Xie Lian wakes to cool stone beneath his back and the intoxicating smell of food.
"Wu Ming?"
There's no answer. Xie Lian opens his eyes and pushes himself to a sitting position, gazing around himself in confusion. He's on a stone slab vaguely the size and shape of a bed and when he sits up something falls off of his shoulders. He looks down and finds that he's been covered in both his thin blanket and also Wu Ming's outer robe.
That ghost... Xie Lian can't help the fondness in the thought or the swell of affection in his chest that follows. When was the last time he had someone who cared if he was cold or not?
...The last time he and Wu Ming were together.
The thought is painful enough to break the warm bubble of his thoughts and Xie Lian quickly distracts himself by taking in the rest of his surroundings. He's in a cave a little larger than the one he was nursing Wu Ming in and, judging by the darkness beyond the mouth and the lack of wind, this cave is part of a larger tunnel complex. In the center of the cave is a fire and two skinny rabbits lay freshly cooked beside it. That must have been the smell that woke him. The cave is dry and relatively warm and there's even food, and it's an improvement in every way except the only one that matters.
No Wu Ming.
Panic twists Xie Lian's stomach. What if something's happened to the ghost? What if he's trapped or hurt or left or... A movement from the side of the cave catches his eye and Xie Lian spins toward it, mind flooding first with relief and then with surprise. The movement isn't Wu Ming, in fact it isn't a person at all. It's a scimitar ...Wu Ming's scimitar
As Xie Lian watches the blade lifts itself off of the ledge it was sitting on and wobbles through the air in the direction of the fire where it drops down almost to the ground before rising up again, its movements as ungainly as a toddler's.
Utterly diverted Xie Lian can't help but watch as the beautiful sword bobs up and down and on his arm he feels Rouye stir inquisitively. After the fourth unsteady bob Xie Lian begins seeing a pattern to its movements, the way it drifts up and a bit toward him then back down toward the rabbits.
"Are you, trying to get me to come over?"
The blade shakes in the air in a gesture Xie Lian can only interpret as a nod. Sliding off of the stone slab the god walks over to the blade and stops, looking down at it. Close as he is he can see now that blade is looking back at him, the crimson eye on its hilt, closed the whole time Wu Ming was unconscious, is open now and staring up at Xie Lian with obvious joy. Xie Lian smiles down at it.
"Hello there, aren't you cute." The blade bobs upward a bit and on impulse Xie Lian reaches out and gives it a few pats. From the way the eye closes in pleasure, Xie Lian guesses that it enjoys the attention.
"Did Wu Ming leave you here to look after me?"
The blade blinks at him which Xie Lian guesses is a 'yes.'
That ghost...
"If he doesn't have you to look after him he could be hurt. We should go find him."
The blade bobs down toward the rabbits again.
"You won't let me go till after I eat something?"
Another bob, this time accompanied by the growling of Xie Lian's own stomach.
"Alright."
Xie Lian settles onto the floor and as he does he notices something in the dust beside him. Squinting down at it he realizes that what he's looking at seems to be some sort of writing but the characters are sharp and angled in a way that's unfamiliar to him. Maybe a different language?
Shrugging off the thought, Xie Lian sets to work on the first rabbit, his hunger and worry for Wu Ming causing him to make quick work of it. When the blade tries to poke him toward the second rabbit Xie Lian shakes his head. "That's Wu Ming's. We need to find him."
Xie Lian gets to his feet again and, sliding the adorable scimitar into his belt next to Fang Xin, the god passes out of the cave and into the hall beyond. It's dark in that hall and before Xie Lian has gone more than a few steps he bumps into something solid blocking his path. Curious Xie Lian runs his fingers over the burrier and finds to his surprise that what lies beneath his fingers is a face made all of stone ...a statue. What is a statue doing here?
Curious and not wanting to risk walking into any more statues in the dark, Xie Lian returns to the cave he woke in and pulls a half burned stick from the fire. Makeshift torch in hand the god returns to the tunnel ...and freezes.
The statue ...is him.
Xie Lian is dressed in princely finery, his hair pinned with combs, his makeup exquisite. He looks nothing like the fallen god in his ragged blood caked robes, and yet it's him.
...What?
...What???
For a long time Xie Lian just stares at the statue, blinking over and over again as though if he blinks enough the form will change into one that makes more sense and yet ...nothing happens. The statue remains just as he first saw it, royal and beautiful and ...him.
