Work Text:
Shen QingQiu was in the middle of a crisis.
First of all, he was alive. This is a really bad thing, because as long as he still had a breath in him, Luo BingHe would chase him to the ends of the world, stopping at nothing before he could take Shen QingQiu's life.
Second of all, the poison in his blood had flared up, blocking his Qi circulation and generally being a huge pain in the ass.
Third of all, there was another siege at Cang Qiong Mountain, and he was in the middle of it.
Well, the demons hadn't actually gotten to him. But they were closing in. While keeping up a cool demeanor, Shen QingQiu wept in his heart. Barely two days had passed since his return to Qing Jing Peak, and Luo BingHe had brought his troops up here again.
Why did his poison have to act up now? He would like to be able to put up a fight, thank you very much! At least let him die at Luo BingHe's hands instead of these nameless demons! He really didn't want his death to be written off as collateral damage!
The first of the lower-ranked demons had finally broken through Qing Jing's defensive barriers. As the Peak Lord, Shen QingQiu should naturally be fighting at the forefront, so he would be the first to engage the enemies. The disciples had been sent away to protect other places on the Peak. He tightened his grip on Xiu Ya, whose use was drastically discounted due to his poison.
Well. Guess he'll die.
But the first demon hadn't even entered his usual sword range before it was cut down.
As the demon fell, blood gushing from the large slash on its body, a figure in white stepped in front of Shen QingQiu.
Of course, he could immediately recognize who it was.
In the past, Shen QingQiu never had much chance to look at Liu QingGe's back, but at this moment, he couldn't help thinking: His Shidi was really reliable.
Liu QingGe glanced over his shoulder. He frowned, seemingly able to see Shen QingQiu's distress with this brief look, and said, "Stay back."
Shen QingQiu nodded and obediently stayed back. It's not that he didn't want to fight, but with the poison in his veins, he didn't have much of a choice, did he?
Besides, these were just low-ranked demons. Liu QingGe could take them down without breaking a sweat. The real problem would only come up when Luo BingHe found his way here.
It happened too soon for Shen QingQiu's liking.
Their first warning was the low-ranking demons' retreat. Liu QingGe made quick work of slaying the last of them and remained alert, still standing in front of Shen QingQiu. He threw a glance over his shoulder to check on him (An unnecessary action, Shen QingQiu thought. Liu QingGe should be able to sense his Qi, blocked as it was).
“Stay close,” Liu QingGe said, “I can’t protect you if you’re too far away.”
That sounded suspiciously like something a protagonist might say to his love interest, but Shen QingQiu decided to brush off the weirdness. Liu QingGe did promise to protect him (on Shen QingQiu’s request, no less), so it wasn’t really something to fret about.
The second warning was a sudden heaviness in the air, accompanied with a drop in temperature. The sky turned dark, even though it was still noon. In the distance, two figures clad in dark colors were approaching, one slightly in front of the other. Even this far away, Shen QingQiu could feel the heated gaze trained on himself.
Luo BingHe and MoBei Jun.
Shen QingQiu cussed in his heart. Liu QingGe was strong, but even he wouldn't be able to face two high-ranking demons at the same time. And one of them is the protagonist!
Luo BingHe's gaze came to rest upon Liu QingGe, who stood protectively in front of Shen QingQiu. The fire in his eyes seemed to flare up. "You," he growled, "You're the one who took Shizun from me."
Shen QingQiu... was slightly puzzled.
Was it just him, or did those words sound off?
From where he stood, he couldn't see Liu QingGe's face. But he was sure it didn't look pretty at the moment.
"I won't hand him over to you," Liu QingGe declared, steely determination in his voice.
... Wait. Hold up. Hold it right there.
Something's wrong with that exchange. He wasn't imagining it, right? Those words did sound strange, right?
Why did it sound like they were fighting over a woman?!
Stop shoving these weird scenarios on him!
A muscle slid on Luo BingHe's jaw. To MoBei Jun, he ordered, "Go to Qiong Ding, keep the Sect Leader occupied."
