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citronverveine · 1 year

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xie lian and identity issues

this is something i'll probably want to expand on more as i give it more thoughts later but right now i'm just. thinking.

i'm thinking of xie lian in book 2 who has to realize that he is not as invicible as he thought. he is powerful yet he cannot do enough. he is not enough. he cannot save his country, he cannot help the common people, if anything he makes it worse.

i'm thinking of xie lian in book 4 who has to get used to a life with no title, no riches, no priviledge. he has to live as no one, and if people find him out he will not be celebrated like he used to be, he will be captured, beaten, or worse, who knows.

i'm thinking of xie lian after being stabbed 100 times, so disconnected from his destroyed body that he can't recognize himself. i'm thinking of xie lian becoming white no face, hiding his face and seeking revenge, turning his back on everything he was before.

i'm thinking of xie lian after wuming's death, after changing his mind and not cursing the Yong'an people but causing the death of his last believer in the process. the distance between what he would have wanted to be and what he ended up being, doing.

i'm thinking of xie lian in mount tong'lu learning about the past of white no face and starting to think they're the same person. thinking maybe he was the one doing all this. thinking this was all meant to be.

it's just, like. young xie lian was so ambitious, and rightly so; everyone told him he could achieve anything, be anything, he ascended so early, was so powerful and so loved so early on. he started high, only to jump from heaven and land terribly low, in a 6-feet deep hole, unable to crawl out of it. the distance between what he was and what he ended up as. i know the war took a couple years to end but the change was still probably very brutal for him.

especially during his first banishment. at first it could have been alright. he had his parents. he had feng xin. he had mu qing. everything was new and unfamiliar and wrong but he had them, he knew them, they were familiar at least. even if xie lian had failed they were still with him, they still loved him.

and then mu qing left. and xie lian's view of relationships started to shatter. and then he was against mu qing on the land of cultivation and he was the one being humiliated and rejected. and then he was losing himself with the stress of white no face, becoming crazy with anguish and despair. and he couldn't provide enough for his parents, and he was afraid feng xin would leave, and he couldn't recognize himself. how had he fallen so low? how had he failed so much?

and then the temple. he wanted to fight white no face, to get rid of him once and for all. but white no face broke him without even lifting a finger. he shattered his faith in the goodness of the world by showing him how cruel it could be. and afterwards...

just think. being tortured for a whole night, used by hundreds of people for their own benefit, left torn open and raw without care. but you heal and you recover and your body hides any trace of that event. did you really go through it? did it really happen? did it happen like you think it did? was it really that bad? was the pain that severe? your body hid it all. you'll never know. the only thing you have are you memories. but can you trust them?

anyway. after that, xie lian comes back to his parents and feng xin. he steals. he doesn't care. he's angry, he's raw, he's weak. feng xin leaves. his parents leave. he's alone.

he's completely alone. he doesn't even have himself anymore. his old self is dead, his old self was nothing, his old self was naive and stupid. xie lian trying to kill himself even though it's useless is symbolic of him completely leaving his old self with his parents and what was familiar, to become someone else entirely. to abandon this part of himself.

it's explicit as white no face that xie lian completely rejects his previous identity of crown prince and god. he does not want to be called that. he does not want to be reminded of it. he hates this past self so much that being associated to it makes him feel humiliated and ridiculed.

only that old part of him is not entirely dead. xie lian still hesitates, deep down, to release the spirits. a part of him still wants to believe. he wants to be proven wrong. he wants the world to give naive xie lian another chance. it's the bamboo hat man that does that for him.

i just think the distance between xie lian, his body, and his mind, is very interesting. i didn't mention how he is completely disconnected from his body even 800 years later because i feel like it's more dissociation from the self than an identity issue (struggling to connect your thoughts to your actions and/or associate them with your perception of self, or even simply not having any definite perception of self especially when you are traumatized) but. i'll definitely make a post about that some day.

that was a bit long but i just. wanted to put some thoughts down. thx for reading up til here ??

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rooviebae · 2 months

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NEZUKO IN TGCF AAAND HUALIAN ADOPTS HER

. ݁₊ BUNNY HUT DELIVERY . ݁₊

YOUR ORDER ㅤㅤㅤ

❥︎ Nezuko Kamado suddenly appears in Heaven Officials Blessing and Xie Lian and Hua Cheng adopts her. ❥︎ 931 words ❥︎ might have a few mistakes but still hope you enjoy it !

Nezuko has witnessed several unbelievable events while traveling from demon to demon with her brother. She's even heard stories from her father before he died from an unknown illness that made his body weak. However, she has never been hit by another demons Blood Demon Art and arrive in a world that does not look like her own.

Thankfully, it was night, and there were still several people wandering the crowded streets, as she has gotten used to by this point. She was standing at her normal height, her fingers securely grasping her pink kimono, but her grip was not strong enough for her nails to sink in and tear the fabric apart.

Nezuko scans her surrounding, hoping to spot something that is at least somewhat familiar to her, but nothing was. Should she ask for help? She has no idea where she was, so asking for directions or simply where she was right now would be a great place to start. But she couldn't speak and hasn't been able to for two years, so how would she ask? Not only that, but she didn't have a brush or paper to write on to show anyone what she wanted to say (not like her writing would be that good anyways). All of this meant that she was on her own until she found anything that could help her get home

She takes a brief look at each passing building, some of which look to be prayer temples based on what she can see inside. She continues forward, taking in the beauty surrounding her, until fewer and fewer people and buildings show up around her. Now, the area surrounding her resembled an open field with small homes sprinkled along a lengthy pathway. She continues on this was, slowing her pace a bit to conserve energy until she hopefully finds a decent area to sleep as the sun rises.

There was a few areas here and there, but they were near clearly occupied residences, and she didn't want some random person finding her. While that might not seem too horrible, they may bring her out into the sun, even if they have no intention of harming her. That idea alone bothers her.

"My my," Nezuko flinches slightly at the unexpected voice. "What a demonic presence." She turns and faces two men, one of them dressed in red and had his dark hair tied lopsidedly, and she guesses he was the one speaking. The other shorter male approaches her and leans down a bit to reach her level. "Why do you have bamboo in your mouth?" He asks, mainly to himself rather than to her.

These two weren't human, that was obvious, but they weren't demons either, and she was unable to sense any malicious intentions from them, especially the one in white. He had such a sweet and serene smile; it made her think of her brother.

Since she knows that they are not human, they seem to have already concluded that she was a demon, or at least dangerous. Regardless, they chose to approach her with such care. "Can you talk without that?" The brunette in front of her asks, lazily gesturing to the bamboo with a small head tilt. She shakes her head, but she feels that he already knew the answer to his question. It wouldn't hurt to ask, right?

The other man approaches with a slight smile and stares down at Nezuko. "Well aren't you a little one." He said it in a tone that sounded like he was teasing her, but it didn't really bother her much. She even used his words as an excuse to grow taller. She grew dramatically and slowly until she was around six feet tall, around the same height as him. Her kimono hugged her figure, so she didn't dare to move too much. "What an interesting twist." The man dressed in red had widened eyes, but they quickly disappear and replaced with a faint smile.

Nezuko had been fighting before she appeared here, she had spent hours searching for a place to stay or figuring out how to get back to her brother, and now she has used some of her energy to increase her height in front of these two... whatever they are.

She was exhausted. So, she shrinks to the side of when she would normally sleep within her box and wipes her eye, causing the two males to exchange glances. She sits on the floor till her body collapses on her side, falling asleep surprisingly quickly.

"Gege." The man in red clothing says, keeping his eyes fixed on the little demon. "She's not a ghost." So, she's not a human nor a ghost. What was she? She had this menacing air around her, yet she did nothing that matched it. "Let's take her."

"What?" The white clothed man glances at him. "San Lang, what if someone is searching for her?" His face was filled with hesitation, but the other man, San Lang, did not change his. "They would leave a child out on their own? Let's keep her." He looks back at Nezuko. "If someone is looking for her, we'll have her, but if no one comes looking for her, let's keep her."

He doesn't even wait for the other male, Xie Lian, to to respond to what San Lang said before crouches to pick up the female. His eyes are tender as he stares at the sleeping demon, and this alone causes Xie Lian to stop. "I suppose that works too.."

What exactly has Nezuko gotten herself into?

#kny #kny oneshots #nezuko kamado #tgcf #heaven official's blessing #tgcf oneshot #xie lian #hua cheng #san lang

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mrcformoso · 6 months

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Parallels and Details (part 2) for Paper Flowers for the God of Gods

This focuses mostly on Chapters 4-7. For Chapters 1-3, you can find it in Part 1

If you haven’t read the fic yet, this is in reference to my HuaLian fic Paper Flowers for the God of Gods! It’s a FlowerGod!XL AU in canonverse with Rapunzel vibes and Persephone & Hades vibes and an ungodly amount of flower language.

Again, OMG the response to this fic is UNREAL. Like I had to refresh it over and over because I couldn’t believe how much love it was receiving. This fic was both an emotional and mental ride hahaha because I really wanted to channel MXTX as much as possible.

If I was going to revamp the universe, I wanted to make sure that it was as detailed as possible, and so here’s another roundup of the details in this fic because The Brain Hurts But We Are Doing Our Best.

THIS IS ASSUMING YOU HAVE READ UNTIL CHAPTER 7. Please don’t accidentally spoil yourselves. It will be worth it, I promise hahaha this is mostly for me to show off point out details because these chapters got a bit emotional and just to show how much work I put in this hahaha

SMALL DETAILS - I’m a big fan of inputting tiny little details in this fic, whether it be a repeating phrase or calling out certain things that are for foreshadowing or for mood purposes

“He looked up, and up, and – oh”

The first instance of this line was in Chapter 3, during HC’s flashback:

Hong-er, raising his arms in defense against the intruder as he looked up – and up – and – oh.

