Work Text:
Liu Qingge was walking through the forest. He had been asked by his father, who he was camping with, to collect some wood for their dinner. It was a simple enough task, but what he didn't prepare for was the sound of something stirring in the woods. It was as though the floor itself was moving with the sound. Liu Qingge rushed in the direction that noise was coming from. He could have never guess what he would find; before him was a boy that was in the grip of a plant. He was being held tight. His body was being compressed, and the plant was pointing. Something into his eyes… Apparently causing him to be unable to move because the boy was completely still. Liu Qingge pulled out his sword. Though he had never encountered a plant like this before, he had heard stories of such creatures. And though he was not yet a cultivator, his father had shown him the basics of how to use a sword, and now was the time to use those skills.
Liu Qingge rushed forward and drove his sword directly into the bottom part of the plant immediately; the plant let out some sort of sound and started to uncurl from around the boy. Liu Qingge watched as the boy was released and was able to catch him before he fell. The plant tried to then attack Liu Qingge, but before he could land a blow, his father came out of the woods and, with a talisman and a few strikes of his sword, killed the creature. Liu Qingge, as always, was impressed by his father's martial skills, but he didn't have time to focus on them.
He looked properly at the boy that he had caught, and now, seeing him up close, he realized he wasn't just a normal boy. He was in fur-lined clothes that were not well suited for the autumn weather. His skin was pale. Almost ghostly. He wore an earring in his ear that had a symbol that Liu Qingge had never seen before. And his pointed ears… The boy that he had just rescued was a demon. Liu Qingge stared in shock at the boy as his father walked over to him. As you saw who Liu Qingge was holding in his arms, his eyes went wide. “He is one of the high-ranking ice demons of the north. That earring marks him as such.”
A noble? A demon noble here of all places? His father came forward, and, for a moment, he thought that his father would end the boy's life. But instead he picked up the child, who was still unconscious. “Rescuing a high-ranking demon could lead to better connections with the north and, as a result, better trade deals. As such, for now, we won't harm him.” The last part was added as a response to Liu Qingge's questioning look. He followed behind his father. As they headed back to the campsite. Liu Qingge had not expected his father to be so amenable to demons, considering what he had heard people in town saying about them. Liu Qingge’s father had never talked much about demons before, but he was someone that understood the value of a good trade deal. That was why the Lius had been able to become as rich as they were.
Liu Qingge watched as his father set up some ice talismans around the demon. Seeing Liu Qingge’s quizzical expression, his father explained, “Ice demons do not do well in the heat. You might think otherwise based on the clothes that they wear, but their clothes are more of a status symbol than for any practical purpose.”
Liu Qingge nodded his head.
His father began to examine Mobei-jun. As he did, he continued to speak to Liu Qingge. “That plant seems to have used some sort of hypnosis to knock him out. I doubt he'll be out long, though. In the meantime…” His father's eyes went wide. “Oh, that's why he was able to be captured by that low-level plant.” Liu Qingge moved a bit closer to see what his father was looking at. And he saw that there seemed to be something very thin around the demon's neck. “It's a collar. A shock collar.” Liu Qingge’s father explained. “It likely activates whenever he tries to use his powers. Someone had left him there to die.” His father drummed his fingers. “There is definitely a lot that we don’t know about this demon. We will have a lot of questions for him when he wakes up. I'm sure that I can kill him if he turns out to be an issue, especially if he's wearing that collar.”
Liu Qingge sat down and watched his father continue to work, only getting up on a few occasions to prepare some food on the fire. There were quite a few injuries on this demon already. He likely had been in the woods for some time before they found him. When his father was putting the final touches on the demon’s bandages, he began to stir. The two Lius stiffened, prepared to go on the offensive if the demon tried to harm them. When the demon opened his eyes, his gaze immediately fell on Liu Qingge. His eyes were as icy as the deepest parts of the northern demon realm. He immediately put out a hand and stated, “We are not here to harm you. In fact, we saved you.” Liu Qingge’s father reached to the side where there had been a fire with a wild boar cooking. The heat of the fire had not reached the demon as a result of the ice talismans, so it was nice and warm. Liu Qingge’s father pulled off a piece of meat and offered it to the demon. “Here, proof of my sincerity.” The demon-eyed Liu Qingge's father, hesitating. But with how thin the demon appeared to be, it didn't look like he had much choice but to accept. And, sure enough, he eventually accepted the food and took a bite.
