Chapter Text
How can two so badly different people fall for each other?
One, who is known by the whole world, mostly for his cruelty, being the emperor's “guard” and the fact that he is the leader, of one of the demonic sects. The other one, who is pretty much not known personally, by any other person than his own sect members and has zero to no public reputation to speak of - neither good, neither bad.
Of course, this was before these two had met each other.
Their first meeting wasn’t... the best way to meet. One of them was suffering and trying not to die right on the spot and the other just wanted to see him suffer...what a combination.
They did not know that heaven had other plans for them. Two souls, both once, twice, or even thrice betrayed by someone they know.
Because Yan Wushi is very secretive, very mysterious person, not Shen Qiao, not the world knows much about him or about his past. Due to that trait of his, it's hard to say why he is the way he is. But would he be the Yan Wushi without him being the way he is? Probably not and if there is someone who knows that it`s Shen Qiao because he has met the other “versions” of him. Being it the small sweets-loving Xie Ling or the still cunning but gentler Ah-Yan, they were still Yan Wushi... in their own way. Yan Wushi lived his life believing that all people were born evil, no exceptions, put them through enough hardships and they will show just how bad they can be.
But then something happened that people call Shen Qiao. Yan Wushi came into his life in a flash and created a hurricane out of it. They both came into each other`s lives in an instant and at least one of them created some chaos for the other. But Yan Wushi wasn’t unaffected by Shen Qiao, Changes happened that he didn’t like to admit nor show.
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His life consisted of being a sect leader and training the sect's disciples. He had no concerns nor knowledge about the outside world, which might sound very selfish but that was how their sect had decided a long time ago – no interventions with the outside world, and it worked for them. But then suddenly he was fighting with Kunye, feeling something was wrong with his qi, and got thrown off the cliff into the darkness. When he finally opened his eyes after that, it was still darkness in front of him, in both literal and poetical ways. He was blind and had no memories of what happened or who he was. A very unfortunate sequence of events for him, but was he bothered by it... not really. Yes, the wounds hurt a lot, and not seeing the world was quite an inconvenience but he managed very well, even too well someone would say.
He did not know what the future had prepared for him.
The first time he got betrayed was by one of the closest people to him, the person he considered his brother, a family member. Of course, at the time it happened Shen Qiao had no idea what he had done to him, but the effects showed themselves during the fight with Kunye. Yu Ai had poisoned him right before the fight. But how could he have known that, why on earth would he even suspect or have his guard up with Yu Ai? He confronted him when he returned to Xuandu, but nothing was really solved there that day.
The second time he was betrayed was when Cheng Gong wanted to exchange his life for Shen Qiao`s beauty and body, to give him up to be Mu Tipo`s plaything. Mu Tipo was a well-known lustful person with pretty high status on top of that. Luckily things didn’t go that way and both Shen Qiao and Cheng Gong got away, also Shen Qiao chopped off Mu Tipo`s dick - everything went well, one disaster avoided.
The third time, the betrayal was executed by Yan Wushi himself. Nearly right after he had acknowledged Yan Wushi as his friend and even said it out loud. Being happy to see him after a long time that he nearly tripped himself over some stairs. He was exchanged for a sword – did he really have that little worth to Yan Wushi? The person he was given to wasn’t a nobody either - Sang Jingxing, one of the leaders of Hehuan sect - they are known to be ruthless and to other sect`s disliking, they also used dual cultivation. That was also the time and place Shen Qiao discovered that he did not only have a Daoist core but indeed Yan Wushi had planted a demonic core inside him as well. He was in so much pain again. This situation didn’t leave him many choices - either he puts out everything he has in himself or gets killed, or even worse - being kept alive for dual cultivation. So, there he was, destroying his own foundation – his Daoist core, something he had worked for nearly his whole life. He intended to take Sang Jingxing down, even if it took him too. The explosion of his core scattered a very bright light that could be seen far. Both men were injured, it’s a miracle that they both still survived and managed to escape from each other.
“I don’t need friends. Only one kind of person has the right to stand by me, and that is my rival, and you have already lost your competence.” Even though Shen Qiao didn’t show it, these words must have hurt him, even just a bit. They were said by someone he considered a friend, his first friend outside his sect, well he didn’t have a sect anymore either. He had lost quite a bit with just the “help” of two people – the same ones he held in his heart - at that time, one more dearly than the other one.