This was then repeated in Chapter 4, when Xie Lian rolled the dice and was waiting for San Lang.

Before he could even see the result, he heard the soft landing of footsteps beside him.

He looked up, and up, and – oh.

And finally, repeated one more time in Chapter 7, after HC’s confession, right before seeing the flowers on Xie Lian’s hair

1.He looked up, and up, and – oh.

Basically, it’s all instances when they were feeling extremely anxious and they look up and it’s like saying oh, there you are.

Foreshadowing phrases from flashbacks

So the first instance for example is Chapter 4 during XL’s flashback where it talks a bit about his eventual punishment and HC’s death. Those are direct quotes lifted from the actual flashback on Chapter 7. There’s also repeating ones in Chapter 6.

Capitalization and how important Xie Lian is to Hua Cheng using the power of Capital Letters.

Another thing people don’t really notice, but in Hua Cheng’s POV, he always refers to Xie Lian as his God with a capital G, but all other gods are with a small letter g, indicating the difference in how he regards them.

CALLBACKS AND REFERENCES - I love cyclical poetry and calling back events within the fic. Also, when I write canonverse AUs I love calling back to the canon, or referencing the canon in a way that makes sense in the new universe I made. I also try sometimes to add little references to other things I love.

The two deputy gods - and how important this scene actually was

In the Prologue, there was a super, super short scene where two deputy gods were walking around and one explained Xie Lian’s Gardens to the other, before they’re interrupted by HC. More than just a “haha, HC is gonna kill them” kind of thing, in this chapter it was used as a mode of world building, to establish what Heaven thinks of XL and of minor gods in general, as well as establish that HC made his way to heaven.

However, this is referenced again in Chapter 4. Because HC takes out those two gods, and it causes trouble for Qi Rong, SQX was given the opening to talk to XL about HC. This reveals to XL that San Lang’s real identity was HC (he knew there was a ghost king, and he knew the ghost king was San lang, but he didn’t know his real name)

This leads to Chapter 5 where, because he knows HC is SL, XL brings him to his territory to hide him when he couldn’t teleport out of the festival, which led to the morning reveal of Puqi temple.

Basically, the two deputies were the reason for The Confession in Chapter 7. Thank you, random characters.

Butterfly Weeds - I also think I may have traumatized all my readers from this flower.

Xie Lian’s hair has two indicators of his mood. The first is what flowers grow on his hair, and the second is the state of the flowers (the droop when he’s sad for instance).

So the Butterfly Weed Reveal™ was foreshadowed as early as the prologue. I deliberately didn’t explain what Butterfly Weeds meant because it was a setup for Chapter 6. But if you recall the prologue, XL was waiting on the bridge while looking at his reflection and this was the description I used:

He tucked his hair back behind his ear. It was Butterfly Weeds today, their small, orange buds littered the top of his head, down the length of his hair. He plucked a dead leaf from his hair, letting it fall on the river water, distorting his own reflection.

You learn in Chapter 3 from HC’s POV that Xie Lian’s hair flowers die when he’s really sad, so if you go back, it’s the first indication that XL in the prologue was Not Okay. The river distorting his own reflection was also a metaphor for his mental state and how he was not showing his Real Self.

The Blue Hydrangea

Sooo it was super quickly mentioned but the bookmark in Chapter 6:

He lifted up an old book, one with a bookmark made of a pressed blue hydrangea.

This is the blue hydrangea that XL grew in his hair and gifted to Hua Cheng in Chapter 2:

…and in an act that surprised Xie Lian, [San Lang] tucked the Hydrangea behind his ear with a cute little “now we match, Gege!”

Which means the book came from Hua Cheng’s collection and not heaven. He literally gave the book to He Xuan to deliver to XL, and also kept the flower that XL gave him hahaha

The Page™

Chapter 6, the section of XL’s thoughts as he descends into the Bad Place in his mind was deliberately written in those short lines to sort of emulate the It Hurts page of the novel. I couldn’t really do that in fanfiction because this is not a physical book but I hoped it gave the same vibes.

Chapter 190™

There was really no reason for the human face disease and the stabby stabby but I kept the spirit of the torture XL experienced but through the shackles attached to him.

I also kept the spirit of Ghost Flame Hua Cheng unable to do anything until he burned everyone in teenager Hong-er unable to help until he started starving himself in XL’s temple while praying.

The formation of XL’s Habits

After the reveal of how Hong-er dies to save XL in Chapter 7, we see that XL starts showing the habits that we see him have in Chapter 2. That includes pacing around the perimeter, around and around until the sun sets, him looking at his own reflection in the river to see the flowers in his hair, and of course, the next point:

“It was a nice day. All days are nice.”

THE MOST PAINFUL ONE. IT HURT ME TO DO THIS.

This was actually first implied in the Prologue, but it was a more obvious repetition in Chapter 2 where each section started with “It was a nice day. All days are nice.” Initially, the implication is that it’s what he’s trying to convince himself is true (that all days are nice in heaven, therefore he is okay) But in Chapter 7 it is revealed that he started saying this after Hong-er dies. This shows that he started waiting since back then, and continued waiting the same way until he meets HC.

IT IS ALSO A REFERENCE TO THE NOVEL. It is supposed to emulate the year where XL was waiting for Hua Cheng to return. Because in this fic, XL is waiting for his devotee from his final request, and that’s why it’s the same vibe.

Princess Bride reference!

A cheeky little one. “Your wish is my command” which was first uttered by Hua Cheng in Chapter 5, brought back with more significance in Chapter 7 after XL asks him to be saved. In reference of course to the famous “As you wish” quote from the movie.

HUALIAN’S BACKSTORY - symbolisms, parallels, and running towards one another. I AM SO PROUD OF THIS. This was literally the first thing I had to flesh out of when I made this AU because the rest of the story had to be written around this and WHEN I TELL YOU the amount of time I spent making this omg –

Hua Cheng’s red string

In Chapter 3, we see that Xie Lian wrapped a vine with a lotus flower around Hong-er’s finger and he declared Hong-er as one of his flowers. Hua Cheng wears a red string now on the same spot.

Hua Cheng’s umbrella

The umbrella will make an appearance again soon! But yes, the red umbrella that Hua Cheng closes at the Prologue was the same umbrella Xie Lian hovers over Hua Cheng in chapter 3.

Hua Cheng’s name + Crimson Rain Sought Flower

THE INSPO FOR THIS FIC! Hua Cheng, literally meaning ‘Flower City’. After he dies, he changes his name to this to honor his Flower God, and tbh it holds a lot more significance in this fic.

Also, it changed the meaning of Hua Cheng’s title. Instead of Hua Cheng protecting the flower from the bloody rain, I made it so that HC deliberately protects any flower since they are considered his ‘siblings’.

“I want to be one of your flowers”

In Chapter 3, in HC’s flashback we see that Hong-er wanted to be XL’s flower when reincarnated because he wants to always be with XL. XL acknowledges this.

And although XL doesn’t put it together that Hong-er and “the teenage boy” were the same person, XL subconsciously considers him as his flower because of how loyal he was, and so XL took care of him like how he takes care of all his flowers.

And remember in Chapter 5, how XL reacted to seeing his flowers die?

Yeah. He felt that way, and mayhaps even worse, when HC died. The flowers in his hair rotted in just the same way.

“Wu Ming”

Not really done by name. But. If you notice, Hong-er never introduces himself, and Xie Lian never knew the name of his favorite devotee. I couldn’t do the “Wu Ming” thing because that was XL being deliberately cruel in the canon, and in this they have a much softer relationship.

But technically HC still becomes Wu Ming in a sense that he is endlessly devoted to XL and he sacrifices himself to save XL, so the spirit of Wu Ming is still in this fic.

San Lang (or, the three lives)

So the whole “San Lang” name in canon was a) a cheeky affectionate name (Lang is usually a term of endearment), and b) the “San” or 3 or third references the 3 lives San Lang lived (Hong-er, Wu Ming, Hua Cheng)

Now, in this fic, it means the same thing but in different contexts:

Hong-er is “reborn” as one of XL’s flowers in Chapter 3 - remember right before this, Hong-er mentions he wants to die and be reincarnated, to which XL asks “what would you like to reincarnate as” and gives him a lotus petal which means Renew, or Rebirth. This was the “end” of his first life.

Hong-er (or “the boy”) physically dies praying to XL for seven days straight without eating or sleeping. This is the end of his second life.

Hua Cheng is his third life, thus, San Lang.

Roses, Tulips, Gardenias, Daisies, Chrysanthemums

These were first mentioned actually in Chapter 3, but not by name because Hong-er didn’t recognize these flowers, but these were the flowers Xie Lian grew for him that ‘look like his red eye’.

In Chapter 4, they were revealed to be the red flowers in Hua Cheng’s garden. Xie Lian comments that, if red, they all mean Love. And Hua Cheng says he grew it for a wonderful memory (his first meeting with XL)

Also in Chapter 3, He Xuan mentions that Hua Cheng’s communication array password is “five flowers, but he can’t remember the order”. In Chapter 4, it is revealed that these five flowers are his communication array password (BECAUSE HC IS A SAP AND WE LOVE HIM)

Chapter 6, He Xuan mentions these five flowers to basically tell Xie Lian that he’s working for Hua Cheng and to trust him when he gave The Book.

And of course, Chapter 7, where Xie Lian grew these flowers in his hair as his declaration of love to Hua Cheng. These are Their Flowers.

Paper Flowers

Of course, ½ of the title of this fic. Paper Flowers.

So this one doesn’t need much explanation. They are XL’s favorite offering because it’s not picked flowers, but it is mentioned explicitly in Chapter 3 that XL tells Hong-er not to pick flowers because they will die. So Hong-er dedicated himself to learn how to fold paper flowers.

This is also mentioned again in the end of chapter 3 that Hua Cheng STILL folds paper flowers every day and offers it to XL’s temple in Ghost City (at the end of the chapter).