MoBei Jun nodded, silently turning to leave. With his departure, the air wasn’t quite so cold anymore. And then Luo BingHe turned his full attention to Liu QingGe.
"If you have the guts to say those words," he began, "surely you must be aware of the consequences?"
Liu QingGe didn't bother to grace him with an answer. Cheng Luan in his hand, he charged forward and the two forces clashed.
As expected, these two's powers were amazing. Spiritual energy and demonic energy coiled in the air, like boiling water threatening to overflow. Their exchange was intense, explosive sounds ringing in the open space as bright flashes of energy left singed trails in their wakes. It was a truly marvelous spectacle that left you in awe.
Yet Shen QingQiu couldn't help noticing that Liu QingGe seemed to be getting overpowered, slowly but surely.
His attacks found their mark on Luo BingHe, of course, but mostly Liu QingGe was the one receiving hits. They weren’t light either, seeing the aftershocks from the strikes. Shen QingQiu’s fingers twitched around Xiu Ya. Couldn’t he do anything to help?
At the end of the first exchange, Liu QingGe was beaten back, landing heavily some distance from him. With his opponent out of the way, Luo BingHe started for Shen QingQiu.
Shit, shit, shit, Shen QingQiu cussed in his heart. He raised his sword, but even if Without a Cure hadn’t acted up, he doubted he could do anything against Luo BingHe. Still better than just standing around, though.
Before Luo BingHe could get within seven steps from him, a sword cut into his path. Liu QingGe quickly followed, summoning Cheng Luan back into his hand and forcing Luo BingHe back. The latter man’s face darkened, annoyance creasing his forehead.
Liu QingGe was serious about his promise.
This surprised Shen QingQiu. He didn’t think Liu QingGe cared enough about him to fight for his sake like this. But then again, he was definitely the type to honor promises. This wasn’t so strange, Shen QingQiu supposed.
But Liu Shidi, can you really beat the protagonist?
Well. He could only wait and see, right?
Liu QingGe was beaten back yet again.
How many times had this happened?
Shen QingQiu didn’t know why Luo BingHe let him struggle for so long. Did it give him some sort of satisfaction to crush his opponent’s fighting spirit? But in the original novel, he was the type to get things over with quickly...
"Liu Shidi, don't push yourself."
Liu QingGe allowed Shen QingQiu to support his body, but showed no sign of backing down from the fight. He clenched his teeth, tightened his grip on Cheng Luan, and closed his eyes to regulate his energy.
Luo BingHe gazed upon them icily as he resheathed Xin Mo. Something seemed to gleam in his eyes when he saw their close proximity. "Shizun, you don't need to concern yourself with his well-being, no?"
A chill went down Shen QingQiu's spine. That's right. He was Luo BingHe's primary revenge target, he really should be worrying about himself!
Liu QingGe straightened up and shoved Shen QingQiu behind his body. "I won't let you lay a finger on him!"
Liu Shidi, Shixiong really appreciated your determination, but if you keep this up, you might really die!
Shen QingQiu placed a hand on his shoulder. "Shidi. Thank you for your hard work, but there is no need for you to go this far."
"Nonsense," Liu QingGe spat, shrugging his hand off, "I promised to protect you, have you forgotten?"
Shen QingQiu's heart throbbed. An unnamed emotion surged in his chest.
He didn't get to dwell on this strange sensation, because Luo BingHe's gaze turned smoldering with what seemed like anger and… jealousy?
With a cold, derisive laugh, Luo BingHe spoke, "How many of your ribs are still intact?"
Alarmed, Shen QingQiu turned to Liu QingGe. But the other man had charged toward Luo BingHe again, who answered to each strike calmly.
Good god.
What was he supposed to do, Shen QingQiu cried in his heart.
Their exchange didn't last long this time, and Liu QingGe was quickly knocked back again. Shen QingQiu hurried to his side. "Shidi!"
