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“I’ll be home soon,” Xie Lian says, pressing a kiss against Hua Cheng’s cheek as the man leans down to allow it. But just as Xie Lian expects, as soon as he steps back a frown forms on the ghost king’s face.
“I should accompany Gege,” Hua Cheng responds with only mild displeasure audible in his tone. He takes one of Xie Lian’s hands in his own. “If it would make Gege’s task easier, I would be happy to-”
“San Lang,” Xie Lian interrupts, gently squeezing Hua Cheng’s hand back, “Don’t worry. You've been busy recently so it’s best I go on my own.”
The Ghost City had become more rowdy in Hua Cheng’s year long absence. His return had signaled a return to as much as could be considered normal in the odd city, and the worst of the troublemakers had been dealt with swiftly but of course there were always those that would step out of line. This didn’t stop the pair from spending the majority of their time together; Hua Cheng would always follow Xie Lian to whatever task Heaven would grant him, happy to assist his Dianxia in any and every way, and then they would return home together to enjoy each other’s presence more privately.
But with Zhongyuan fast approaching, ghosts all around were starting to stir up even more trouble. The Gamblers’ Den called Hua Cheng away more and more frequently, and Xie Lian could sense a growing sense of frustration every time he returned from one of these outings. The last thing Xie Lian wants is to burden Hua Cheng with his own tasks.
Xie Lian offers him a smile. “You already spend so much of your time for my sake, I don’t wish to make your responsibilities more difficult to take care of. I’ll be alright just this once.” He laughs. “Besides, I’m not going alone.”
Rather than assuring him, Hua Cheng grimaces with his grip tightening around Xie Lian’s hand. “Then those two should handle it themselves without bothering Dianxia.”
“San Lang,” Xie Lian scolds him halfheartedly. “It’s not often that I have followers specifically ask me to assist anymore. I’m going to take care of it.”
Hua Cheng doesn’t argue that. Xie Lian’s list of believers has been growing more and more each month, and though it did make him more busy Xie Lian knows that Hua Cheng is pleased that his god is gaining more positive recognition.
Leaning in again, Hua Cheng presses a kiss to Xie Lian’s lips. He lets it linger for a moment before pulling back just an inch to look Xie Lian in the eye. “If you need anything, absolutely anything, do not hesitate to call for me.”
“I’ll call San Lang right away,” Xie Lian promises with an assuring smile and reluctantly pulls his hand away from Hua Cheng’s. He moves forward to the door they had prepared with a distance shortening array, and with one last glance back to his husband’s face, steps out of Paradise Manor and onto a quiet street.
Taking a deep breath of the fresh late Summer air, Xie Lian takes in his surroundings. He stands outside a falling apart shed on the outskirts of a small town that he recognizes as not being too far from Puqi Village. It would make sense that settlements nearest to Puqi Village would start picking up on worship to their god too, he supposes. Two figures make their way toward him up the dusty street.
“About time,” Mu Qing says, crossing his arms. “We agreed on a time, what took so long?”
Xie Lian lets out an embarrassed laugh. “Well, San Lang and I…”
Feng Xin quickly cuts him off, holding up a hand. “We don’t need to know. Let’s just focus on the task at hand.”
“Right, right.” Xie Lian clears his throat. “So there are people here trapped in a deep sleep?”
They start the trek up the road further into the town, and Xie Lian is instantly aware of the tense atmosphere. The few villagers walking around look exhausted, nervously glancing at the trio of newcomers.
“Every night someone falls asleep and can’t wake up,” Feng Xin confirms. “We’ve only been able to ask a few people regarding it so far, but it’s been going on for at least a month. Some people have taken to not sleeping at all. I take it you’ve read the list of victims Ling Wen made?”
“En. Though I don’t know what to make of it just yet.” Xie Lian hummed thoughtfully. “There were people of any age or gender. There are a few family members but others have no family.”
“So based on demographics it seems totally random,” Mu Qing points out, rolling his eyes. “This is just the situation with Xuan Ji all over again.”
“It does bring back memories doesn’t it,” Xie Lian says. “I suppose we’ll just have to ask around to see what actually connects these cases.”