And during The Confession in chapter 7, Hua Cheng makes XL hold onto E-ming to free his hand as he sits and folds a paper flower to 1) show XL that he was the devotee, 2) fold a paper rose to confess his love and show his feelings and 3) you can say this is him praying to XL. The setting was with XL sitting on the bed and HC sitting in front of him. It’s kind of like he’s praying at an altar while making his offering.

E-ming - and the healthier relationship with Hua Cheng

So because Xie Lian saw HC’s red eye and declared it as beautiful, I made it so that HC and E-ming had a healthier relationship, and it’s shown in how HC takes better care of E-ming and treats him like a puppy.

In Chapter 5 he summarized his relationship that it started off as a curse (before XL), then it became his source of strength (After XL), and then his weapon. Chapter 7 shows that E-ming became his weapon because he wanted to forge something to protect XL in line with what he promised. His “wait for me, and I’ll come back to protect you” promise.

Role reversal

A theme I absolutely love with this universe! It’s very subtle, but it makes me soft.

In the flashbacks, it’s shown that XL is the one who took care of HC, from giving him a reason to live until he took care of him in his teens and made sure he was fed and sheltered and loved.

In the present time, HC becomes that person for XL, where XL is so sad and tired, HC became that person who brought him food, and validated him, and took care of him through their interactions.

“Tell me what you want”

Another theme I really wanted to incorporate in this universe. Related to the role reversal is the theme of asking for something that you want, and being able to give it to that person.

In Chapter 2, we have many instances of San Lang telling Xie Lian to just ask for what he wants, and we also have many instances of San Lang acknowledging any sort of request XL asks of him, even going away if XL says so (“You should go”)

Chapter 3, in HC’s flashback, we see that this came from XL doing the same for HC. Asking him what he wants. If you notice, XL didn’t tell HC to not kill himself when HC says he wants to die and reincarnate, but rather asked what he wanted to reincarnate as and then provide it.

Chapter 4, we see how XL’s wants are mostly ignored by other people (except SQX), until San Lang comes along, where he reassures XL that his wants are valid. Also, we see how XL

Chapter 7, the big reveal that the entire time XL was doing what HC wanted before he died (“what do you want, I’ll do anything” “Wait for me”), and so HC goes back and asks XL again what he wants.

References to their canon themes

“Just one person is enough” - except here, it was one devotee praying for Xie Lian to overcome the shackles

“They’ve been running towards each other for 800 years” - in the sense that they’ve been doing things for each other and waiting and looking for each other for 800 years.

HuaLian back and forth - living for one another and meeting in the middle

MY DREAM with this fic was that I wanted to do in this fic was the constant back and forth between HuaLian. I revealed little by little their backstory over the course of several chapters in their POVs to showcase how important they were to each other, even when they didn’t really get to know each other that well.

Xie Lian gave Hong-er a reason to live by being ‘reborn’ as one of his flowers.

Hong-er becomes Xie Lian’s most dedicated believer, praying everyday and . Note, for a minor god this is a Big Deal because he has so few believers and temples to begin with.

Xie Lian takes care of Hong-er by feeding him, giving him company through flowers, and leading him to shelter, which was a Big Deal to homeless, abandoned Hong-er.

Xie Lian chose isolation over exile so that he could still take care of Hong-er.

Hong-er sacrificed himself by starving and not sleeping to pray non-stop to save Xie Lian from the shackles.

Hong-er asked Xie Lian to wait for him, because he was already dead set on becoming a ghost/not resting in peace in order to protect Xie Lian due to his own disappointment in himself.

Xie Lian, despite his grief, continued to live and wait in acknowledgement of Hong-er’s wish. He endured 800 years of imprisonment and mental torture in honor of Hong-er’s last wish.

Hong-er becomes HC and spends 800 years becoming a Ghost King and looking for XL so that he could fulfill his end of the wish.

And finally, they meet in the middle.

WAAAAAAA it’s so much but I super enjoyed writing this fic! Did you guys catch all of this in your read through? Are there other things you noticed? I have more, but they’ll be more fleshed out in the last 3 chapters!

#fanfic #tgcf #tgcf fanfic #tian guan ci fu #heaven official's blessing #hualian #hua cheng #xie lian #san lang #he xuan #wip #parallels #meta post #meta analysis #paper flowers for the god of gods #i am so proud of myself #flower language

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freewilllife · 4 months

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Xie Lian´s reason for choosing his two "friends"- Xie Lian´s living conditions

I. Xie Lian is a peerlessly impressive person

One of the more interesting points in Xie Lian´s previous life is that the Crown Prince of Xianle was extraordinary in the best sense possible.

Xie Lian was extraordinarily beautiful, intelligent, gifted in material arts, and apparently also the "best person one could be"...

"The State Preceptor laughed." It´s nothing, it´s nothing. His Higness the Crown Prince, darling of the heavens, is divinely gifted, marvelously talented, and graciously brilliant. It is fortune accumulated from three lifetimes that gave this lowly subject the chance to become his teacher. I have a feeling that with His Highness the Crown Prince´s presence, today will go down in history."

"Yet when they gazed upon his face, their breathing hitched. That young man had long brows and charming eyes, exceptionally handsome, radiating nobility, so dazzling it forced down the eyes of those looking."

But there is one crux with this...A person like this hardly finds other people he can relate to...

II. The Crown Prince of Xianle was a lonely figure

Xie Lian grinned."Feng Xing, did you know-there are so many people in this world that are nothing but rocks in my eyes."

A very good question: Had Xie Lian any other friends in the past beside those two? Well, you won´t find any.

Even among the other disciples, we didn´t hear of even one disciples that Xie Lian fancied in every way. Even though he was quite popular. There seemed to be quite many people who would have given I don´t-know-what for his company. Yet Xie Lian was not close with many people.

Even when he was - nearly- at the height of his popularity as Crown Prince - there was a clear distance between him and the other people besides his parents - even with them the relationship had become quite rocky.

I just want to make clear, that it was unbelievable hard to be chosen as Xie Lian´s friend in the past. He tended to not give people he perceived as not that important too much attention.

Xie Lian has hardly ever been a completely open person that was able to instantly connect with people. Even as Crown Prince, he kept mostly two people around: Feng Xin and Mu Qing.

III. The relationship with his parents

Xie Lian was a teenager of 17 years and he started to become independent from his parents, trying to go his own way.

And the relationship with his father had grown quite tense, as his son - who was still clueless about the difficulties to rule a country, judged his father quite negatively.

It was well-known fact that the crown prince was obsessed with cultivation, and ever since he entered the Royal Holy Temple, he visited his parents less and less. The king didn´t comment much on the matter, but the queen was always reluctant to see him go.

IV. The choice of his "comrades"

"There are rocks everywhere, but precious jades are hard to come by. When it comes to martial arts, I´ve only ever seen two people who could be called jades. one is you. The other is him." He stopped and turned, eyes bright. "I genuinely think that Mu Qing is extremely gifted. How could I let such a precious jade be left to collect dust, denied from showing ist beauty simply because of its background and temper?“ Xie Lian looked determined.“No I think that´s wrong. You ask why I think so highly of him? It´s the same reason I think so highly of you. Those who are destined to shine, I must let them shine. Besides I don´t believe that goodwill brings bad returns.“

Believe it or not...Xie Lian - the martial arts fanatic- chose his friends based on their abilities in martial arts.

Or at least...it seemed like this...but please don´t let yourself be fooled by words...This was surely a very important reason for Xie Lian´s choice, but not the only reason...

Both Feng Xin and Mu Qing share some similarities with Xie LIan besides being great at martial arts...

Both of them keep to themselves, just like Xie Lian.

Both of them shared similar values with Xie Lian.

And Xie Lian was aware of it, since he did not need to explain to them in some instances how to act.

and it was thanks only to Feng Xin and Mu Qing - who sat at the front and grabbed the reins to guide the horse - that this berserk journey did not cost at least twenty lives.

guess that Xie Lian could have observed them both...or he just had a hunch that they could fit him...I don´t know...but for example Xie Lian pretty sure realized it in Mu Qing, when he helped him during the festival...and then there is the thing with their mothers...

All three have some strong bonds with either their mother (Mu Qing, Xie Lian) or other mothers (Feng Xin)

Xie Lian is a momma boy...First thing he did after he comes back to the palace, he was meeting his mother, the queen.

Xie Lian went to meet with the queen straightaway.

It is really easy to realize how much Xie Lian loved his mother. He can easily compliment her...and even in one of his darkest hours, when he tried very hard to not let it crumble, he desperately wished to cling to his mother like a young child again. Apparently he also produces vernom in the kitchen, due to his mother being bad at cooking.

I guess it is apparent that Mu Qing loved his mother with how often this had been previously mentioned. Even the gold leaf he took, would have been a present to her.

And Feng Xin? He broke his arm for the queen...

#xie lian #tgcf #mu qing #feng xin

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sidecharactersdomatter · 23 days

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Thoughts I had during TGCF Season 2 Ep 1

I’ve finished my quarter and I am spending my spring break reacting to Season 2! Let’s make this reaction series count!

-Welcome back to Puqi Village people, at morning and known for their chestnuts! (The best nuts I’ve had outta the packet!)

-We are back at Puqi Shrine people!

-And the Altar is packed!

-Instrumental Hong Jue!!!

-Did he oversleep?

-Aww he’s so lonely! :’(

-Dang. That is a clear stream

-Eeeeyep, he is thirsty!

-And a water droplet fell past his freaking throat! They just had to animate that!

-It’s the same ring from last Ep!

-You mean, ‘Gege’ Yeah, I’ve already typed this, “I watch the English Dub religiously” Don’t judge me!

-It is the same ring people!!!

-Oooh he hid it!

