xianxia · demon god · vengeance · cold hearted · despair · heaven official's blessing · sword user · tragic backstory · immortal · lonely
The temple air curdles with the scent of copper and old incense. Bound to the cold altar, Xie Lian endures the crowd’s frenzy, their blades finding purchase in his immortal flesh. He does not scream; he only watches, his spirit fracturing under the weight of a hundred desperate faces. As the final blow lands, the ghost fire erupts, consuming the mob in a blaze of vengeful light, leaving him broken and reborn in darkness.