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“Apologies, Sect Leader Jiang, Lianfang-zun explicitly ordered that he was not to be disturbed,” says the guard posted outside Jin Guangyao’s room for the third time. Jiang Cheng grits his teeth, incensed, and the guard’s eyes go even wider as Zidian crackles in his hand.
“I don’t give a shit,” he says. “What does that idiot think he’s doing?” The guard opens his mouth again, terrified, probably to repeat the same thing once again, but he’s interrupted by the sound of a door opening.
“Sect Leader Jiang,” comes Jin Guangyao’s voice from where he’s stepped into the doorway. “My apologies for not being able to greet you sooner. It’s a pleasure to have you in Koi Tower.” He bows, perfectly cordial smile on his face, and Jiang Cheng holds the urge to roll his eyes.
“It’s fine,” he grits out. He looks at the guard, who is looking between the two of them, an unsure expression on his face. Jin Guangyao seems to catch his meaning, because he rises from his bow and gestures to the guard, dismissing him. The man bows and goes, risking one last look at them.
“Please, come in,” Jin Guangyao says, gracefully motioning to the door. Jiang Cheng strides past without even looking at him, stopping to cross his arms when he’s inside. Jin Guangyao closes the door behind them and steps next to him again.
“Please, make yourself comfortable,” he starts, and Jiang Cheng does roll his eyes this time.
“What do you think you’re doing?” he says, and watches as Jin Guangyao’s pleasant smile freezes for a second before becoming more amiable, if that’s even possible.
“I’m afraid I’m not sure what you’re referring to,” he replies, and Jiang Cheng gives him a look.
“Right,” he says. “So you didn’t get cursed a week ago by some demonic cultivator?” Jin Guangyao looks thrown off for a moment.
“How—”
“Jin Ling,” he says, and Jin Guangyao sighs softly, barely an exhale. “He's worried. What happened?”
“There was a security breach,” Jin Guangyao says, and his face goes cold for a second. “It has been dealt with, though, and it most certainly won’t happen again, so you don’t have to worry about A-Ling’s safety while he’s here.” He smiles again.
“I’m not worried about that,” Jiang Cheng says, because he’s not. Jin Guangyao and him may not agree in a lot of things when it comes to raising Jin Ling, but he knows that they’d both keep him safe by whatever means possible. “How long does the curse last?”
Jin Guangyao shakes his head. “There’s really no need for you to worry about—” he starts, and then stops when Jiang Cheng glares at him. He sighs. “The healers predict it will be another three weeks, at most. It’s not life threatening, though, only slightly… inconvenient.”
Jiang Cheng snorts.
“Why is that?” he asks, and Jin Guangyao looks at him for a moment, eyes searching.
“Sect Leader Jiang, I don’t understand why you’re asking questions you already know the answer to,” he says, still perfectly polite, but there’s a slight tension in his jaw. Jiang Cheng doesn’t budge.
“Humor me.” Jin Guangyao doesn’t quite glare at him, but his lips are now thinly pressed together.
“It’s not an actively harmful curse,” he says, pressing his hands together in front of his stomach. “It just creates a certain… craving, on the recipient.” Jiang Cheng, privately, thinks that’s the most bullshit explanation he’s ever heard. He hums.
“And what happens when you ignore that craving?” It’s satisfying, in a way, to see Jin Guangyao’s perfect composture crack around the edges when he’s frustrated.
“It’s only an uncomfortable sensation. The duration of the curse won’t be long enough for it to be a threat,” he says, and Jin Guangyao is very, very good at lying, but Jiang Cheng knows some of his tells by now, and he also knows the truth of the matter. He scoffs.
“Really,” he drawls. “Because to me it looks like you’re starving.” Jin Guangyao gives him another tight-lipped look, but Jiang Cheng isn’t saying it only to get a rise out of him. Underneath the well-crafted mask that is his face he looks pale, skin almost waxy, and he’s pretty sure there’s rouge on his lips and on his cheeks to disguise how sickly he looks.