-Yep like two years for us in 2023

-Oh her eye bags got deeper and darker

-Welp it just got serious

-Looks like we’re back in heaven

-They added 3D palace shots and camera panning

-Woah that was a really good transition with the bell toll

-I wonder what kept the emperor all season…

-Feng Xin!

-Mu Qing!

-It’s that female Blue robed NPC from Ep 4 on his far left!

-*Looks at how the camera pans up to the Heavenly Capital* My Oc Qing Tao is like: The Oldest Enemy I know, stairs…

-New opening people woo!!!

-New opening animation had me sold!!! They really improved 2 years later

-I love how the music switches from a majestic powerful orchestra tune to a comical xylophone like leitmotif upon introducing Xie Lian. To say, “And then there’s that guy. Then there’s that guy.”

-Social Distancing, Ancient Chinese Pantheon Style

-Man tough crowd today!

-And after every official flees the Trash god, one of my Junior Official OCs, Long He goes, “Huh, who is that dude?” And then his dad, a Civil God will say, “That dude is the Crown Prince of Xianle. His highness crown prince Xie Lian!” And then that Civil god begrudgingly brings his palm to his face.

-*Hears Mengyou calling his highness*: Ladies, Gentlemen and Enby friends, Him!

-This has the energy of giving someone a lanyard pass to visit a certain building

-“It’s not that hard!” “You ascended hundreds of years ago you know better!” “Now keep it with you!” Only like 4 minutes into the first Ep and that NPC is already getting the best lines. (More of Lang Qianqiu’s trusty assistant later this season folks!)

-He sounds just like the English actor for Elam, Justin Briner, from the Heroic Legend of Arslan (another awesome historical manga!) Coincidentally, Elam is also one of Arslan’s most trusted Allies.

-I can’t wait to write more of my ATLA x TGCF crossover, The Scrap Immortal and the Avatar, just imagine the Gaang’s reaction to learning that there’s more than one crown prince worshipped!

-Man, it’s like I always say, “The rumor mill’s always a’runnin!” Or water wheel since it’s ancient China

-Hi Ling Wen, man what kind of product did she use to hide those eye bags???

-I’ve started reading the Manhua series so, Huh? No cursed shackle?

-It’s been days and you still haven’t found the Moldy faced boy from Episode 3???

-I also can’t wait to write Aangs reaction inside that huge throne room, (“It’s bigger than the one in Ba Sing Se!”)

-Now we’re actually seeing the emperor, the first time was in the Episode 1 flashback near the end

-Now we get the first appearance of Pei Ming, who appeared in the Flashback of Ep 3

-Well that sounded patronizing coming from Pei Ming

-Now Pei Xiu has to reap what he sowed.

-Yep that’s a kill count

-I love how this next scene is basically,

Pei Ming: Your Highness, please tell everyone who accompanied you? Then Xie Lian starts to compose an alibi: Ah yes! I will do that. It was incredible! What did we get swept in a sandstorm or something? Oh yes! It was just a youth in red robes who was knowledgeable about the Ban Yue kingdom. <- This incorrect quote is inspired by Zuko and Iroh lying to Commander Zhao about the state of their ship in episode 3, The Southern Air Temple. (Does anyone else think that Xie Lian, is what would happen if you combined both Iroh and Zuko?)

-The face Xie Lian made when he’s trying to keep fibbing and brought his index finger to his cheek that was good body language

-Hi Windmaster.

-Oooh Feng Xin and Mu Qing

-Welp you tried keeping him innocent Xie Lian

-Not as complicated as your love life, maybe I should do a Pei Ming roast count?

-Hey Xie Lian is smarter than you look

-Pei Xiu still wants to protect Ban Yue even facing his impending banishment.

-Ok that line and Pei Ming’s attempt to kick Pei Xiu does seem like an abusive action in my perspective.

-Woah, and that was Jun Wu’s own gavel.

-Well that was a short trial

-Him calling Xie Lian to stay, has the exact energy of a teacher calling one student to stay after class to talk.

-Ling Wen is now talking with Jun Wu

- Now that was a really brief meet up between the Xianle trio.

-Thank you Wind Master, and they are a savage!

-Well he’s still mad

-*Sees Qianqiu still asleep standing up*: XDXDXDXDXD

-Aw he woke him up!

-Don’t worry honey, you didn’t miss much anyway

-How in the heck was he able to doze off through all that shouting. I almost fell asleep in a lecture and that’s nothing compared to TaiHua’s feat

-*Hears Jun Wu speak like*: Oh gods! Why did they have to make him sound so seductive! He’s like an East Asian Belos! (And I’m still busy working on Murder They Cast’s first phase)

-Oh Xie Lian’s expression when Jun Wu talks to him, it’s concerning!

-That soft “forgive me”

-I mean we learned about his huge failure in Season 1

-“How Disappointing!” STOP!!!

-Oooh I didn’t notice this during the rewatch but they played a stringed instrumental version of Bu San.

-Srsly HOW BIG IS HIS FREAKING PALACE?!?!?!

-A mural of heaven

-You gotta love Xie Lian’s modesty

-“Such a low opinion” yep his voice is like liquid gold and it is pure torture!

-“How’d you seduce trouble this time!” That tease in his voice why!!!!

-Aw good for you Xie Lian

-Just you wait till the second half of this season

-It’s their version of shooting a flare gun

-Oooh from left to right is Feng Xin, an unknown person behind him, next there’s Ling Wen(with what happens later in the series), Lang Qianqiu in the middle, Mu Qing is next, then there’s Pei Ming in front of him, and the last guy might be Quan’s Yizhen since he also appears in the 2nd half of the series. I hope I found every martial god

-Also the Thunder Master (my OC Leishi) tends to work part time

-There are retired officials???

-In tsiata (my TGCF x ATLA crossover, The Scrap immortal and the Avatar) Ghost City is more modernized than the Spirit World, since it’s mostly untamed wilderness

-Oh he had balls defending San Lang people

-“Your majesty makes me sound like a little princess” yeah that’s what you are honey

-That pose! I was watching this ep with my older sister and she said, “Man is draping himself!”

-He’s gonna touch the scimitar, isn’t he? (I’ve watched clips of Season 2 before doing my reaction posts)

-And Xie Lian still has the best preferences good on him!

-Xianle trio mention

- And I still think clearing the debt should’ve taken longer, but that’s just my small nitpick

-Yeah nobody round here can keep a secret

- *Sees Jun Wu walk up to Xie Lian reminding him to be careful and puts his hand on his shoulder*: That’s too much pressure!!!

- “I had it erected for you.” James Cheek totally had fun writing Season 2’s script

-I can see why he prefers his own shrine over how massive and opulent his new palace is.

-Hi Windmaster

-Ooh a pond reflection

-Yep that’s your traveling parter

-Then he just fans himself and he instantly slays

-Jacob Eiseman had fun with his performance and ate up every crumb

-Windmaster is Genderfluid Bisexual culture people!

- “Thoroughly~” Yep that just slayed me I’m down

-Yeah Qingxuan’s cultivation backstory is gonna age like curdled milk in Book 4

-Man I just love all of Xie Lian and Shi Qingxuan’s interactions with each other!

-Xie Lian, honey, you are way too good to be a tumor, trust me

-I love how Qingxuan also defended Ban Yue from Pei Ming

-“You were my kind of crazy” I love how Shi Qingxuan and Xie Lian instantly became besties

-Dude, Qingxuan puts the “fun” in function in both forms!

-This is exactly the reason I made my Thunder master OC Leishi female too.

-Now I gotta draw Xie Lian’s female form

-Yeah I react the same when letting a small amount of alcohol in my system

-The witching hour

-To quote a well known assassin Yor Forger, “No way I’m doing this sober”

-That one wrinkled ghost did not age gracefully

-Yeah their burial grounds are in Taiwan, awesome island I definitely need to visit

- Why did they have to design every Heavenly Official to be so Attractive???

-It’s the Spirit World from Spirited Away

-Ghost City would seem like a more modern area than the Spirit World in the Last Airbender

-The heck’s this confetti

-Ooh I like the green dressed spirit with the dark bamboo hat

-Hi Jian Lan

Literally any of my young adults would react to a promiscuous person with just one word in annoyance, “Prostitutes…”

-Honey Xie Lian is already outta your league, try finding someone else that’s your type

-Yeah you didn’t have to tell everyone about your medical condition, heck I don’t even want to picture the Gaang’s reaction after hearing it

-Ghost City is the Las Vegas of Ancient China

-Bouncers

-I love the female NPC that greeted Xie Lian she has a great voice and design

-Oh I know who that is

-He clutched his heart!

-“No thanks~” *Instantly fans myself*

-The camera pan to this throne!!! He is gay and he means business!!!

-James Cheek has ate it up!!!

-The soft “San Lang”

That was an awesome start to the Second Season. Sorry if I haven’t been posting I’m four weeks into my quarter and I also got back into writing fanfic, like the first chap of The scrap immortal and the Avatar. I’ll still do every reaction to Season 2 at the start of May!

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crimsonrainseekingflower · 8 months

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Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you’ve written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love ❤

@naamah-beherit tagged anyone who wanted to do it and i figured what the heck? might as well 💕

1. in pursuit of warmth

Tianlang-jun is looking at him with a single eyebrow raised. The grace in his posture alone, the way he tilts his head and skin crinkles at the corners of his eyes…it’s mesmerizing to Zhuzhi-lang. Standing up straight already seems like such a feat. With heavy muscles and so many bones crammed beneath fragile skin, moving any small part of one’s body appears as an insurmountable task. And Tianlang-jun lifts the corners of his lips like it is the easiest thing in the world. Zhuzhi-lang can’t do any of that yet. But he has been given the chance to learn.

A Zhuzhi-lang introspective that begins when he's found by Tianlang-jun and follows his POV through the events of the novel.

