XIE LIAN HAS NOT REVEALED HIS SECRETS TO HIS CLOSEST FRIENDS NOR TO ANY OTHER GOD THAT HE KNEW. ONE DAY WHILE ALL THE GODS WERE IN A MEETING, SOMEONE DARES TO ASK ABOUT HIS YEARS IN BANISHMENT AS NO ONE KNEW MUCH ABOUT HIM ANYMORE.
Bells are ringing and birds were chirping throughout the skies in the heavens alerting many of the Crown Prince's arrival. It was no secret that he was now the head of the gods, but the only time he ever truly comes up is for work or for meetings. Most of the time those meetings were rather short, and filled no kind of major events. This meeting however, was for the preparations of the next lantern festival. Something the gods were always excited for. While Jun Wu was no longer at the top, Xie Lian was more than happy to just allow things to be as lively as before with no major changes at all. And as for the lighting of the lanterns, he decided to allow the competition be between everyone else, while his own number of lanterns would more of another form of entertainment that would light up the skies thanks to Hua Cheng.
The meeting was going by without much of an issue, and no one was yelling over the other as they usually do. However, just as the meeting was preparing to end a sudden voice speaks out from the crowd.
"Before we are dismissed, I'd like to ask a question,"
Xie Lian gazes to a youthful face, and takes note of the new face. A civil god who was new, and filled with potential. She was intelligent, and was well beyond heading to a level that could compete with Ling Wen. She stares at him with a gleam of determination in her eyes. Something about her was different from other gods. Almost as if you couldn't say no to her gaze,or tell her off with rude insults or gut wrenching spews of rumors.
"Yes? What's your question?"
"Well, there's something that I have been wondering, and I'm sure that I'm not the only one who has thought about this. Out of respect we have not asked about this, but I believe we really should know....why was Jun Wu....heavily obsessed with you? And what did he do to you...?"
The hall falls silent.
Xie Lian let's out a small sigh from his nose and glances around at the many faces in the room. Faces that have been familiar to him for hundreds of years, and faces that were new and only just recently heard of the tales of how the heavens fell. As far as his story goes, he never brought up any of the details of his past, because he always had those details pushed to the very back of his mind. Those days during his banishment were the worst days of his life, but they were also the days that allowed him to truly see between black and white, good and evil, and right and wrong. It helped him to mature even if the sacrifice was his sanity. When you go from a wealthy royal, to a lowly beggar, your whole world view shifts completely. His eyes meet Feng Xin and Mu Qing who were just as curious, but knew that their own dirty laundry would be thrown out there as well to be heard by others.
"Is there a reason why you should know a damn thing?" A rather unpleasant voice asks from all around the room. All eyes widen as the ghost king himself steps out from behind Xie Lian with an angered look in his eye. His arms were folded behind him with his hands in tight fists.
"San Lang...?"
"His highness already had to go through a trip of the past facing that abomination, and you dare to ask about all of it again?"
No one dared to answer his question. But now that he was here and was speaking with such a growl in his tone, they were left with more questions than answers. They really want to know just what had happened between their previous lord, and the Crown Prince, because whatever had happened truly changed him forever. Xie Lian turns to Hua Cheng and lifts his hands to his cheeks with a soft smile plastered over his face.
"San Lang....it's okay."
"Your highness....what right do they have to know of the past...?"
"Perhaps it is better to discuss it you know? It will also help for them to understand why you even came to exist as well. Could change the way they view you."
He scoffs with an eye roll in disbelief. He really doubted that they would dare to change their views of him, but now that his God had made up his mind there was no going back.
Xie Lian turns and makes his way to the center of everyone before taking in a deep breath.
"Body in abyss, heart in paradise."
Feng Xin and Mu Qing froze. Those were words they haven't heard for centuries. Words that everyone in their kingdom used to live by.
"Those words were once looked upon with grace and glory during my days as a prince in my kingdom. And it was those same words that caused Jun Wu to lose his mind once more. As everyone learned, after all was said and done, the story of the Kingdom of Wuyong was told and recorded so that we may not forget the damage and what it gave birth to. When Jun Wu became the strongest martial god as you all knew him, he was pretty much sane at that point. Became a god that he should have been long ago, but when I had muttered those few words, it struck him. And immediately, he set up the fall of my kingdom. The Kingdom of XianLe.....Our home." He glances to Feng Xin and Mu Qing who step out to join along side him. Their heads hanged low as he continued to speak.