“Sect Leader Jiang,” Jin Guangyao says, with the icier smile he reserves for people he’s fed up with. “I appreciate your worry, but there’s no need for this. The curse will fade soon.”
Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes. “I’m glad death is where the bar is,” he says. “You being in pain until then is fine, though.”
“I fail to see how that is of Sect Leader Jiang’s concern,” Jin Guangyao says, still managing to sound deferential somehow. Jiang Cheng grits his teeth.
“I’m not trying to pull whatever move you think I’m doing to gain an upper hand on you,” he snaps. “But it’s ridiculous that you’re putting yourself through unnecessary suffering just because you think asking for help will make you seem weak.”
Jin Guangyao looks at Jiang Cheng like he’s seeing him for the first time, and also like he’s being a hypocrite which, he knows , but this is not about him. Jin Guangyao holds his gaze for a long moment, and Jiang Cheng thinks he’s about to get thrown off Koi Tower for at least a year, but then he sighs.
“Maybe,” he acknowledges with a nod, primly shifting the way his long sleeves fall. “But it’s not only that I think so, I know it’s true. Who would I ask for help with this?” And he’s not completely wrong, Jiang Cheng thinks. There’s plenty of people waiting for Lianfang-zun to show any sliver of weakness or shrewdness to jump on it and tear him down, even after he's proven himself over his years in power.
“You could ask Zewu-jun,” he points out, and smirks at the way Jin Guangyao’s ears go a little pink. He isn’t surprised when he shakes his head, though.
“I couldn’t,” he says, and the look in his eyes is unshakable. Jiang Cheng, once again, rolls his eyes at him.
“Fine,” he says, shooting him a glance that he hopes says you’re being ridiculous, and he crosses his arms over his chest. “You can ask me, then.”
Jin Guangyao blinks, twice.
“I’m sorry?”
“I can help you.” Jiang Cheng refuses to blush.
“Um,” Jin Guangyao says, as thrown off as he’s ever seen him. Jiang Cheng feels himself flush despite his best efforts.
“What’s that look for?” he snaps, embarrassed.
“I didn’t expect—”, Jin Guangyao starts, and then he stops. He clears his throat and recovers quickly, though he still looks a bit baffled. Jiang Cheng is almost offended.
“What,” he still bristles, daring him to actually say it. Jin Guangyao shakes his head.
“It is very kind of you to offer,” he says. “But I couldn’t possibly… do you even know what it entails?”
Jiang Cheng shrugs. “It’s just vital force, right? You can take some of my spiritual energy and I’ll just be a bit deplenished for a day.” Privately, he thinks it’s not such a big deal as to not ask anyone for it, but Jin Guangyao has weird hangups.
Jin Guangyao looks reluctant, though. “The curse does instill a desire for vital force, but it requires it in a… specific way,” he says.
“Spit it out, then,” Jiang Cheng says, impatient.
“It’s blood,” he admits after a moment.
“Blood?” Jin Guangyao nods, a bit uncomfortably. It’s not that weird, Jiang Cheng thinks. It is a curse, so it makes sense that it would require something like that. Jin Guangyao still looks hesitant, though. “Do I have to, like, bleed on you?” That gets a laugh out of him.
“No, no,” he says. “It’s— I have to ingest it.” Jiang Cheng looks at him confused for a moment, and then it clicks.
“You have to drink my blood?”
“See, this is why I couldn’t ask anyone,” Jin Guangyao sighs. “I really appreciate your offer, Sect Leader Jiang, but I can assure you I will be fine until it ends, if only a bit weakened.”
“I didn’t say I wouldn’t do it,” he blurts out, and Jin Guangyao looks bewildered again. “It’s just some blood, fine. I can recover it quickly with my core.” Jin Guangyao doesn’t bounce back fast this time, and instead squints at him as he talks, like Jiang Cheng’s whole existence is puzzling. Jiang Cheng raises a hand when Jin Guangyao opens his mouth to disagree. “Listen,” he starts, because arguing with this man is exhausting. “I can’t force you, if you really don’t want to. But if you’re refusing out of some misguided sense of propriety or whatever the fuck, stop, and just accept the damn help.”
