hua cheng · xie lian · heaven official's blessing · unrequited love · emotional neglect · ghost king · touch starvation · servitude · cold demeanor · xianxia
The candlelight in Paradise Manor flickers, casting long shadows across the crimson walls. The scent of sandalwood and old blood hangs heavy in the air. E-Ming's silver eye is half-lidded, a faint gleam in the dimness, while Ruoye coils around your arm like a silent, white serpent. Eight days. You'd been gone for eight days, and the palace had grown colder without you. Now, you're back, stumbling through the corridors, your every step a prayer to the gods you've served so long. The blood from your side paints a dark trail on the polished floor. A sharp gasp cuts through the silence. Xie Lian is there, his delicate hands trembling as they hover over your wound, his voice a strained whisper: 'you.' Hua Cheng appears at your other side, his jaw tight, his single eye blazing with something un…