They split up, speaking with the households of people afflicted with unending sleep. Xie Lian speaks to the family of the first victim, a widow of a fallen soldier, her son welcoming him in as he poses as a wandering cultivator. The first thing that strikes him is the state of the woman; when he’d heard the term ‘deep sleep’ to describe the victims’ condition he had imagined them resting peacefully, but this was anything but that.
The woman’s face frequently twitches, looking either as if in pain or absolutely terrified. She’s drenched in sweat, hands clenching and releasing. Her son looks on sadly, pointing out that sometimes her condition is worse as she tosses and turns sometimes even screaming. Xie Lian wonders if losing her husband might be what has caused the nightmares but upon learning that her husband had died fifteen years previously, it was unlikely that these nightmares would be anything new.
At the next home he visits, he finds a young boy in a similar state. He’s a former orphan taken in by a local family who had once witnessed his parents die in a house fire. This gives Xie Lian the idea that maybe all the victims were connected by witnessing death, but as soon as he reaches the next victim the theory is quickly thrown out.
She’s the daughter of a wealthy merchant, no lost family members, and even her betrothed is accounted for as being safe and sound. A young woman stating herself as the victim’s closest friend that has been staying at the house since she fell asleep gives Xie Lian a full account of her recent activities. Absolutely nothing in the recent actions of these three victims seems similar. It seemed this victim hadn’t even met any of the others.
Night is starting to fall as Xie Lian leaves the third house, scratching his head as he reviews what he’s learned. Might these cases actually be random? Mu Qing and Feng Xin’s findings are similar to his own.
“The last one I talked to isn’t even from this town,” Mu Qing recounts, crossing his arms in frustration, “He was only visiting his brother here. Is the town just cursed? Is that it?”
“If it was just a curse across the town we would have been able to sense something. It may be some sort of creature or ghost just taking whatever victim it sees,” Feng Xin suggests.
Xie Lian contemplates asking Hua Cheng if he knew of any sort of ghost that would do such a thing, but quickly pushes the thought away. He’s not going to call Hua Cheng over for such a trivial question, and he knew that even if he just asked over the private communication array his husband would still use it as an excuse to show up in person. As much as he would like to see him, the whole point of this exercise was to let Hua Cheng have time to himself and to not bother him. Instead Xie Lian comes up with an idea.
“Well if visitors aren’t immune to this, maybe we should try to see if whatever is causing this will target us as well,” Xie Lian says. “Let’s find a place to sleep for the night and see if we can’t catch the culprit.”
They end up at the shed Xie Lian had initially arrived at, conveniently empty and with enough room to fit a single sleeping person.
“So you’re just going to sleep and we’re going to watch?” Mu Qing asks, completely unimpressed. Xie Lian shakes his head.
“No, I’ll sleep and you two go patrol the town. If it is some sort of creature causing this, they definitely won’t target someone under close observation,” he explains, wiping at the floor to clean the spot where he’ll later be sleeping. “And if they decide to go for someone else in town then the two of you will be on alert to go check them out. Just make sure to check back here every so often and it should be fine.”
“There’s not even a mat to sleep on here,” Feng Xin protests.
“I’ve slept in mud and in the rain, this place is just fine. Ah-” Seeing the displeased expressions on the pair’s faces, Xie Lian quickly switches tactics. “It’ll be fine. It looks perfectly comfortable.”
“Crimson Rain isn’t going to like that we’re using you as bait,” Mu Qing rightfully points out. Xie Lian falters a bit.
“Well he isn’t here, and it’s not like either of you are asking me to do this. Besides, out of the three of us with my luck I’m the one most likely to be attacked. So it should absolutely be me sleeping here,” Xie Lian says.
Feng Xin and Mu Qing look at each other, both clearly not convinced, but neither of them move to argue more.
“We’ll come to check on you frequently,” Feng Xin says, still reluctant.
Mu Qing nods in agreement. “If you look even remotely like you’re having a nightmare I’m waking you up. So you better sleep well.”
Xie Lian smiles, grateful for his friends’ concern. “That’s fine.”
As soon as they leave, Xie Lian lays back on the floor, staring up at the boring wooden slats of the ceiling. He’s usually able to fall asleep quickly regardless of the conditions, but sleep evades him for once.