"The moment those words came to be he made it his only goal to take me down, so I could go down a darker path like he did. I would have became the second White No face and would have unleashed another wave of the Plague that destroyed my people. The human face disease. As everyone knows, this disease would cause burning rashes upon one's skin as faces would begin to form and create wailing like expressions. A torturous disease that could only be cured in one way....."
"Your highness..."Hua Cheng calls softly.
Xie Lian turns to him and smiles softly. He turns his head back around and speaks.
"The only way to make yourself immune is to kill another human being."
Those who did not know of the disease so familiarly were left feeling their stomachs sink, and their skin be covered with cold sweats of fear. Gods who have been around for so long through these events were left feeling a wave of illness themselves. Was it fear? Was it concern? Was it a sense of unease? No one was sure. But the feeling of dread was settled among the crowd.
"When I was banished the first time, Me Mu Qing and Feng Xin were all completely trying to just survive. Hiding from our own people that we tried to save. Hiding and losing our home, our families. Our belongings. Losing face. Our reputation fell, but mostly mine. The other two could be dismissed because they were by my sides, but not the ones who so loudly promised to save the kingdom. Those were my words, and as a martial god the trust of the people were broken. Eventually we were stuck doing regular labor for others in order to make money, there were times I'd stay home just just stay out of the way because my good luck changed to bad luck. Chaos followed everywhere I went. This you all know well already. Eventually when we were settled in a small shack, things were far too difficult. Mu Qing needed to tend to his mother so he asked to leave. I allowed it....."
Mu Qing clenches his fists tightly.
"What he doesn't know however...."
His head raises up and turns to his old friend.
"Is that selfishly I didn't want him to leave. But I could not hold him back from his true responsibilities of taking care of his family."
Mu Qing's shoulders sink as he stares at him with his eyes suddenly burning. He holds back his tears and continues to listen but never looking away. Behind them Hua Cheng watches quietly. He never liked the two for how they turned their backs on Xie Lian, and refused to help him in some way. However, he knew that Xie Lian could never fully hate them at all after everything. There was no need to attack them over misunderstandings. Not anymore.
"However...." he turns to Mu Qing and frowns slightly, he then turns to Feng Xin who was honestly scared out of his mind to hear about the next bit of events. "Around this time White No face....was appearing everywhere I went......"
Feng Xin lowers his head quickly.
"He would go wherever I go. Watching every move I made. Watch all the actions I would take....if I even made the slightest move to try and stay on the right path he would attempt to push me down. I had done things that were very disgraceful in my path of cultivation. Taboo even. Drank. Tried to steal. I was losing my sense of right and wrong. At that point I was merely trying to survive. I wasn't a God at this point. What could I do but be human?"
No one says a word. No one dared to.
"Whether I would be awake or asleep, he would be there. Taunting me. Haunting me. Aggravating me. Pushing me to do what he had done....I suffered great shame. Those thirty-three gods you spoke up of that perished by San Lang's hands.....they were not part of his plan...but he used that event...to taunt me more...."
"Wait....what did they do to you?"
Hua Cheng steps forward instead and glances at Mu Qing at the same time. The martial god swallows hard and kneels in shame as Hua Cheng keeps his arms folded behind him. His eye burning brightly.
"You see...all his highness wanted to do was cultivate. The area was well suited to do so as it had a great load of spiritual energy. It was also far and secluded from people. The perfect area. However, three thirty-three greedy gods decided they wanted to humiliate his highness. Shove him. Pick on him. Treat him as if he was the lowest of the low. And the piece of trash beside him now..." all eyes fell onto Mu Qing as did his. "Due to not wanting to be humiliated himself did not defend him..."
Mu Qing lowers his head.
Feng Xin just stares at him as old feelings from deep in his heart were beginning to surface.
"San Lang...." Xie Lian calls softly, but Hua Cheng refuses to remain silent.
"When his highness was forced out of the cave, that was when he tried to offer his hand but it was already too late."
"Just how do you know all of this?" Pei Ming asks.
"I was there....."
"Then why didn't you do anything?"
Hua Cheng bites his lip as the eye on E-Ming swirls with rage. Xie Lian steps forward and lightly slides his hand to his back. His palm brushes along his red robes gently with care to soothe his rage. His eye closes as he continues to speak.
"At that time....San Lang was not a calamity....he was just....a dead soldier. A small flame that could not do anything....what could he have done..?"
This time Pei Ming chooses to not respond. By his side Quan Yizhen was completely mortified, he usually would never really pay attention to things, but this had all of his attention and it was causing him some grief. Lang Qianqiu was also mortified. Both young men were just unsure how to take in these type of words being told. The expressions lingering over their faces, and the atmosphere that was tense and filled with uncertainty on how to respond.
