying to simultaneously free himself from the half demon’s grip and hold on so he wouldn’t fall. Cheng Luan was at his hip, but their duel left the War God drained of energy and at the mercy of Luo Binghe. It was a pity Luo Binghe didn’t have any mercy to give.
“Take your time returning,” Luo Binghe said, hoping Liu Qingge wouldn’t return. “Shizun is safe with me.”
With that he released the front of Liu Qingge’s robes and watched the man crash into the lake, the water splashing and rippling out from where he landed. It was one thing if Luo Binghe killed Liu Qingge in combat, but if Liu Qingge drowned that would absolve him of the crime.
Without a second glance at Liu Qingge, Luo Binghe turned and flew back through the portal, intent on returning to Shen Qingqiu’s side in hopes that the man awoke in his absence.
Jiang Cheng watched with wide eyes as a man cut a hole through the sky and promptly dumped a body into his lake. It wasn’t uncommon for bodies of drowned fishermen and unfortunate souls to be found on the banks of Lotus Pier, it was however rare to witness the abandonment or murder of someone firsthand.
It was sheer coincidence that Jiang Cheng was there in the first place. He’d lagged behind after a group of disciples went swimming to enjoy the peace of the riverside. It was a rare treat he allowed for himself after a long day or week of stress, and the gentle lapping of the water against the dock combined with the sweet fresh air helped to clear Jiang Cheng’s mind from everything that weighted him down.
The scene was truly lovely, and it was an absolute shame for it to be shattered by the unwanted visitor dropping someone into the water to suffer.
Jiang Cheng hadn’t bothered to go after the man who sliced the sky open when his priority was the man who briefly broke the surface to gasp and flail only to slip beneath the lake’s surface. Without hesitating, Jiang Cheng dove into the water and with powerful strokes reached the barely conscious man and hauled him to the surface. Gasping for air, Jiang Cheng began to demand an explanation only for his words to leave his mouth at the sight of the stranger he just rescued.
The man was handsome in a way that was otherworldly. Dark wet hair that framed his face like a painting, and eyes sharp and intense enough to cut stone bore into Jiang Cheng the longer he stared. Bruises and cuts marred the man’s face, but in a way it only made him more desirable.
Clearly the man wasn’t a human, but one of the seductive river spirits Wei Wuxian always teased Jiang Cheng about when they were young. The beautiful spirits would lure unsuspecting fishermen or cultivators into the depths, drain them of their spiritual energy, and then drown them to generate resentful energy to harvest at a later date. It was the only logical explanation for someone so handsome, and it made sense as to why the other swordsman dumped the spirit in Yunmeng Jiang. It was rude, especially since Jiang Cheng would’ve gotten rid of it if he’d just been asked, but one way or another the spirit was his problem now.
Drowning it seemed like the best option, and without a second glance Jiang Cheng shoved the handsome man back under the water.
Things didn’t go as planned.
As soon as he pushed the spirit back under, Jiang Cheng himself was yanked beneath the water as the spirit tried to drown him in return. Whatever the swordsman had done to weaken the spirit clearly wasn’t enough as Jiang Cheng found himself evenly matched, and he quickly realized he made a mistake trying to take on the water spirit in its home element.
Jiang Cheng was close to reaching for Zidian—even at the risk of electrocuting himself—when the man shoved his hand against Jiang Cheng’s chest and the familiar warmth of qi trickled through his spiritual veins.
It wasn’t a spirit at all, it was a cultivator! A weak and wounded cultivator who Jiang Cheng was trying to drown. Oh shit.
Kicking them back to the surface, Jiang Cheng hauled the cultivator to the dock and gasped, “You’re alive!”
The man didn’t answer, or if he did it was in the form of a wretched and nasty cough that made Jiang Cheng wince in sympathy. In Jiang Cheng’s defense, he didn’t know people could be this beautiful without being a spirit of some kind or in possession of a truly unbearable personality. It was only natural for him to assume the man was a river spirit set to suck him clean of his yang energy and leave him to die.
Once the two were back on the dock, sopping wet but safe, Jiang Cheng reassessed the situation. The cultivator looked like he’d been in a fight…probably with the swordsman who intended to let the waters finish him off rather than bloody his own hands. Either way, he was here now and since he found him, the man fell under Jiang Cheng’s care.
“Come on,” Jiang Cheng said as he hauled the man up. “Let’s get you dried off.” He had some clothes that would fit him, and the healers would be more than willing to look after their surprise guest.
The man didn’t fight as he tried to walk alongside Jiang Cheng, his hands spasming as his legs threatened to go out from beneath him. “Whe—”
Whatever he wanted to say was cut off by another horrible round of hacking that made Jiang Cheng’s spine prickle. The cultivator was well dressed and had a handsome blade at his side, so he had to belong to a respectable sect even if it wasn’t one Jiang Cheng recognized. How far away from home was he? Teleportation was a theory Wei Wuxian talked about once, but it was all theoretical and just for fun.
“You’re in Yunmeng Jiang Sect. You’re safe here.”
It was a small reassurance, and even though Jiang Cheng wasn’t good at giving those kinds of soft comforts perhaps it could ease the cultivator’s concerns.
It seemed to work as the cultivator slumped in what seemed like relief. In a rough voice the man murmured, “Shen Shixiong?”
Jiang Cheng shook his head and said, “I’m not your shixiong. This one is Jiang Cheng, master of Lotus Pier.”
The handsome man looked at Jiang Cheng again, his eyes too sharp and alert for how exhausted he clearly was.
“Liu Qingge,” he said in lieu of an introduction, “Cang Qiong Sect’s peak lord of Bai Zhan.”
Cang Qiong? That was…that was too far a trip to make in one day, especially by sword flight! The sword-master who dumped Liu Qingge had to be powerful to accomplish such a feat, or a demonic practitioner.
Gripping Liu Qingge’s shoulder firmly Jiang Cheng repeated, “You’re safe here. Stay as long as you need to recover.”
Liu Qingge seemed to take that as permission to finally lose consciousness as he slumped against Jiang Cheng as dead weight. Well then, Jiang Cheng would have to show Liu Qingge as much hospitality as he could considering he tried to drown the peak lord in the lake.