It hits him all at once that this is the first time since Hua Cheng’s return that he hasn’t fallen asleep beside him. During his year long absence Xie Lian had still managed to sleep, comforting himself with the fact that he would see the man he loves again. But since their reunion they haven’t tried spending this much time apart that sleeping separately would be an issue. Whether they were at Paradise Manor, or Puqi Shrine, or even just finding a spot to rest while traveling, Xie Lian had grown accustomed to the security of his husband’s arms around him while he slept.
It should be the same as before, he knows he’ll see Hua Cheng again soon. He’s slept alone for the majority of his life, he can handle this. But for some reason Xie Lian’s heart aches at the thought. He doesn’t have to be alone now, making the choice to be away from his husband is painful in a way he’s not quite used to.
Xie Lian is still awake when the door to the shed is slowly pushed open for the first time that night. He recognizes the voice that lets out a quiet relieved sigh at the sight of his feigned sleep. Feng Xin. It seems that he wasn’t lying when he said he’d be checking frequently, even if he isn’t sure how much time has passed. The door closes again and Xie Lian lets out his own sigh.
He knows that this entire act is needless if he can’t manage to truly fall asleep. This one night away will be worth it if he manages to catch whatever is plaguing these villagers. It’s only with this thought in mind and allowing himself time to meditate that he finally feels himself starting to drift off.
The ache in his heart is still there.
Xie Lian awakens to a black room. At first he thinks it’s simply still night time, but after shifting he can tell the ground he’s laying down on has changed. There’s cold stone under his fingers as he pushes himself upright, instantly alert.
“You’re awake.”
The voice sounding from behind him chills Xie Lian to the bone.
He whirls around instantly, determined to defend himself even while terror fills him at the sight of a cry-smiling mask.
“This isn’t real,” Xie Lian says, trying to convince himself. “We defeated you.”
“’We’? You’re alone here.” As he speaks, White No-Face steps toward him. Xie Lian has to stop himself from taking a step back.
“You’re not here, you’re not real,” Xie Lian repeats. “This is nothing but a nightmare and I’m not falling for it.”
As soon as the words leave his mouth, White No-Face is directly in front of him and two hands close around his throat. He can’t breathe, the hands are cold against his throat.
“It certainly seems real to me.” White No-Face says.
Xie Lian tries to claw the hands away from his throat to no avail. A nightmare shouldn’t feel like this. No dream he’s ever had has ever felt this real. His vision is blurring and it’s only through sheer force of will that he's able to strike a hand out and catch White No-face’s shoulder just hard enough to loosen his grip.
He rolls away, coughing and desperately trying to catch his breath. White No-Face is walking towards him again, and with the little breath he has he calls out “Ruoye!”
Sticking his arm out toward the calamity approaching him, he expects to see the silk band fly out and strike. But nothing happens. Panicked he looks up his sleeve only to discover no trace of Ruoye. He scrambles backward, trying to put as much space between himself and White No-face as possible.
“You can’t stop me,” White No-face says. “You’re powerless.”
Desperately he tries to enter the communication array.
“Feng Xin! Mu Qing!” He calls into the void. “You have to come wake me up!”
He waits. Absolute silence.
“They can’t hear you.” White No-face taunts him. “There’s nothing to wake up from. They aren’t coming for you.”
“Shut up!” Xie Lian finally snaps.
“I tricked you into coming here, and you did exactly what I wanted,” White No-face continues, “You’re all alone, right where I want you to be. I even got rid of that nuisance Crimson Rain Sought Flower. You can’t escape this time.”
Xie Lian freezes in place. “What?”
White No-face laughs. It’s a cold, harsh laugh devoid of any mirth. “He’s gone. You left him alone and I killed him.”
“ No .” Xie Lian moves his hand to his chest, looking to grasp that ring that always hangs there.
There’s nothing there.
Xie Lian’s breath stops. He pats his chest a few times, then starts running both his hands along the ground, searching. He must have dropped it. It can’t be gone. It can’t. “No!”
“You’ll never see him again,” White No-face says.
He tries Hua Cheng’s private communication array, something he nearly never does.
“San Lang?” His voice cracks even as he speaks mentally. “Please, please answer me.”
The silence is deafening.