Hua Cheng snickers.
"Now you know why I took down all of those gods when I first arose from the kiln. They all deserved it. They needed to experience hell in it's truest form. The loss of their power and their lives...." he says with no remorse in his voice.
"San Lang...that's enough....calm down please." Xie Lian whispers.
Hua Cheng steps back and breathes in while closing his eye.
Xie Lian stands before him and keeps one hand in his to firmly hold.
"In any case, this wasn't even the worst thing to happen...it did cause me to lose my way more and lose trust in anyone. But....that was not the worst of it...."
The next major event he would dare to speak about was leaving him speechless. His heart trembled and his hand began to shake. He never liked to recount this incident. Never liked to look back on it. And every time White No Face was brought up, he would be filled with instant fear. His breath is shaky as he tries to speak, but the memory just continued to hurt. Even if the evil was defeated, it still scared him. And left him with so much inner turmoil. Hua Cheng takes note of his hesitation and instantly wraps his arms around him. One embraced over his shoulders and one firmly around his waist. His chin rests on his shoulder as he whispers into his ear.
Xie Lian closes his eyes and takes a deep breath in. Tears threatening to fall as he tries to speak. Behind him his old companions were just unsure how to feel seeing him tremble so heavily. They've never seen him so afraid or in grief except for the time when Hua Cheng had dispersed in a wave of butterflies leaving him alone for a year.
"I--it's honestly rather difficult to discuss this....it haunts me whenever I recount it, because it was the only time I ever felt truly alone. In pain. In suffering. More than anything I would have chose death instead of this fate...."
His words sent chills down the spines of every God in the vicinity.
"I knew he was around, and I was determined to fight him. I waited. And waited in a temple that was actually one of my own. An old one that was a bit worn down due to not being cared for. And in that same temple 100 people gathered. At first I thought nothing of it....but....that wasn't the case....the moment there was exactly a hundred the doors are shut and he releases the disease inside the temple leaving the people to panic...."
His voices quivers, and his breath quickens as he tries to continue. Hua Cheng continues to comfort him lightly stroking his shoulder with the tip of his thumb as he holds him closely to him. The God closes his eyes and continues.
"The only cure....is to kill someone. However, the people could not bring themselves to kill one another, but he gave them an option. One that I didn't think....they would dare to take...."
His eyes cast to Lang Qianqiu as he smiles sadly, "My sword....that you buried me with....that was not the first time it had pierced my body...."
The young god holds in his breath at those words.
"Before I knew it, I'm being tied up against my own alter with no way of breaking out. And in that moment he spills my secret. He tells the people that I am a God. And that killing me....would count and it wouldn't affect them as I was immortal. The wounds would heal....."
"W...wait....! A..are you saying?!" Feng Xin starts.
"Yes....and the people agreed.....before I knew it I felt my own sword being pierced through my body. Pain engulfed every fiber of my being.....I could not cry for help....my mouth was gagged. I could not reach to the heavens. I had no power. I was left to go mad...as a hundred of these desperate people stabbed me with my sword. Over and over and over again....." The tone in his voice drops as his last words are choked out of him as a sob. He didn't realize til that moment that his tears had already begun to fall.
"No one was willing to spare me....and the only one who cared.....was still a small ghost flame.....unable to do anything to save....and was held captive as well to just watch the whole thing unfold...."
All eyes move from Xie Lian to Hua Cheng. His head was buried in his shoulder as he recounted the event. The feeling of being horrendously useless to his God. While he refused to show his face, it was clear that his emotions were running wild as the eye on E-Ming shined a bright red before flinging its eye every which way that it could. Spinning in circles until it couldn't any longer.
"H...how did you get out.....?" Lang Qianqiu asks.
Hua Cheng speaks up this time as he knew that Xie Lian wouldn't be able to fully answer the question.
"My rage grew as well as my form. In a fit of anger, I burned the temple along with the people inside to nothing. Not even their souls were left behind. I carried him outside and made sure that jot a single drop of blood was left behind on him...."
Xie Lian's hand raises to his arm and curls up in a tight grip over his sleeve.
"I returned home once I had awaken....and this time...I told Feng Xin to leave. We kept arguing and I told him to just leave....and not follow me anymore. Of course....I didn't want that either....I didn't want to be left on my own.....even with my parents...it was the not the same....."