That shuts Jin Guangyao up, and he holds eye contact with Jiang Cheng for a long moment, his gaze scrutinizing, and then he smiles again and bows his head.
“Sect Leader Jiang is very generous,” he says, the corner of his mouth twisting up in mirth. Jiang Cheng feels his face heat.
“Shut up,” he mumbles. “How… should we do this, then?” He’s unsure, now, of the logistics of the situation. Jin Guangyao looks thoughtful for a moment and then gestures to the bed in the back of the room.
“You should sit down in case you feel faint.” Jiang Cheng nods and walks up to it. After some thought he starts undoing his sash, because there’s no sense in getting blood all over his clothes.
“Do you have a dagger around?” he asks as he shrugs off his outer robes, folding them in a corner. When he turns around, Jin Guangyao is staring at him, and he startles a bit when Jiang Cheng raises an eyebrow at him.
“Ah, no, but that won’t be necessary,” he says, and intriguingly he’s blushing now, even through the unnatural paleness of his skin. “The curse also has a… curious side effect,” he says, and then he opens his mouth.
Jiang Cheng is confused for a moment, and then he sees it. He’s not sure how he hasn’t noticed it the whole time they’ve been talking, but his teeth have become sharp and an immaculate pearl white, and his canines are longer.
“You have fangs ,” he says, voice a little choked. The back of his neck feels warm. Jin Guangyao looks at him like he’s untangling something in his head.
“You can’t deny they’re convenient for this,” he says, and he gives Jiang Cheng one of his smiles, dimples and all, but this time the fangs brush against his lower lip.
Jiang Cheng just gestures for him to get closer. He does, after discarding his hat, but with all his robes still pristine around him. Once he’s next to him, he reaches for Jiang Cheng’s wrist, and raises his eyebrows when Jiang Cheng pulls his arm back.
“I don’t want to incapacitate my arms,” he says, and Jin Guangyao nods like it’s not a flimsy excuse.
“But where, then…?” he asks, and then closes his mouth as Jiang Cheng tugs open the collar of his robes and exposes his neck. Jin Guangyao is silent for a moment and then exhales. It might be a trick of the light, but his pupils look bigger. “You’re sure?”
Jiang Cheng only glares at him and Jin Guangyao smiles back, slightly lopsided. He leans forward then, in a posture that must have his back bending uncomfortably, and carefully places a hand on Jiang Cheng’s shoulder as he gets close to his neck. Jiang Cheng tenses involuntarily, unused to having anyone so close, and Jin Guangyao freezes in place.
“Sect Leader Jiang,” he says, and makes a motion to draw back, but Jiang Cheng grabs the hand on his shoulder to keep him in place.
“It’s fine,” he says, and frowns as Jin Guangyao makes a doubtful noise. “You just surprised me. And call me by my name, for fuck’s sake, you’re about to have my blood in your mouth.” Jin Guangyao laughs softly against his neck, and Jiang Cheng shivers at the feeling.
“As you wish, Wanyin,” he says, voice amused, and Jiang Cheng shudders for a different reason.
“Just get on with it,” he snaps.
Jin Guangyao, thankfully, doesn’t beat around the bush. Jiang Cheng has a split second to appreciate how soft his lips feel against his skin, and the smoothness of his teeth, and then there’s a sharp sting on his neck.
It doesn’t feel like much at first, just dull pain and pressure, and then Jin Guangyao opens his mouth and laps at the blood that starts spilling down his neck. Jiang Cheng makes a cut-off gasp— does not moan— and Jin Guangyao hums. His mouth is hot against him, and the pain makes Jiang Cheng’s head swim a bit.