... only to immediately almost throw it up.
Liu Qingge's father frowned. It didn't occur to me, but your body is not used to cooked food, is it? It's used to iced food, right?”
The demon took a moment thinking before he said “Yes.”
Liu Qingge's father got to his feet. I'll need to make some more ice talismans, then I’ll prepare some cold food.” He then walked, got up and put out the fire and got to work on creating new talismans. As Liu Qingge's father did this, the demon's eyes followed him. And Liu Qingge watched the demon. Until he finally asked, “What is your name?”
The demon moved his gaze to Liu Qingge. For some reason, his gaze didn’t look as intimidating as before. “Mobei-jun.”
–
The three eventually got back to the state. There, and Mobei-jun was given a room for the time being. It took a lot of coaxing to get information out of Mobei-jun, but eventually, Liu Qingge and his father found out that Mobei-jun was part of the royal family of the north. And that he had been left in the woods to die by his uncle. And the collar was meant to prevent his ice attacks or his portal abilities from being able to be activated.
Mobei-jun’s uncle…
It sounded to Liu Qingge like if his father really wanted to trade, all that they would need to do is return Mobei-jun in good health to the north. With that, the father would be willing to negotiate with the Lius.
Mobei-jun, for his part, seemed very uncomfortable being in the Lius estate. But they needed to find a way to get off the collar before he could go out to try to get back to his home. But if they were to do that, Liu Qingge’s father also wanted to make sure that Mobei-jun wouldn’t turn on them immediately when he got back his powers. The fact that they were keeping a demon was something that they would be able to hide in the estate. And there was plenty of room for Mobei-jun to do as you wished.
With the collar on, Mobei-jun was not that dangerous. Which meant Liu Qingge could spend time with the demon. And even spar with him.
“Sword.” Liu Qingge offered Mobei-jun a practice sword as soon as he entered Mobei-jun’s quarters. Immediately, Mobei-jun's eyes narrowed.
Liu Qingge understood what was going through Mobei-jun's mind, so he explained, “Just because your powers are sealed doesn't mean that you can't fight. And you need to keep practicing if you want to stay strong.”
“I don't fight with a sword.” Mobei-jun stated stubbornly.
“Well, you better learn because if you get another collar on your neck, you won't be able to protect yourself with your powers.” Liu Qingge retorted.
That made Mobei-jun took the offered sword. Though it was clear that he didn't know how to actually hold it. “Adjust your grip like this, and then you'll want to stand like this for us to start the spar.” Liu Qingge explained. Mobei-jun did as he was told, trying to prepare himself. The star was easy enough for Liu Qingge to win, but it was still satisfying to have successfully defeated the demon. A prince of the north that had fallen at his hands. And now, he would be learning how to protect himself properly from Liu Qingge.
Mobei-jun was able to come to things like dinner with the humans without issue. Though, now with the knowledge of the needs that he had for his meals, there were adjustments made to the food that was served to him. Mobei-jun sat next to Liu Qingge. Liu Qingge had a hot bowl of soup in front of him, while Mobei-jun's soup was in the form of ice cubes. Because of Mobei-jun’s stomach, he wasn’t able to eat a traditional human “soup,” but everyone around the table already understood that he couldn't and accepted it. Even so, after many nights of the thought of what Mobei-jun could do that was being unsaid, Liu Qingge asked out loud, “Are you studying us to kill us when you get your powers back?” Liu Qingge’s father on the other side of the table made a noise.
But Mobei-jun only frowned. “The one I want to kill is my uncle.”
That… made a lot of sense. Liu Qingge had stated what everyone else had been wondering in their minds. But hearing the answer out loud. Even though Mobei-jun could be lying. Seemed to ease the tension in the room. Yes, he had all the right to go and kill his uncle for what he had done. And if you remembered the good times that he had with the Lius. That's something that the Liu family could benefit from.