Tears sting at the corner of Xie Lian’s eyes. San Lang can’t be gone. His beloved is safe, he has to be. He can’t have let his ashes be destroyed. He stares at his hands, the finger where the red string should be is terrifying bare. Shaking like a leaf he digs one hand into his robes, shocked when he finds the two dice that are always there. It’s his last resort.
“San Lang!” he yells as he tosses them between himself and White No-face. Snake eyes.
“What did you think that would do?” White No-face mocks him. Xie Lian doesn’t reply, just waits and believes that his love will come to him.
Furious at being ignored White No-face rushes forward and pins back both of Xie Lian’s hands with one of his own. Xie Lian has never felt this weak, he can’t even bring himself to struggle. Even when White No-face raises a familiar blade above him, ready to strike.
“Why didn’t you just do what you were supposed to before?” White No-face laments. “Then I wouldn’t have to do this to you again.”
Xie Lian simply closes his eyes, resigning himself to it. If he truly had let Hua Cheng’s ashes be destroyed, isn’t this what he deserves?
“San Lang…” he chokes out one last time as he hears the blade rush through the air.
“Dianxia.”
Xie Lian’s eyes snap open. White No-face is still there but the sight of him is blurry, fading.
“S-san Lang?” he whispers, daring to hope one more time.
“Dianxia!”
Xie Lian has to blink a few times, but suddenly he’s back in the run down shack. But rather than the wooden slats making up the ceiling, there’s a blurry pale face and a mass of red hovering above him. A cool hand is pressed against his cheek as another soothingly strokes through his hair.
“I’m here. You’re safe,” a familiar deep voice says softly.
He can’t hold back a sobbing cry as he reaches out and pulls his husband against his chest in a tight hug.
Hua Cheng holds him back just as tightly, fiercely protective in his grasp. Xie Lian wishes his tears would stop so his vision could clear, he wants to see his San Lang, wants to never let him out of his sight again.
“It was a nightmare Dianxia, it’s gone now,” Hua Cheng says. “Everything is alright.”
“Y-you… you were…” He chokes on his words, unable to get his meaning across and simply giving up. He presses his face into Hua Cheng’s neck, breathes in his familiar scent.
“Shhh,” Hua Cheng soothes him, pressing kisses into his hair that make Xie Lian want to cry harder. “Nothing can hurt you now.”
“He-” Xie Lian clutches at the fabric of Hua Cheng’s robe, trying to take deep breaths so he can communicate properly. “He killed you. ”
Hua Cheng stiffens in his grasp for a moment, before slowly pulling away. Xie Lian lets out an embarrassing noise as he attempts to hold Hua Cheng close, but he only pulls back far enough so that they can see each other’s faces.
“Gege.” Cool fingers stroke stray tears from his face as Hua Cheng speaks. “No one is going to keep me from you. I will always find my way back to you. Gege keeps my ashes safe after all.”
Breath catching in his throat, Xie Lian once again reaches to feel at his chest for the ring. But before panic can set in again Hua Cheng reaches over Xie Lian’s shoulder and pulls the chain and ring back into place. Tossing and turning in his sleep must have made the ring slip back, of course he wouldn’t have felt it. Hua Cheng lifts Xie Lian’s hand, fingers interlocking and letting their matching red strings line up in Xie Lian’s vision.
“I’m right here.”
Tension leaves his body in an instant. A few more tears slip out but Hua Cheng makes a quiet tsk and swiftly kisses them away. They stay that way for a moment, allowing Xie Lian a chance to calm himself as Hua Cheng holds him close.
As soon as he feels his breathing steady enough, he tilts his face up to Hua Cheng’s invitingly. Hua Cheng indulges him in a long, slow kiss, driving away any lingering fear in Xie Lian’s mind. He presses their foreheads together afterward, eye shining as Xie Lian meets his gaze.
“Feeling better, gege?”
“En.” He moves to sit up fully and Hua Cheng supports him with an arm around the small of his back as they sit side by side. “Do you know what caused this?”
“I handled it.” Hua Cheng’s eye glints dangerously. “Just a ghost, barely a wrath. Thought it could make itself more powerful by making others witness their worst fears and feeding off their despair. The stronger the fear, the better the target. It won’t be bothering gege ever again.”
“How did you know I needed help?” Xie Lian asks, frowning, “I couldn’t use the communication array in the dream.”