Feng Xin doesn't say a word as he also kneels beside Mu Qing with shame written all over his face. Both were left rather embarrassed, and yet they could only focus on the fact that they failed their friend. Their Prince. Their God. They failed him during the times he needed them the most. And the only one who was there for him, was so small at the time, and as someone who was a citizen of their kingdom they should have known better.
"The tip if of the iceberg was when I had awoken the next day....and found the bodies of my mother and father....." Ruoye swiftly unwraps from his body and swarms around him and Hua Cheng in a playful manner. The very edge of one end rises and nudges at his cheek with comfort. He smiles softly, "The same silk you see before you, was the same tool that they used to take their lives on their own......at that point I was over it. I was over dealing with the world, and the misfortune that was following." He stops in his words and glances at Hua Cheng. This next bit of information was a secret that the Ghost King didn't know about either. "Ruoye....didn't fully form until.....I used him to hang myself even though I knew I couldn't die..."
Hua Cheng lifts his head with a wide eye. His eye's color of red darkens as he stares with disbelief. This was one event he truly never saw. By that point he was on his own gaining power to protect him so he couldn't have known.
"Your highness....you....?"
"I'm sorry San Lang....."
Hua Cheng lowers his face back into his shoulder and tightens his grip around him. Ruoye moves about wraps around the two with care. It knew it was the subject of the conversation and it knew that its creation was a tough one to accept. No one was able to speak at this point. There was just no words that could be said. A god that suffered such torment, one that used to be as bright as the heavens, loved by all, and cherished, only to end up to such a state because of one single person.
'Your highness....'
Xie Lian tilts his head and leans it against Hua Cheng's as he feels his shoulder vibrating at the motion of his body's trembles. Hua Cheng doesn't move, by this point Xie Lian didn't care who was watching, he just wanted to calm his lover. He enters into his private communication array.
'San Lang....please calm down....I'm sorry that this detail...I never told you about.'
'I should be apologizing....i left you alone....and you..'
'No no, San Lang...don't blame yourself okay? It was me...I couldn't handle everything....and chose that path....it's all my doing...'
Hua Cheng sighs softly and just holds him even closer to him pressing his back into his chest afraid that if he let go for a single moment he would vanish.
'Those thoughts are long gone San Lang....I'm okay....and I have you now with me. Forever.'
These few words bring a small smile to his face, one he could feel forming in the crease of his shoulder. Xie Lian closes his eyes for a moment while his hand gently comforts the arm that was holding him. At the same time Ruoye takes it upon itself to offer some playful comfort to everyone. It flies around the room and greets the many gods everywhere. Playfully wrapping and knotting, and swirling, just to grab their attention. While it was thoughtful it gave some even more of a reason to cry, as the silk bandages were once covered in the blood of royalty. Pei Ming specifically was baffled and saddened by the tale as he truthfully wanted a tool like Ruoye, but he decides to toss that idea aside out of respect for the dead that forged it. The last two it flew to were Mu Qing and Feng Xin who were staring at the ground in shock. Their eyes wide and driven to tears. Their mouths hanging open with words to say, but no strength to say them. Had they known that things were so bad they would've returned. They would've came back if he had just called to them. They would have returned. They would have helped. Ruoye circles around the two and gently brushes the tips of their silk body against their cheeks wiping away their tears. The touch of the bandage felt fairly sentimental and familiar. Like the Queen who would comfort them during their rough time together. Or the King before he had gone mad, when he would encourage them. And then there's the feeling of the prince who they once saw as someone so high and mighty but watched fall into damnation. The silk bandage had the same wild energy of the Crown Prince, yet the gentle touches of his mother, and the rough protection of his father. It truly was born from their suffering, as it reminded the two of how things were before it all went wrong.
With a light nudge to their heads, Ruoye lifts them up by their chins before flying back to it's owner and wrapping itself firmly around his arm. Xie Lian sighs softly and looks back to the crowd.
"I...will continue....as I am not done...."
He clears his throat a bit before speaking.
"After I failed my attempt to die....I became what I feared most..." he raises his hand to cover half of his face as he recounts the memory of that same mask adorning his face. "That night the kingdom of Yong'an were celebrating like wild. People who used to be part of my kingdom were celebrating. Oh how joyous they appeared....and yet I was alone....and filled with anger. Shameful as I feel to have ended up this way...I wanted vengeance. Nothing but vengeance. So I wore the mask that was forced on me....and prepared to launch my own attack. I traveled to the old battlefields and called to the souls filled with resentment from my kingdom. Out of all of them one was the strongest. Dressed in black and wearing a smiling mask. He had his own little army as well following him without question. He kneeled before me and followed my every command...." his other hand raises up to rest on Hua Cheng's raven locks. His fingers entangled in the strands as he continued to speak.