2. as below, so above

“San Lang,” Xie Lian whispers while he lays his head on Hua Cheng’s shoulder, breath settling as sweat and spend still cools on their bodies. “Can I ask you something?” “Of course.” "Who did you ascend as?"

Before Hua Cheng was a ghost, he was a human. Before he was a king, he was a god. When Xie Lian grows curious about Hua Cheng’s brief foray into godhood, Hua Cheng offers up the idea of a playful guessing game with the promise of a special reward should Xie Lian figure out the type of god he might have been.

3. resilient flower; ascending flame (and other things that can survive burning)

Hope and fear intermingle in Xie Lian’s chest. His lips part once, twice. And then: “Wu Ming?” The young god lifts his head like a flower towards the sun. His single dark eye—hazy with pain—focuses on Xie Lian’s face. “Your Highness,” he says softly. Light spills through the cracks of his fingers, essence of divinity in place of the blood a ghost can no longer bleed.

Xie Lian doesn’t get kicked out of the heavens after his second ascension. Because of this, he is there to witness a nameless little ghost ascend. A canon-divergent WuLian AU.

4. When I Was Older

“Where would you like to go, Your Highness?” “The Palace of Yong’an,” Xie Lian stated with fierce destructive purpose. Xie Lian came to with a gasp, eyes flying open to the view of an unfamiliar ceiling. There was a pressure building within his skull, clouding his mind and making it difficult to grasp any singular thought long enough to pull it from the thick fog. All he could recall was… A broken down temple. A persistent ghost. A rage too potent to dare describe.

When Book4!Xie Lian and his post-canon counterpart mysteriously swap bodies, the two of them must figure out a way to switch back while dealing with the shock of their sudden displacement. With the help of their respective versions of Hua Cheng, and a couple of unlikely allies, will they manage to get home safely? Or will their past be a detriment to their future?

Featuring such hits as: Book 4!Xie Lian falling in love with his future husband, Wu Ming love hours, and Jun Wu third wheeling! Also pain. This one hurts, folks.

5. In Shadow of the Sun

Zhuzhi-lang presses himself lower. Twigs and rocks dig into the sensitive skin of his stomach but he pays the uncomfortable sensation no mind. He shuffles back to avoid the possibility of being seen. His efforts are in vain – the crisp snap of a thin branch below him cuts through the moisture laden night. The boy turns, his movement abrupt. His hand cups the hilt of the sword at his hip. He’s already drawn it out with a slight metallic click when his deep black eyes meet Zhuzhi-lang’s muddy-yellow slitted ones. Time seems to slow as the two of them regard each other. And then moonlight glints off the boy’s sword.

The altercation in Luzhi Cave is not the first time Gongyi Xiao has met the snake man of Bailu Forest and it will not be the last. A canon-divergent AU.

and i will be tagging anyone who wants to participate as well! rec your works! let me see them!!

#only picking finished fics bc we all know what number 1 would be otherwise 💚#tag game #my writing

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windmasterreturns · 8 months

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Dawn Brings an Honoured Guest

Characters: Shi Qingxuan, He Xuan, Shanyao Timeframe: Post series @ellysfir @windmasterreturns

Shi Qingxuan was slowly dragged from his sleep by the sunrise creeping across the floor of the temple he had spent the night in. Out of shadows to slowly retreat into he finally conceded, standing up carefully before stretching slowly and sighing a little as his body loosened. How in the heavens had Xie Lian endured this for 800 years? It was the only part of his routine he still hadn’t adapted to – hopefully when he set out on his next cultivation trip, he could find a mat or some hay to lie on.

He had made a lot of friends, many of whom were eager to offer their support, but he was determined to independently carve out his own fate – this time it would be different. Even when he was so ravenous he could feel the back of his stomach, curled up in conditions so frigid his extremities stung; he knew this was nothing compared to what Ming- He Xuan had endured after suffering the result of his brother’s cruelty – after he, himself had unwittingly stolen the silver spoon from Scholar He’s mouth, and left him to suffer the fate that should have been his own. He plucked his robe up from where he had been lying and slipped it on, pulling it closer around himself. He had thought he’d known his brother, but he had been gravely mistaken; Shi Wudu in the end had been like a stranger. His fingers traced over his neck idly as he remembered that night, it was something he thought about far too often.

Slowly his expression lifted, and the warm, familiar pull of a smile found his lips again. Speaking of He Xuan… it was time to check on last night’s offering. Dining alone after descending had been so difficult, and even though he had easily made friends to eat alongside. The empty spot at his side pained his heart, so much so that he quickly began dividing his meals daily, leaving the other half out for – well, just in case. It had been surprisingly easy to convince the others to leave the be, once he explained that he had previously been a god (whether they believed it or not was another story). For what felt like an eternity, he had awoken to find the food untouched, until a couple of months ago. At first the empty plates were infrequent, but since the moon’s last cycle, every meal had been eaten.

He limped slowly out of the temple, lingering in the doorway momentarily as he leaned forward, peering to the side, and he fished a familiar object out of his sleeves. He had gathered his precious fan after the incident with the human array circle, and while it could no longer be opened, he still fondly held it up, and tapped it delicately against his lips. His brows raised in surprise at the sight before him. “…oh?”

#mothbox-tgcf #ellysfir

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apparently-i-am-an-adult · 2 years

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One of the things that absolutely slays me in TGCF is Hua Cheng’s challenge to the 33/35 gods. It’s such an important establishing moment/bit of exposition in the story that initially reads as arrogant and spiteful but means so much when taken in the context of the entire story.

SPOILERS AHEAD FOR BOOKS 2 & 4 OF TGCF TURN BACK IF YOU HAVENT READ THEM

Let’s take a second and imagine the heavenly court at that time: Mount Tong’lu has opened, and a new Supreme has risen. The last one that came out of there felled kingdoms. He caused calamity and strife wherever he went, and was only defeated by the heavenly emperor. If the first one was that powerful, what’s was this one going to do?

He marches into heaven and challenges a god. He’s young, and arrogant, and thinks he’s better than them (he is). The god accepts. They have divine power. What could this ghost do to them? The ghost realm is nothing compared to the might of heaven, so how could they possibly lose?

And then they lose.

It’s not a big deal at first. Hua Cheng asks them to keep their promise and give up their godhood. They laugh. Give up their godhood? Ridiculous. Of course they won’t give it up. They cultivated to this point. They ascended- they’re meant to be here, in heaven. Besides, how could this little ghost make them keep their end of the deal?

And he challenges another god. And this one’s not like the first one. They’re stronger than the other. They’re better. That person just wasn’t prepared. Now that they’ve seen the first challenge, they have an idea of what to expect. They’ll be prepared. And besides, it’s not like they could lose. That last god was a fluke. They weren’t strong enough, weren’t worthy enough to be a god anyway.

…they lose. Hua Cheng keeps on challenging, and the gods just keep losing. Maybe he challenges the next after the bout is finished. Maybe he picked them all at once. But he picks people, and heaven waits to see who is next.

There doesn’t seem to be any real rhyme or reason to which gods Hua Cheng challenges. Sone are martial gods, some are literature gods. Some have a reputation, some don’t.

(All ascended within the last few decades)

They all lose. There’s a solidarity, there. They balm their wounded pride with it and are happy that someone didn’t win and show them up as being amateurs. So what about Hua Cheng’s condition? It’s not like he can hold them to it.

And then the temples start burning. Id like to think that he goes one at a time, starts with the first god he challenges and burns all their temples before moving on to the next. That way the others will watch as the god’s believers give up on them little by little until they fade into nothing and know that they’ll be next.

Or maybe he does it all at once. Goes by region and burns all the temples that belonged to gods that he challenged. So many come under attack at once and there’s a mass panic because no one knows what’s going on, and by the time they do it’s too late. The end result is the same.

Thirty three gods die, and they don’t even know the reason why.

And that’s what kills me about this - to the heavenly officials, this is completely random. They have no idea why this is happening. Hua Cheng has no reason to attack them - they can’t have all done something to piss off a newly risen calamity.

It’s easy to forget that the challenge was to thirty five gods, since Feng Xin and Mu Qing didn’t accept it. The other gods would be hard pressed to remember the commonality between them, but including Mu Qing and Feng Xin throws a spanner in the works. These thirty three officials (and Mu Qing) are the ones who chased Xie Lian off of an auspicious piece of land when Xie Lian was there first, so with that commonality we have a group of thirty four gods and Feng Xin.

But that encounter with Xie Lian was but a single moment in the entirety of the lives of these officials. It was easy for them to forget, so they have no reason to believe the challenge is anything but a new ghost showing off his power.

But for Hua Cheng, this is him satisfying an incredibly personal grudge. His god, who had saved his life, who held him with such tenderness and protected him from being hurt, who told him “you’re not a monster,” and gave up his godhood in an attempt to save his people - his god was trampled by these nobodies who dared to take away his chance of ascending again, and his up-jumped servant stood by and let it happen, that traitor who was supposed to protect Dianxia, who swore to always stay by his side abandoned him. And Hua Cheng was just a tiny little ghost fire who couldn’t do anything to help his god when those gods stole his divinity from him, couldn’t do anything while his people scorned him, and could only watch while that sword came down again and again he can’t protect Dianxia all he can do is scream —

So. Hua Cheng couldn’t protect Dianxia then, but he can damn well avenge him now. Feng Xin and Mu Qing escape by being the only ones with the sense to say no, but that doesn’t stop Hua Cheng from showing just how much he thinks of them in canon.

After I finished reading volume 1 of TGCF’s English translation, I went through and made a list of quotes that hit differently when you’ve read the entire novel. When I reached the party where Xie lian learns about Hua Cheng challenging the 33 gods and burning their temples, I couldn’t pick a quote because the entire thing hits differently.