Hua Cheng smiles and simply looks off to the side. Xie Lian follows his gaze until it lands on a pair of dice a couple feet away.
“Oh.”
“Even in his sleep gege knew exactly how to call me,” Hua Cheng says, clearly pleased. “I’m glad you did. I came as soon as I felt you throw them.”
Part of him is overjoyed that he managed to do exactly what he needed to, but another scolds him for calling Hua Cheng away from his business at a moment’s notice. Just as he suspected, he had dropped everything without even thinking the second Xie Lian had called him. Surely whatever his husband had been handling was more important than what amounted to be nothing more than a nightmare?
A lump forms in Xie Lian’s throat. “...I’m sorry.”
Hua Cheng’s brow furrows. “Dianxia never needs to apologize to me. Especially not for doing the right thing.”
“You always help me, and go out of your way to do so,” Xie Lian explains, “Today I wanted to give you a day to yourself, by going out on my own without bothering you and pulling you away from your own responsibilities. But I just ended up making things worse and needing to call you anyway. I’m so-”
“ Dianxia. ” Hua Cheng’s tone is firm, and Xie Lian immediately looks up at him. There’s something unreadable in his gaze, almost heartbroken. Xie Lian feels horrible for causing it. “There is nothing more important to me than Dianxia’s safety and happiness. There is nothing Dianxia could request of me that would ever be considered a bother.”
“I don’t want you to wear yourself out for my sake,” Xie Lian argues weakly. “I know you’re busy. I don’t want San Lang to get sick of me needing help at every turn. You deserve time to yourself too.”
Hua Cheng’s hand still situated against his back twitches once and then retracts, leaving Xie Lian ever too aware of the distance between them. He seems to hesitate, eyes darting away before responding in a somber tone.
“I’ve waited 800 years to stand by Dianxia’s side,” Hua Cheng says softly, “I know that he is more than capable of taking care of himself, but if I can ease his burdens even for a moment I will. I could never grow tired of assisting him. If Dianxia wants to spend time apart of course I will grant him that, but do not think that it is something I would ever wish for.”
Xie Lian realizes his mistake.
It’s obvious in hindsight, but of course being apart is the last thing Hua Cheng needs. In trying to be courteous he only ended up making them both miserable.
“I wasn’t thinking of San Lang’s feelings at all, was I?” Xie Lian says. He reaches up a hand to cup Hua Cheng’s cheek, letting his thumb stroke the sharp cheekbone. “I should have just brought you with me from the start.”
Hua Cheng covers Xie Lian’s smaller hand with his own and brings it to his lips to press a kiss against their red string of fate. “Like I said, if gege wants to spend time apart then this San Lang won’t stop him.”
“That’s just it though. I don’t wish to be apart from San Lang either.” Smiling up at Hua Cheng he interlaces their fingers. “Being apart from you hurts, more than I thought anything could hurt me anymore. Enough so that it’s my worst nightmare. I never want San Lang to leave my side again.”
The shine in Hua Cheng’s eye as he meets his gaze once again is so bright, almost blinding. The ghost king uses their clasped hands to pull him into another tight embrace, giving Xie Lian only a moment to see his content smile before his face is pressed into his neck.
“Dianxia should be careful what he wishes for,” Hua Cheng’s voice is a soft breath against his ear, “Or else he shall never be free of me again.”
Xie Lian lets out a contented sigh and leans his full weight against his husband. “That’s exactly what I want.”
In an instant he’s lifted into the air. Xie Lian lets out a noise of surprise but doesn’t protest as one of Hua Cheng’s arms slips under his knees to hold him more securely. “Let’s go home, gege.”
“Eh?” Xie Lian blinks at him as Hua Cheng takes up the two dice and tosses them again. “Feng Xin and Mu Qing….”
“The problem is already taken care of, they can take care of cleaning up the mess,” Hua Cheng says simply. “It’s more important that Dianxia gets some proper rest.”
He has half a mind to contact Feng Xin and Mu Qing over the communication array first, but Hua Cheng has already stepped through the door of the shack and back into their room at Paradise Manor. As soon as his back hits the silken red sheets of the bed with his husband lying beside him, he can’t help but feel like acting a little irresponsible.
As long as his San Lang is there everything will be fine.