His father and mother didn't actually spend much time with Mobei-jun. After all, Mobei-jun represented a chance for Liu Qingge to learn. To practice not only fighting but also his understanding of other groups of people. But still, when Mobei-jun healed up. And when the collar is removed, Mobei-jun would leave, and with that, Liu Qingge would be on his own again. Thinking about that Liu Qingge mentioned off-handedly to Mobei-jun once, “My parents have wanted another sibling. It hasn't worked out though.” Mobei-jun fought for a moment. “For my clan to have children, it is very difficult. I understand. You should get an artifact for fertility.”
Liu Qingge shrugged. “Sure, but they haven't had luck finding one, I think, for whatever reason.” Liu Qingge felt a bit silly talking about this with Mobei-jun. What did it matter to the demon if he didn't have a sibling or not? Well, maybe Mobei-jun could be a sibling even beyond their short time living together.
–
Mobei-jun didn't smile. But Liu Qingge didn't smile either. Mobei-jun didn't talk much in general. But Liu Qingge was not much of a talker either. It was by all means a strange relationship. But they made it work. Until the day that the collar was broken. Their father had brought Liu Qingge and Mobei-jun outside to break it, and as soon as it was cracked, a huge wave of energy came out. Liu Qingge almost got knocked back just from that. They can now sense how powerful Mobei-jun actually was. No wonder he hadn't thought much about fighting with a sword. He could have killed most people with one blast of his powers. Mobei-jun stood tall. Intimidating to most. But, even though such a large wave of power had been released, Liu Qingge was not afraid, and neither was his father, who didn't even bother to put a hand on his sword in caution “I hope that you remember us fondly and that this will be the start of good relations between us and the north.” His father gave Mobei-jun a slight bow, and in return, Mobei-jun repeated the same gesture.
“I will give presents as thanks for Master Liu’s assistance.”
“That is appreciated,” his father stated. But, after some hesitation, he added, “And you're also welcome to visit as you please.”
And Mobei-jun nodded, and then he turned to Liu Qingge. I will be back. Liu Qingge picked up the sword, took it from its sheaf, and gave it to Mobei-jun. “For you to remember me by.”
Mobei-jun took the sword. “I still do not need a sword.”
“Then don't let your uncle put a collar on you again.” Liu Qingge stated, which made Mobei-jun almost smile. A moment later, a portal was open, and Mobei-jun went through. And the garden filled with the quiet of his absence.
That was supposed to be the end of the story. But, within a few weeks, there was a package on the doorstep of the estate. There were various luxurious items inside. “Pelts, minerals, and even… Is this for having a baby?” Liu Qingge's father said, startled. “This artifact has a 100% success rate in having a child. His father put a hand on his head. “We can have a second child,” he stated under his breath.
Liu Qingge did feel happy about that, but... You also wanted Mobei-jun to return himself. And Mobei-jun did return. It was some time later. “My uncle's dead,” Mobei-jun said in-lieu of a proper greeting as he entered Liu Qingge’s room through a portal. The sight of Mobei-jun came as a surprise to Liu Qingge but he quickly recovered and was filled with excitement.
Gathering himself, Liu Qingge responded, “Good.”
It was a strange way for their reunion to happen. But neither Liu Qingge nor Mobei-jun was normal. And they remain quiet for some time. Just basking in the fact that they were in each other's presence, after a good minute, Liu Qingge said, “What’s next?”
Mobei-jun hummed. “My father is sick, so I will take over the north. I will be a ruler in his stead. If you want trade agreements, I can create them.”
Liu Qingge shrugged. “That's fine. I'm not interested in that, but my father is.”
Movie-jun nodded. “What would it take for me to have you come to the north with me?”
This… Liu Qingge did not expect this. He looked at Mobei-jun, trying to figure out if this was some sort of joke, but Mobei-jun didn't joke. So Mobei-jun just looked at Liu Qingge, waiting for his response. You can visit me, and I can visit you. But I've been preparing to become a cultivator.
And Mobei-jun furrowed his brows. Cultivators do not become friends with humans frequently.“
“I think we're past that at this point.” Liu Qingge snorted. Once again, Mobei-jun let out a small, almost smile from his lips. “You'll have a place.”
“Liu Qingge then got up and put his hand on his sword and turned back to Mobei-jun. Well, if we're going to continue to stay in each other's lives, I need to make sure that you don't forget how to fight properly. Mobei-jun let out a small snort as he pulled out his sword. Liu Qingge was filled with the pride with which Mobei-jun now held his sword. “Yes, for old times sake."