We find about this moment in chapter twelve. Chapter twelve of two hundred and forty four. That early on in the story, we are given a perfect example of what exactly Hua Cheng is willing to do for Xie Lian, and we don’t even realize it. Heck, I don’t think even Xie Lian realizes the entirety of what that challenge means. It’s just one story early on that could almost be a throwaway anecdote about the first awful thing in a line of awful things that Hua Cheng has done to show how terrifying and powerful he is. And that’s kind of what it is for heaven, but for Xie Lian, and for the story as a whole, it’s so much more.

It absolutely amazing and I love it.

#tgcf spoilers #tian guan ci fu #heaven officials blessing #hua cheng #Xie lian #tgcf meta #things that make me go feral

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coffeeandritalin · 2 years

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TGCF First Read Reactions - Ch. 13

**Spoiler Warning**

Random Official: “Did HC ya know… maim you in some way?P / XL: “Well, how should I put this… He took me on a date.” X-D

XL being an awkward turtle in the spirit communication array X-D. Apparently his social awareness and people skills do not extend to the Heaven Realm.

Also, I am absolutely dying over LW gently trying to beg XL to stop being painfully awkward in the communication array.

‘Since he couldn’t fix this, then it was still better to just forget about it. Xie Lian gave up on this issue, and as a result, stopped being gloomy as well.’ - One of the XL life lessons. Stressing about it isn’t doing him any good, so why not move on and refocus on other things that need to be done.

Like building yourself your own temple! - Yet another XL life lesson. It doesn’t matter if something is shameful or embarrassing. What matters is whether the action is effective and helpful to his cause.

Seeing a teeny tiny mountain village with nothing but peace and simplicity and thinking “This time, I truly landed somewhere nice” says a lot about XL, his personal mission, and his values.

XL seeing a crooked, broken hut and immediately goes about sprucing it up also says a lot about him.

‘Only after walking nearer did he realize that though this little hut looked quite dilapidated from afar, it actually looked even more dilapidated up close.’ - I keep loving the way MXTX writes with humor. She sets you up for one set of expectations in the first half of the sentence and then subverts your expectations in the second half. I love these little moments so much.

The Pu Qi villagers give me the sense of bustling, nosy sweethearts. They gather around to peek in on this rando who appears out of no where and their instinct is to gift him a broom and freshly picked and peeled water chestnuts.

Upon being asked who he’s building a monastery for, XL: “Uh… Xian Le’s Crown Prince” / Villagers: “Who dat?” / XL: “Uh…. No idea?” / Villagers: “What does he do” / XL, internally: “I hear he collects rubbish” - X-D. Our disaster, scrap god, everybody!

Lolz at the woman shyly suggesting he open a Ju Yang temple X-D. People will never let poor FX leave that period of his life behind him.

“This monastery is dilapidated. Sincerely seeking benevolent people, to donate in order to renovate it. Accumulate merits and virtue.” - It’s just a sign, but somehow I’ve already developed an emotional connection with it….

I love seeing XL easily transition into whatever role is needed at the time. Innocent, newbie god -> Detective Xie Lian -> innocent newbie god -> scrap collector.

Apparently he’s also a human trash compactor.

‘In contrast: opening a monastery meant losing money, collecting rubbish meant making money, so collecting rubbish was truly better than ascending.’ - Another XL life lesson brought to you by that bun NF cruelly wrenched out of XL’s hand back in chapter 5.

Lol at XL taking advantage of and using his good looks to get an edge on others while scrap collecting X-D.

#tgcf first read #tgcf #tgcf novel #scrap collector god’s life lessons

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truly-morgan · 8 months

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[Kinktober 2022: Fucking Machine (18+)]

HuaLian | Heaven Official’s Blessing Modern AU 02-10-2022

Day 2: D̷a̷d̷d̷y̷&̷M̷o̷m̷m̷y | [Fucking Machine] | R̷i̷m̷m̷i̷n̷g

Xie Lian wants to try something new: topping San Lang while also being fucked. But he doesn’t want to add someone else to the equation. Hua Cheng then finds a solution that can please his lover.

====

“So, Gege want to top me while also being fucked?” Hua Cheng summarised what Xie Lian had just suggested to him, smirking a little bit at how his husband was blushing. It was his own idea yet he was flustered to hear it being said so bluntly.

“Yes,” Xie Lian finally said after a moment of silence, “But it’s just a fantasy” he then shrugged a little bit. “I don’t need anyone else than San Lang and don’t wish don’t bring anyone else into it” Xie Lian explained, not seeing how Hua Cheng could possibly duplicate himself to do so.

Hua Cheng hummed at this, leaving a kiss on his husband’s neck, arms wrapping a bit more tightly around him as Xie Lian kept cooking.

If this were his fantasy and wish, then Hua Cheng would find a way to make it true for his lover.

And it is only a couple of days later that Xie Lian comes home to his husband telling him he has a surprise for him.

The man is pretty curious about it, although he does wait patiently to be shown as they have dinner.

It’s only after a good dinner made by his San Lang that they finally make their way to their room where Xie Lian finds a strange machine on their bed.

He turned back a little towards Hua Cheng who wrapped his arms around his waist, putting his head on his shoulder.

“Gege wanted to be penetrated while doing me too” Hua Cheng explained, “So I found a way to do it,” he said with an innocent smile.

He let go of Xie Lian when the man make a move to get closer and examine the machine, soon noticing the dildo attached to it.

“I ordered a fucking machine that can replace the other person” he explained, “And also order a custom-made dildo moulded after me, like this Gege can have sex with two San Lang” he added with a grin.

Xie Lian was blushing at the plan, yet also looking impressed by what Hua Cheng had done to try and fulfil the fantasy he had offhandedly mentioned a couple of days prior. Truly, the man was really ready to do anything to make him happy.

“Can we try it now?” Xie Lian asked, eagerness in his voice as he bit his lower lips, looking really happy. This made Hua Cheng smile even more, nothing sounded better than when Xie Lian wanted to try something of /his/ own fantasy and not Hua Cheng’s one.

“Of course,” the man grinned, getting on the bed to join Xie Lian, already getting rid of his shirt.

Usually, Xie Lian really liked foreplay and taking his time, but he was really excited to try his husband’s gift.

They did take the proper time to prepare each other, Hua Cheng loving the way his husband was moaning against him as he also worked him open.

“San Laaang” Xie Lian whined as Hua Cheng kept fingering him, kissing his neck, “I am ready now,” he said.

This made Hua Cheng chuckle, kissing his husband’s temple, “Gege is really impatient today” he teased, which made Xie Lian blush even more.

Finding the correction position was a bit awkward at first, seeing that the machine couldn’t move like them.

Yet, after some struggle and many giggling fits, they did find a position that would work.

Hua Cheng helped Xie Lian get the toy inside him properly first, kissing him as he got used to it first, wanting to be sure his lover wouldn’t get hurt.

Xie Lian was truly pretty while taking the toy, panting and moaning as Hua Cheng helped ease him.

Then Hua Cheng went under Xie Lian, hips raised up so it would be easier for his lover to go in.

“San Lang feels so tight” Xie Lian commented as he sank himself slowly into him, kissing his husband’s back as he stopped once fully in.

Hands gently caressed his side, enjoying the feeling of both being filled and being inside his husband.

“Is gege ready?” Hua Cheng asked, Xie Lian kissing his shoulder blade as he nodded.

He then started to rock his hips slowly first, trying to find a way to move correctly with the machine behind him.

A little sound of surprise escaped him when the machine was activated in a slow movement, reaching for Hua Cheng’s hand when he seemed ready to stop it.

“I am okay” he quickly said, moving his hips in an attempt to follow the same rhythm as the machine.

“I was just a bit surprised” he admitted with a little laugh, “I’ll tell you if it’s got too much” he then assured him.

Hua Cheng hummed at his word, trusting that his lover would tell him if it was getting too much for him.

Slowly they started getting more into it, now more at ease with the addition of the fucking machine. Xie Lian was especially enjoying himself, lost in pleasure as he fucked into his husband, imagining that the thing behind him was also Hua Cheng.

“You feel so good” He mumbled against his husband's back, showering him with praises and sweet compliments and words. He could drown in the pretty moan Hua Cheng was giving him, it wasn’t every night that he seemed to also completely lose himself in his own pleasure, not focusing just on Xie Lian.

It was lovely to see.

Xie Lian hadn’t expected his orgasm to hit him so hard as he was tightly buried inside his husband while something was brushing and hitting his prostate too. He came inside Hua Cheng, rutting into him and moaning against his back, soon starting to feel overstimulated. Yet he only stopped when his husband also came, Hua Cheng stopped the machine too.

Xie Lian had slumped atop his husband, burying his face in his neck, leaving kisses on his skin. They didn’t move from this position as they calm down from their high, breath slowly going back to normal.

After a while Xie Lian finally moves out of his husband, letting himself fall next to him. Strong arms were quick to grab him, pulling him against Hua Cheng who kissed him sweetly, brushing a strand of hair away from his sweaty forehead.

“How did you like it?” Hua Cheng asked.

“It was fantastic, it was like having sex with two San Lang” Xie Lian smiled, “My Sang Lang is so smart” he giggled as he kissed his nose.

Hua Cheng hummed at his word, satisfied that his idea had also managed to please and satisfied his husband’s fantasy. “If gege liked it then I am also happy about it” he stated, “We can do this as many times as gege’s wants” he then added.

“Can we go again then?” Xie Lian asked while biting his bottom lips, having recovered from their previous round.

This made Hua Cheng chuckle, rolling on his back and pulling his husband atop him. “Of course” he smiled softly.

====

(Isn't San Lang the best, he's ready to find a solution to what Xie Lian wanna do)

Original - AO3

#tweet archive #tgcf #heaven official's blessing #hualian #hua cheng #xie lian #kinktober 2022 #modern au #adult toy #nsft toy #nsft

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stiltonbasket · 3 years

Text

a random snippet!

"So what does the famed Chifeng-zhenjun pray for, every time he comes here?”