Cheng Luan was stabbed into the ground as Liu QingGe tried to steady himself. After gasping for a while, he finally coughed up a mouthful of blood.
The sight of it alarmed Shen QingQiu.
No, he thought resolutely, this can't go on anymore. He couldn't let Liu QingGe sacrifice himself like this any longer.
"Shizun," Luo BingHe said, "if you come with me, I will spare everyone here." He paused before continuing reluctantly, "Even Liu... Shishu."
What was that pause. If you really didn't want to call him Shishu, there was no need for you to do it, right? And why are you still calling me Shizun? Is it a mockery of our past relationship?
No, that's not the point!
If he went with Luo BingHe, he would most definitely die. But everyone else would be spared. If he refused, everyone would die with him.
It's not really that much of a choice, is it?
"Shen QingQiu," Liu QingGe growled, probably seeing the contemplative look on his face, "the Lord of Bai Zhan Peak is still standing here, don't you dare submit to that demon!"
Luo BingHe gave another cold laugh. "Shall I break your arms and legs too? Maybe I should rip them off."
"No," Shen QingQiu said quickly. "I will go with you."
Shen QingQiu tried very hard to ignore Liu QingGe's eyes, which were so sharp it gave him chills. He didn't want anyone here to die for him, especially Liu QingGe. Maybe it was because he'd been the one to save this man's life, even though he was meant to die early. Maybe that had made him feel some sort of responsibility over his life.
Wasn't it strange, how he had originally meant to have Liu QingGe protect him from Luo BingHe, yet somehow ended up wanting to sacrifice himself for him?
Shen QingQiu steeled himself and stepped around Liu QingGe. He paused to pat the other man's shoulder. "Be sure to let Mu Shidi take a look at your injuries," he said.
Liu QingGe caught Shen QingQiu's wrist in a bruising grip. "Don't submit to him," he said. There was an edge of desperation in his voice, which made Shen QingQiu pause.
He really was taking his promise very seriously.
The unnamed emotion from earlier made its presence known again. Shen QingQiu tried to make sense of it, but the look in Liu QingGe's eyes made this extremely hard to do.
At times like this, Shen QingQiu had to wonder whether he really deserved such a good martial brother.
He’d originally considered killing himself to transfer his soul to the plant body (the arrays had been set up for a while now, after all), but seeing Liu QingGe like this… Shen QingQiu was certain that doing so would impact him terribly.
He sighed and patted Liu QingGe's arm with his free hand. "Don't place the responsibility upon yourself. It was never your burden to begin with. He’s my disciple, I will take responsibility for my fault in educating him.”
With some effort, Shen QingQiu pried Liu QingGe’s fingers off of his wrist. Liu QingGe made to chase after him, but a flash of pain appeared on his face, delaying his actions. It was enough time for Shen QingQiu to slip away and reluctantly walk to his own death.
Look on the bright side, Shen QingQiu thought. At least he wouldn’t die immediately, else Luo BingHe would just kill him on the spot (though he would prefer it to being tortured before death). There was a chance Liu QingGe would come to his rescue again (though the success rate would be greatly reduced, because surely Luo BingHe would tighten the security).
Luo BingHe’s fingers closed around his wrist, like a cold metal cuff tying him down. The look in his eyes sent a shiver down Shen QingQiu’s spine. Just like last time, Xin Mo was unsheathed and a tear was made in space.
Though Shen QingQiu could practically feel his heart in his throat, he still managed to say, “Withdraw your troops.”
Luo BingHe looked at him stiffly. What was that strangely pained look in his eyes? “As Shizun wishes.”
Liu QingGe coughed up another mouthful of blood, which had Shen QingQiu turning back to look at him. After recomposing himself for a moment, he roared, “Wait for me!”
Those words were cold and sharp, scathing like icicles. But within them, there was resentful rage and intense battle intent, fully befitting his title as the God of War from Bai Zhan Peak.
Luo BingHe resheathed Xin Mo and laughed coldly. “Go ahead, come at me!”
And then they were gone.