Crown Prince and Ghost King

Chapter 32

Although He Xuan couldn't see him, Xie Lian nodded: "We can believe him". At least for the time being.

The ghost only gave a monosyllabic response to that before cutting off all communication, though a hint of relief could be perceived. Surely he felt reassured, in a way, even if he would never admit it.

He Xuan quite liked to be around Shi QingXuan in the heavens, after all. Even if he hated that place and probably wanted to murder anyone who couldn't shut up for more than five seconds.

A peculiar characteristic of Nether Water Manor was its unnatural silence, as if the whole residence was built underwater. An eerie atmosphere, if one didn't know about it, that sort of silence that filled one's ears and made them ring.

The first time Xie Lian visited it... there were still sounds in it. Laments of ragged humans trapped beneath its walls, unable to flee and unable to die, poor souls He Xuan wouldn't kill or set free. An unnerving feeling all around, breathable in stagnant air, almost able to be touched with trembling fingers. Shi QingXuan had done the right thing, by convincing He Xuan to get rid of those poor humans.

Mercy showed in a merciless way.

All the unfortunate sailors washing up on the shore of his island were now sent away with a warning, or a terrible scare, rather than being locked up as a punishment. It was the byproduct of He Xuan only devouring ghosts, humans could be a nuisance for him when they reached a beach of coarse black sand.

Xie Lian was grateful for that change of tides.

Half a day passed before Hua Cheng came back from Ghost City, where he had been called in a rush by Yin Yu. Apparently, a bizarre ghost appeared in the city all of a sudden, a soul broken and shattered, wailing in agony and closing itself off in silence with no rhyme or reason. Music could be heard near it, the whistling notes of an instrument quite difficult to pinpoint, echoing as if played from a hollow cave.

It was quite the disquieting experience, to hear it, and many ghosts found themselves terrified of that demonic music despite being demonic themselves.

Xie Lian almost decided to go with him, but Pei Ming was waiting outside the door, hoping for a reassurance the god couldn't give.

He was still curious, questions nagging him from all over his brain, waiting to be asked out loud, but he smiled upon hearing the creaking of a door opening and quiet steps approaching.

«Gege, lay down with me», the ghost whined, as soon as he stepped foot in the shrine. Not even the time to receive a greeting he gave his beloved, simply sweeping him off his feet and carrying him to the bed after slamming the door closed with a foot. Xie Lian laughed, a crystalline sound that washed away all the anguish brought upon him by the whistles of a much darker music, and gladly rested his head on the expanse of his husband's chest.

Vivid maple red crumpled under a powdery cheek, white skin tickled by long strands of ebony locks, a familiar weight bringing him back to the world of the living as if he'd never left.

Hua Cheng smiled, captivated by the effortless beauty of his prince, by his nose dusted with pink and his eyes glowing with soft gold: «What a beautiful sight you make», he whispered, slowly caressing Xie Lian's back, legs tangled together as if mimicking the closeness of their embrace. The bed was so soft under them, made their bodies sink in comfy warmth, though the bedding was not as silky and luscious at the priceless sheets in Paradise Manor.

A softer, gentler feeling. Hua Cheng treasured it the most with Xie Lian in his arms.

Something wasn't right. It was nothing terrible, but Hua Cheng was holding him a bit too tight, hugging him with a hint of desperation Xie Lian hadn't found in his gestures for years. And he was trying to shrug it off with what he loved doing the most.