Nie Mingjue blinks and ends his prayer, lighting two more sticks of sweet incense before rising to his feet.

“Lord Crimson Rain,” he says, briefly inclining his head. “My apologies for the disturbance. His Highness Yin Yu said that Qiandeng Temple was empty and open to guests, so I came to pay my respects to the Xianle Taizi Dianxia in your absence.”

“Any worshipper of dianxia’s is welcome here,” Crimson Rain shrugs, shifting the little princess in his arms from his right hip to the left. “But you could have gone straight to the manor if you wanted to pay your respects to him. He said you and Shi Qingxuan were supposed to meet with him in less than an hour, and it’s nearly been an hour since then.”

His lone eye sharpens, flickering between Nie Mingjue’s clasped hands and the cloud of fragrant smoke issuing from the incense burner. “It’s not only that you’re late for my dianxia’s gathering, General Nie,” he continues. “You see, I’ve never heard of anyone coming here to bring offerings to Gege unless it was for luck in love.”

“My lord has guessed somewhat right,” Nie Mingjue says readily. “I have a beloved still in the mortal world, and he dwells in the jianghu where no heavenly officials are worshipped save one or two of the deceased elemental masters. Hence, I have been unable to go to see him while fulfilling my duties on the battlefield in Xinhai, so I came to Xie Lian’s temple to pray for my zhiyin’s good fortune.”

Hua Cheng blinks, clearly mulling over his words; and when he opens his mouth again, Nie Mingjue realizes that he must have found the reply somehow lacking.

“Doesn’t your own clan worship you as their patron god? How far away is your beloved from your homeland, that you can’t take the time to go see him?” the ghost king drawls. “If it’s all the same to you, General Chi Feng, I would rather not have a lacking love honored in my husband’s temple.”

Nie Mingjue sighs and lights a third stick of incense, paying no mind to the sudden darkness in Hua Cheng’s gaze. “General!”

At that, the little ghost princess opens her eyes and sniffles into her father’s neck.

“Baba, loud,” Hua Lanyue whimpers. “Yueyue wants to sleep!”

“He is my last life’s beloved, my lord,” Nie Mingjue says, while Hua Cheng makes a frantic attempt to soothe his tiny daughter. “I remembered nothing about him between my birth and ascension, and unless I were to meet him in my territory, he would not be able to recognize me.

“To change into this skin, and appear as I did in my last incarnation, I have no choice but to draw upon the power granted by my worshippers. But I have no worshippers in the jianghu, and to come before my A-Huan in the body of General Wang, claiming to be his lost one returned without a spark of godly strength to prove my identity...it would only grieve him further, and perhaps even break his heart.”

“Gege would be glad to see me in any form,” Hua Cheng says doubtfully, though he seems slightly mollified by Nie Mingjue’s explanation. “Have you lost your faith in his affection, then?”

Don’t move, A-Jue.

Don’t be frightened.

On my life, I will save you. I swear it.

“Never,” Mingjue says, his hands suddenly running warm with the phantom heat of Lan Xichen’s blood splashed across his palms. “In fact, if he loved me a little less, I would have thanked the heavens for preserving him.”

Hua Cheng says nothing more on the subject after that, but Nie Mingjue didn’t care much about his curiosity in the first place. Crimson Rain is known to take an interest in matters of love, dealing almost cruel justice upon offenders who betrayed the dear ones they swore their hearts to; and if Nie Mingjue really had been a neglectful lover, lamenting over a sweetheart with no real will or devotion behind his prayers, Hua Chengzhu’s Qiandeng Temple is the very last place such worthless thoughts would be welcome.

“Well?” Nie Mingjue demands, when Crimson Rain makes no move to lead him back to Paradise Manor. “Didn’t you say I was late to meet Qingxuan and His Highness Xianle?”

Silence.

“My lord?”

The ghost withdraws his fingers from his brow and nods; he must have spent the last few minutes in conference with his husband, and not ignoring Nie Mingjue at all.

“Come along then, Chifeng-zun,” Hua Chengzhu smiles. “Dianxia is expecting you.”

#nielan #hualian #mo dao zu shi #tgcf #my fic #fic preview #maybe? this is almost 1k words so I might as well turn it into a oneshot lol

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bibi-ii · 3 years

Text

Chapter 3

Fanfic masterlist

After the ghost groom case, we went back to the heaven.

Ling wen took us to the telepathy hall where the other gods gathered.

"Greetings to the royal highnesses"

"Hello, we're here to report what has happened on our mission" xie lian said

—————

"So that's what happened, I can't believe General Pei didn't end things with her earlier."

"Um, excuse me, seniors, but could you provide me with some information?"

"Yes, of course, royal princess"

"Would you happen to know anything about silver butterflies?"

Gasps and whispers echoed through the hall

"Why would you ask that, royal princess?"

"Because i saw them at Yujun mountain and the juniors had a strong reaction to this news"

"They belong to one of the ghost kings,hua cheng.

"Who are the ghost kings?"

"The four Demon Lords of the ghost realm that have caused the Heavenly Officials the most and greatest disasters. They are currently He Xuan, known as Black Water Submerging Boats. Qi Rong, known as green ghost. Bai Wuxiang, known as white calamity and Hua Cheng, known as crimson rain sought flower."

"Hua cheng? What did he do?"

"He's beaten 33 Gods and burned their temples in a single night. Did he do anything to you? Were you hurt in any way?"

"He didn't do anything to me"

"Oh, well. You best not get involved, royal princess. He is very dangerous."

'is he really that bad?'

"Y/n? What are you thinking about?" Xie lian asked

"Nothing. What are you going to do now, xie ge?"

"Maybe go to the mortal realm and build myself a temple"

"Mind if i join?"

"Sure, let's go"

Timeskip

Xie lian and I just finished tidying up this old temple

"Y/n, I'm going to go gather some scraps so we can sell them for profit, I'll be back before supper." Xie lian said as he gathered some supplies and headed towards

"Alright, be careful"

A few hours later

"It has been a while, why is xie ge not back yet?"

At this time, i hear the xie lian's voice as he came back, getting off of the wagon.

"Thank you for letting me stay here, lian gege" I hear a unfamiliar voice said

I opened the door and see xie lian and a young man about our age.

"Xie ge, what took you so long? Oh, who's this?"

A/n: I'm pretty sure everyone who watched the donghua and read some of the novel, you already know that hua cheng is san lang. so the characters will address him as san lang but i will address him as hua cheng.

At this time, hua cheng's eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

He finally found her.

After 800 years, hua cheng's heart fluttered again for the first time after so long.

"Hi, I'm y/n. What's your name?"

"U-um san lang"

Xie lian reached over and whispered

"You've just met my cousin and you've already fallen head over heels for her. Good luck, she has many suitors but has been all rejected"

San lang looked at xie lian with a surprised face and a blush from the previous teasing.

"Well, nice to meet you"

"Y/n, he'll be staying with us for a while, if you're fine with it" xie lian piped in

"Of course, come in, i finished supper. San lang, if you don't mind, you'll be sleeping with xie lian on that bed"

"It's completely fine, don't worry about me" he smiled

I slightly blushed at his kind-hearted smile

"Well, rest early" i say to xie lian and san lang

The next day

I woke up and freshened before going to the small kitchen to prepare breakfast when i heard xie lian walked in yawning.

"Good morning, where's san lang?

"He's outside sweeping. Speaking of him, don't you think he's strange?" Xie lian said

"If you think he's strange, then test him."

"I have, but nothing unusual has happened"

"Being strange doesn't mean dangerous, don't bother him"

"Oho, you just met him last night and you're already defying your cousin" xie lian faked cried and whined.

I ignored him and went outside to call san lang for breakfast

"San lang, come inside to eat breakfast"

San lang skipped over and smiled

"Thank you, mei mei"

A/n: mei mei means little sister in chinese. I changed the plot so hua cheng is older than y/n

I blushed and nodded

"You're welcome"

At this time, some of the villagers barged out carrying a unconscious old man.

I rushed over

"What happened?"

"I don't know! He came into the village asking for help before he collapsed."

"San lang, help me bring the man into the temple"

San lang and I brought the old man into the temple and laid him on the hay mat.

"Xie ge, do you have medicine to treat him?"

Xie lian handed me the medicine and i dabbed it on the injury.

But, something wasn't right.

Suddenly, the man woke up coughing.

"What happened? Are you alright?"

He then told us he was from crescent's pass and about all the terrible things that has happened.

San lang comes up to him and offers the man water.

But the man denied and said that he wasn't thirsty.

San lang, xie lian and i looked at each other and nodded.

The man runs towards the door but san lang's reflexes were fast and launched a chopstick at him, leaving a puddle of mud on the floor.

"He was a puppet. But why would he tell us this? What is crescent's pass and what happened? Xie lian said

"Let's ask ling wen"

"I tried to persuade her but she said to stay out of it as it is dangerous"

At this time, there was knocks at the door.

Xie lian opened the door and turns out, nan feng and fu yao were standing there.

"Greetings to your highnesses, nan yang and xuan zhen sent us to protect you if you might travel to places with danger."

"Who are they?" San lang asked

The juniors looked inside upon hearing the unfamiliar voice.

"Who are you and why are you living with the highnesses?" The juniors asked and tried to restrain him when i stepped in front of san lang.

"He is a friend of mine, do not worry. We'll leave now to go to crescent's pass. Does anyone have a teleportation spell?"

"I do, royal princess”

"Then let's go"

Reblogs are appreciated <3

#tgcf fanfic #tian guan ci fu #heavens official blessing #hua cheng #xie lian #nan feng #fu yao #x reader #tgcf

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naamah-beherit · 2 years

Text

I posted 943 times in 2021

79 posts created (8%)

864 posts reblogged (92%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 10.9 posts.