His place as a sect leader, his sect, his vision, and now his core. He has been poisoned, punched, kicked, lied to, kidnapped, and betrayed but still... He was the same Shen Qiao, with a lot more knowledge about the outside world and an additional Chu Yang Ce to his martial arts, nothing had changed about him. He was still the so kind-hearted, gentle, and caring to everyone, even to those who might not deserve it. His judgment for wrongdoings was still as sharp as a sword and he would punish those who deserved it.
Yan Wushi`s betrayal left Shen Qiao in immense pain. He might be a little stubborn, but he still wanted to see Yan Wushi again and tell him that: look, you tried so much to change me, but here I am, alive, and still myself, I didn’t lose myself.
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If there has been someone on this journey of his who he could even trust a little was that raven-haired and red-robed girl – Bai Rong. She has saved his life behind the curtain quite a few times and Shen Qiao knows it. She was risking her own life for Shen Qiao when she hid his and Shiwu`s whereabouts in that temple. Had she said where they were, both he and Shiwu would definitely be dead already. She was also the one who told him that the top masters of that time were after Yan Wushi`s life and they will try their best to put an end to it. Shen Qiao knew pretty much immediately what he had to do - he went after Yan Wushi to save him. His reasoning was political at that moment, but what was the reason in his heart?
When he arrived, he found Yan Wushi`s dead body on the ground – he was too late. He made the remaining masters leave his body there for himself to bury, he couldn’t believe that he was really dead. Just then a hand grabbed his. Was there really still hope? Shen Qiao checked his pulse and the flow of qi and indeed, there was a tiny, so slight pulse that could be his own imagination. Yan Wushi was indeed alive, but the way he looked and felt was exactly how a dead person would be.
Shen Qiao had saved his life. The same person who threw him in the hand of Sang Jingxin, planted a demonic core inside him and made him lose his own Daoist core.
Yan Wushi was a wreck after that fight – the biggest concern was that hit to his head, his fractured skull. So were Xie Ling and Ah-Yan born.
Shen Qiao really liked Xie Ling. He was just a kid, and didn’t talk much but he was the least like Yan Wushi. Xie Ling also saved them from the underground fortress when Yan Wushi had abandoned them.
Ah-Yan was similar to Wan Wushi but he didn’t tease Shen Qiao and was honest with his feelings, he wasn’t dumb either, he knew exactly what he was doing or saying.
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For Yan Wushi Shen Qiao had mixed feelings. He could annoy him so much that he would shut his mouth and ears and just ignore him. He also teased him a lot, that one time in the carriage when he...kissed him, it made him so angry, shocked and embarrassed that he passed out right on the spot. He has said some hurtful things, tried to change him just to prove that he is right about the “everyone is evil” and then the thing that happened when he pretty much exchanged him for a sword. That thing was hurting him the most. But he hasn’t only been the bad person with Shen Qiao, there have been things that he can thank Yan Wushi for. He did save his life, with bad intentions in mind but still. He helped him on Xuandu mountain when Yu Ai didn’t want to let him leave the place. Shen Qiao didn’t think of him as a completely evil person and he has seen it before and if not in the form of Yan Wushi, then in the form of Xie Ling. He hated the thought of losing Xie Ling, he was really fond of him. And if this wasn’t enough to convince Shen Qiao, then he thought about the two disciples Wan Wushi had: Bian Yanmei and Yu Shengyan – he took care of these two and probably didn’t trust anyone else as much as these two, especially Bian Yanmei. He has learned quite a lot about Yan Wushi during the little encounters they have had before. He is a person who likes luxury, good food, and alcohol - he does not lack money for that either, that is for sure. He cares a lot about cleanliness, that had Shen Qiao noticed in the Daoist temple when he cleaned his chopsticks before eating.
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After Shen Qiao saved Yan Wushi they were in hiding. But even with all the efforts, they were still found by the man itself - Cheng Gong. Shen Qiao had to go with them, while at the same time having to bring Yan Wushi along, even in that state Yan Wushi was in, he was still as cunning as a fox and knew the reason for the trip, of course, he did not leave the place without the thing he was after: the part of Zhu Yang Ce that was about demonic cultivation, for Yan Wushi to fix the error in his cultivation and to get well overall. Even in that state he was still only thinking of himself. Well luckily for the others still underground, Xie Ling came and helped them. Of course it was him, why would Yan Wushi do that? Did Shen Qiao have any worth for the original Yan Wushi? He had seen Yan Wushi struggle before too: After the fight with Ruyan Kehui, he had a qi deviation, he was an easy target, and even the girl Bai Rong came after his head that time, but Shen Qiao had again saved that man. Shen Qiao thought: how many times do I have to save him from his own idioticy?
Well turns out this will not be the last one and it will change a lot of things for these two souls.