Jin Guangyao drinks slowly and carefully, and while Jiang Cheng appreciates having his neck whole he’s not going to break . He makes an impatient noise and Jin Guangyao tilts his head a bit, but it must be uncomfortable, he realizes, with his neck craned like that. Jiang Cheng thinks well, he already has his mouth on my neck, and then pulls him forward.
Jin Guangyao startles, raising his head to look at Jiang Cheng from where he’s now hovering above his lap, and fuck his entire mouth is a shiny ruby red, and his eyes are wide. Jiang Cheng doesn’t say anything, just tilts his head back slightly, and bites back a sigh when Jin Guangyao follows after a moment.
He laps at the remaining blood on his neck and then at the small puncture wounds, which have already healed. Then he shifts to the other side of his neck and bites down again, harder this time, and Jiang Cheng can’t quite hold back a whimper.
Things get a bit hazy. Jin Guangyao is a warm weight on his lap, and at some point Jiang Cheng has put his hands on his hips, pulling him closer. His mouth is wet and burning against him, and it makes Jiang Cheng simultaneously want to squirm and also sink into this feeling for the rest of his life.
He can’t tell how much time has passed when Jin Guangyao pulls back from his last bite, pressing what almost feels like a kiss to the wounds on the juncture of his neck and shoulder. He looks the messiest Jiang Cheng has ever seen him, his mouth shiny and red, his cheeks flushed all the way. He’s still panting.
Jiang Cheng must look a thousand times worse, he thinks. His middle robe has fallen off of his right shoulder at some point, and when he raises his hand to touch his neck, he makes a small sound. Jin Guangyao tracks the motion with his eyes, sharp and hungry. He still has blood on his lips. It feels inevitable, then, when Jiang Cheng fists a hand to the collar of his robes and leans in to kiss it off of him.
Jin Guangyao makes a surprised noise against him, and then kisses back almost immediately, his mouth warm and pliant against his. He tastes overwhelmingly of blood, the metallic tang of it making Jiang Cheng almost dizzy. Jiang Cheng raises a hand to his hair, silky and smooth between his fingers, and tugs slightly. He gets a small moan as a reward, and then the press of Jin Guangyao’s hand on his tender neck, making him groan in response. He can feel the twitch of lips against his as Jin Guangyao smirks, so Jiang Cheng bites down as hard as he can.
He doesn’t draw barely any blood, but Jin Guangyao moans like he’s been punched, and shivers as Jiang Cheng licks at the wound. His fangs are sharp against his tongue and they catch on Jiang Cheng’s lips, which already feel raw and sensitive. Jin Guangyao’s hands are cold on his face as he tilts his head and kisses him deeper. The inside of his mouth is even bloodier, copper blooming on his tongue, so sharp that it should make him gag but he just feels dizzy instead.
He’s deeply lightheaded by the time they pull back, the loss of blood starting to make his mind fuzzy. Jin Guangyao looks dazed as well, and he wobbles dangerously when he tries to get up from Jiang Cheng’s lap. Jiang Cheng catches him with the hands he still has around his hips and helps him sit back into place.
He then impulsively lets himself drop back on the bed and pulls Jin Guangyao with him, who yelps as he falls on top of him.
“Sect Leader Jiang,” he says, and his voice is rough in a way that makes warmth pool on his stomach. Jiang Cheng closes his eyes. “Wanyin.” He sounds indignant and almost flustered, which is amusing to Jiang Cheng’s kiss-addled mind.
“Shh,” he mumbles, but eases the grip on him completely as best as he can, only brushing the soft fabric of his robes.
“The blood is going to dry on your neck,” Jin Guangyao reproaches, but he doesn’t scramble away, only wraps his arms around Jiang Cheng’s shoulders to be more comfortable.
Jiang Cheng hums. “You can kiss it away later,” he says, and snorts at the light swat against his arm. Jin Guangyao huffs and pinches his neck, making him gasp a bit, but he still settles against Jiang Cheng as he falls asleep.