I added 389 tags in 2021

#tgcf - 67 posts

#tma - 56 posts

#tian guan ci fu - 48 posts

#hualian - 45 posts

#hua cheng - 39 posts

#天官赐福 - 34 posts

#xie lian - 31 posts

#the locked tomb - 25 posts

#heaven official's blessing - 24 posts

#naamah writes - 20 posts

Longest Tag: 98 characters

#by high school i ended up keeping a bag with my books and spare shoes in the class's dressing room

My Top Posts in 2021

Decades, maybe even centuries into post-canon, finally someone powerful enough to take the Emperor's throne ascends. Before that, it stood empty. Pei Ming refused the title, Xie Lian never wanted it either—and hell, he only showed his face in Heaven on the Mid-Autumn Festivals.

Memory is a fickle thing, gods' memory even more so. It was easy to forget the deed of saving everyone when the blood-red shadow of the saviour's husband followed in his wake, easier still to fall into old habits of laughing at the laughingstock behind his back.

(But quieter this time, in the privacy of Palaces. Make sure his husband doesn't find out.)

So when the new god ascends in glory and might, and doesn't shy away from the responsibility, everyone is relieved that things are finally back to normal again.

The change happens gradually and over the years. An order here, a cold shoulder there, a newly appointed Middle Heaven official who isn't afraid of speaking up.

Why do some of the gods fraternise with the ghost realm? Where does their loyalty lie? The time of need has passed.

Pei Ming starts to conceal his regular excursions to Ghost City's brothels. Xie Lian hasn't come up in years. And gradually, one after another, the old gods resign and leave. Some of them settle in the mortal realm. Some find a home in the outskirts of Ghost City.

There's no attack, no open declaration of war. But the times have changed, and soon a new dynasty rules in Heaven, who only knows the past from stories that grow wilder with years. Soon, no one knows for whom 3000 lanterns float to the heavens every year.

No one knows why the Emperor must look at his reflection in a sword embedded into the throne. No one knows why they shouldn't wage war on the ghost realm—until one day they try, and temples burn all day and night until they retreat.

No one suggests it again.

No one knows why on a specific day once a year every year, Heaven's bell tolls all night.

(Once a year, in an inconspicuous tea house in the mortal realm, a group of unlikely friends meet. Every year, they think it's the last time. Every year, they make it count.)

(or: how times change and not even gods can stop it)

105 notes • Posted 2021-06-13 10:34:15 GMT

Hualian have been my daily serotonin injection directly into the brain for over 2 years now, and I couldn't be happier.

110 notes • Posted 2021-04-09 10:29:30 GMT

I think what hits me the most about Hualian is the unconditional acceptance of each other. There are no attempts at changing the other side, just taking what's there as part of the package for better or worse.

"What matters is you, and not the state of you."

167 notes • Posted 2021-04-18 17:34:01 GMT

There's something precious in the fact that only Xie Lian knows what Hua Cheng looks like when a smile softens his face, what his voice sounds like when he whispers words meant to soothe rather than hurt, how gentle his touch can be.

And I think Hua Cheng, who has only ever known pain of a heavy hand and harsh tugs, who has spent his entire life and unlife in violence, has to learn how to be gentle with another person, how to express his love in caresses and physical closeness.

178 notes • Posted 2021-05-07 20:45:23 GMT

I love how Hua Cheng goes from, "Ah, he's stopped pretending he doesn't know," through a brief moment of expecting to be told to leave, ends at, "He doesn't mind. Wait. He doesn't mind? He doesn't mind!", and then proceeds to start unleashing his bratty, carefree self ♥

377 notes • Posted 2021-01-02 20:24:29 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

#my 2021 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #would you look at that #it's all tgcf #what a surprise #not

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lunar-magnolia · 3 years

Text

IT'S TIME TO GO ON A SPECULATION JOURNEY @l-tachi

It's true we don't really know Hua Cheng's past before he fell into Xie Lian's arms as a child, but we do have some things that could help make up a little picture of his human life. I might leave out some things and take them for granted, like his transformation from simple fire ghost to savage:

*putting a read more because Long and spoilery

He was a citizen of the Imperial Capital of Xianle or lived in the vicinity of it. It's possible that he lived outside the walls, because of what Feng Xin said about knowing all the children who lived in the poorest part of the Imperial Capital. He said he had never seen little Hua (or Hong-er) around.

Because of his cursed eye that he kept covered, it's possible that his family was cast out of the city when he was born. Maybe they did live inside the city, but once little Hua came around and voice spread about his curse, they might have been kicked out.

It's also possible that only his mother loved him in the family, and the fact that she wouldn't give him up and doomed them all could have been cause of fights in the household. Thus we have little Hua lying about having parents and refusing to go back home.

It's also possible that he truly doesn't have a name. Hong Hong-er is the way his mother called him, and sounds more like a cute nickname that referred to his red eye (it means "little red"). He never gives Xie Lian a proper name, neither when he's a child nor when he was in his Wuming form. This is completely debatable tbh

However, when he meets Xie Lian again after 800 years, he does give a name that he says he prefers: San Lang. In the notes of the book it says that it indicates the third son of a household. This made me think that he probably had at least two older siblings when he was human. Which is nice, but all things considered he probably didn't have a good relationship with them.

CW: death, suicide mention

It's unclear if he jumped or just fell from the wall during the festival as a child. There's a high chance that Xie Lian is an unreliable narrator and Hua Cheng never told him why he was in such a dangerous position in the first place. It's however safe to imagine that he was going to jump, but seeing the parade he stopped himself. He was either pushed or he slipped.

I say it's kinda safe because of the infamous scene where little Hua is pleading to Xie Lian to tell him why should he continue living when he really doesn't want to. His life has been too hard on him and he wants to die. Xie Lian tells him to live for him if he can't find anything else worth living for. So yeah.

The guoshi of Xianle mentions that the kid Xie Lian had brought to the Royal Pavilion centuries ago was cursed and he probably never lived past 18-20yo. We know that up until 14 years old he was alive and well and in the army, fighting in the name of the Crown Prince. We also know that after the Land of the Tender accident he was booted from the army. At some point after the fall of Xianle, he died.

We see him protecting one of Xie Lian's temples when people wanted to burn it down. It's possible that he died doing exactly that, when he was around 18/19 years old.

In fact, Hua Cheng mentions that dying in Xie Lian's name is the greatest honor for him. And it already happened twice: when he was a human and when he sacrificed himself as Wuming.

Also another possible indicator of the age he was when he died is the age he has in his Hua Cheng form. He is described as a youth in his 20s.

After his sacrifice as Wuming, his soul still refused to leave the mortal realm and dissipate. We can imagine that after that episode mount Tong'lu opened and he went there as a fragile soul to regain his power and become at least a savage again. He knew he needed to become strong again if he wanted to protect Xie Lian, so he risked it all.

We know that while journeying towards the kiln, he gained enough power to have a "physical" form and gauge his own eye out to forge E'ming in a desperate situation. Plus, at the exact same moment, the heaven sent a heavenly calamity and he ascended as a ghost. But since Xie Lian wasn’t there and he had lots of beef with the heavenly officials, he immediately jumped down and continued on his path to become a supreme.

He stayed in the Mount Tong'lu zone for 10 years. In these ten years it's highly probable that he slew as many ghosts as he could to gain as much power as he could get. He also spent his time exploring the ruins of Wuyong and honing in his art skills in the Cave of Ten Thousand Gods.

When he entered the kiln, it's unclear if he found other powerful ghosts to fight inside it or not. In any case, once he was done and still inside, before escaping he carved the giant Crown Prince statue that we see in book 5.

After escaping the kiln, he had all the "physical" strength. But we know that he's also extremely knowledgeable, and that when he challenged the 35 heavenly officials, some were civil gods and he beat them in debates.

So it's possible that after becoming a Supreme, he started his journey to gather as much knowledge as he could. During the years he gained fame and his Crimson Rain Sought Flower title.

With his status and skill, he eventually founded Ghost City and started building his own wealth too, thanks to the Gambler's Den.

It took some time, but when he was positive he could take all the 35 heaven officials down at their own game, he went and became the infamous Hua Cheng, the Crimson Rain that sought the flower.

I think it's important to mention that the guoshi of Xianle also said that the people cursed like Hua Cheng had the worst luck. Instead, we see Hua Cheng being possibly the luckiest person on Earth. This is probably the consequence of Xie Lian changing his fate and giving up all his luck (per the cursed shackle). Among everything, in fact, guoshi said that to survive the curse, fate must be changed.

I think Xie Lian altered Hua Cheng's fate both when he was a human and held onto little Hua when everyone else told him to let him go, and when he gave up his luck just after Wuming's sacrifice. Xie Lian, in fact, says that luck will be transfered to people who lack it. And Hua Cheng, who was in the vicinity, was probably the most unlucky person present. I think he absorbed most of Xie Lian's luck, and that also impacted his fate.

Another possibility is Hua Cheng gaining luck after he forged E'ming. If his eye was the reason why his luck was so terrible, removing it and sealing into a spiritual device could have been the catalyst to his apparently infinite luck.

I think he also spent his time looking for Xie Lian, but the world is vast and he lost track of him after the Wuming arc. So he focused on improving himself to be worthy of one day approaching Xie Lian.

I guess he came to know Xie Lian's whereabouts when Xie Lian ascended for the third time. It's possible that he got word of it from Black Water, and then the rest is history.

Akdhskfhjd I might have skipped some things, please feel free to ask more questions if something is unclear or doesn't make sense. All of this is pure speculation based on the information we have from the book and it's all debatable. Still, I had fun thinking about it! Thank you so much for the prompt!!!

#TGCF #tian guan ci fu #heaven official's blessing #Hua Cheng #Xie Lian #Fan theory #I really just went and pulled all of this out of my brain for fun purposes akfjskjfkd #i hope this makes sense #And that it was fun to read!#Long post #Lunar talks about tgcf

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