"He did whatever I asked of him to do. If I asked him to kill...he would do it. He would never allow my hands to be dirtied..."
The more he spoke the more everyone realized that he was speaking of the ghost king that was still clinging to him like a child. He smiles softly as he recounts their previous interactions when he was known as Wu Ming. The only one who was careful with him, respected him, cherished him, and did everything for him.
"When we stormed into their kingdom he was killing for me....and when we finally got to the king....I was left with unsatisfaction to know that the king had fallen victim to white no faces tricks and had contained the human face disease. He was fooled and was prepared to die. Therefore, white no face took my chance away from me. I ordered Wu Ming to burn the place down, little did I know that I would see the last person from that place there hundreds of years later...but his fate was also sealed by white no face. In any case...." he sighs.
"I felt...confused on what to do...and where to go...and was frustrated. I wanted to prove white no face wrong....I wanted to place my fate in humanity....."
He closes his eyes.
"I ordered Wu Ming to wait for three days, and at sunset we would release the second wave of the disease. Until then I told him to stay behind. I went into town and stabbed myself with my own sword and laid on the ground to bleed...to see if anyone would dare to help me..."
Feng Xin and Mu Qing flinch. Again. Again and again. How many times would he need to be stabbed by that same blade...?
"I laid there for three days...and he dared to show his face...again to taunt me. Said I was being foolish, well he was proven wrong. A simple old gentleman laid a straw hat over my head to cover me from the rain and lifted me to my feet......do you realize when was the last time I received such kindness....? Just like that I finally felt like myself again...and learned my lesson...."
"Your highness...what about the resentful souls you gathered?" Pei Ming asks.
Xie Lian pauses and lowers his head a bit. This was the main reason as to why he chose to be banished a second time. He lifts his head to speak, but Hua Cheng speaks instead with a calm and steady voice.
"When he came back to me, he was prepared to take those souls into himself instead. However, I was not willing to let that happen...."
"San Lang...."
He lifts his head as the red color in his eye glowed brightly, "Therefore, I took his sword and took in all the souls that were gathered. You could even say I died a second time...my soul should have been scattered. But I still had a beloved in this world....therefore I still managed to live..."
Xie Lian smiles softly, but then pinches his cheek with a slight pull.
"Never do it again."
He chuckles lightly.
"I cannot promise such a thing your highness."
Xie Lian sighs, "I know..." he turns back to everyone.
"After this I had personally asked to be banished...though Jun Wu had no reason to banish me. Therefore, I asked to duel him. After that duel I was banished a second time, and finally made a new reputation of myself over the years."
"Wait so...! You were banished because you asked to be?! Just like that?!" One god shouts.
"Just like that."
"I had great respect for you before....but I'm truly impressed...if it was any other person I don't believe they would have stayed sane long enough...." Pei Ming says.
"You give me too much credit...I merely had a lot to learn, so clearly being immortal turned out to be a great thing that allowed me to really cherish every moment that I have. Good or bad. If it wasn't for the tough times I'd still be spoiled. If it wasn't for the fights, and stripping of my powers I wouldn't have been able to grow in strength. I truly believe that everything happened for some form of a reason. In the end, it doesn't matte. The main villain is defeated, and I after so long have some form of peace, not only in myself, but with everyone else as well."
And this was no lie. He truly held no grudges against anymore. Not even Jun Wu who had caused all of his suffering. There was just no point in carrying such grudges, otherwise those same grudges would have truly turned him into something far more evil than the first white no face. And that was something he refused to be.
Whether you're a god, a human, or a ghost, the best thing you could do for yourself in the face of someone who hurts you is to move passed them and continue moving on, as you can travel a path and keep going while they remain trapped in their own spots. Trapped in a circle of hatred, envy, or evil that ultimately will wear them down on their own. You do not need a crowd to love you, or to be kind. Just one is enough.
SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING MUCH, IVE BEEN STRESSED OUT AND CONCERNED WITH MY OWN STUFF YA KNOW BILLS AND RENT AND FIGURING OUT WHERE TO MOVE TO, SO IVE BEEN PRETTY DEPRESSED. BUT I'M FINALLY MOVING FORWARD AGAIN. THANK YOU FOR THE CONTINUING SUPPORT YA GUYS! YOU ALL MAKE ALL THE HARD WORK WORTH IT.