That's when Xie Lian notices that there's something behind the statue. He walks toward it ...and it's another statue. This one is dressed in cultivator's robes, a sword in his hand as though he's training.
Xie Lian's mind is a buzz. He doesn't know what to think. Is this some illusion? But no, he felt the stone with his own hands. This is real.
...How is this real?
Utterly lost Xie Lian continues walking down the tunnel passing statue after statue of himself until he freezes, his eyes going wide and his cheeks going hot.
The statue before him is laying on a stone bed, it's body draped languidly over the covers, its head is propped up on one hand, its eyes half lidded, a sensual curve to its lips, love marks on its neck, its free hand beckoning the viewer closer.
The statue is naked.
The statue is him.
Xie Lian is so busy staring at the statue that he's not aware that he's no longer alone until he hears the soft thud of something hitting the ground.
The god spins, his cheeks heating more, flustered as though it's somehow his fault that he's staring at a naked statue of himself, not just naked but...
The sight that greets Xie Lian's eyes have them widening in surprise. Wu Ming stands before him dressed in his inner robe. Beside him on the ground is a small pile of firewood and another rabbit as though he just dropped them, but Wu Ming is making no attempt to pick them up, in fact he's making no attempt to do anything. He's just staring at Xie Lian, his lips parted, his face impossibly pale, his eye wide and full of terror.
The sight sends worry pricking through Xie Lian and he steps hastily toward the ghost.
"Wu Ming? What's wrong?"
The ghost's eye flicks from the statue back to Xie Lian again but he makes no other move as though he himself has been turned to a statue and in a flash Xie Lian remembers.
Before he passed out the ghost asked to take him to a safe place.
This must be the safe place.
...Which means Wu Ming's been here before.
...Which means Wu Ming knows the statues are here.
...Which means...
Xie Lian feels his throat go dry. Unable to resist he glances over his shoulder at the naked seductive statue of himself and then slowly he turns back to the terrified ghost before him.
"Wu Ming... Did you make these?"
"Forgive me." The words are only a whisper on the ghost's lips. He's shaking now, his destress so obvious that Xie Lian is torn between his instinct to rush to him and comfort him and the need to understand, those statues .../that/ statue.
"Why would you?"
The ghost says nothing only looks at Xie Lian in mute horror as though living in his worst nightmare and even with the way his own mind is buzzing, Xie Lian so can't bare the destress in Wu Ming's eyes that he bends down and props the torch against the cave wall and takes a few quick steps closer to Wu Ming before freezing as a sudden thought comes to him.
The first few statues do actually make sense. Xie Lian is Wu Ming's god and for some strange reason even after everything the ghost still believes in him, so maybe it's not so strange that he would build statues to Xie Lian, but this statue...
Xie Lian glances back at it again, his cheeks heating at the mere sight. ...Is this how Wu Ming imagines him, naked, and covered in marks and so... so... Xie Lian's cheeks burn even brighter just at the thought.
But why would Wu Ming see him this way?
Wu Ming who has a beloved.
Wu Ming who's love for that person runs so deep that it sustains him even after death.
Wu Ming who lingers on as a ghost for his beloved's sake, for...
'Why would I want to stay in a place that rejects my god?'
'I would do anything for your highness.'
'Your highness is my prince and my only god and I will always be your most devoted believer.'
'Your highness will always be your highness to me.'
Xie Lian's breath is coming too quickly. His heart is pounding. His blood rushing in his ears so loudly that he can barely hear his own shaking voice.
"Wu Ming, the beloved you spoke of, the one whose wrongs you wanted to avenge, your reason for still being, is it... is it..."
Xie Lian looks back at the ghost in time to see him turn away, his hands balling into fists that don't fully conceal the way they're shaking.
"If your highness already knows then why ask?"
Xie Lian sucks in a sharp breath. How long has he been jealous of 'the beloved'? How envious has he been knowing that they have Wu Ming's affections, Wu Ming's heart. How angry has he been with himself for begrudging Wu Ming anything that can bring him joy? And yet... And yet... Suddenly Xie Lian wants to laugh, or maybe cry? He isn't sure. He isn't sure of a lot of things, not how he got so lucky or how someone as perfect as Wu Ming could love someone like him or how that love could have survived Xie Lian's cruelty. And yet here they are, and it has, oh it has.
With quick footsteps Xie Lian crosses the cave and rests his hand lightly on the ghost's shoulder. Wu Ming starts at the touch, his shoulder stiffening as though he expects a blow and just the thought makes Xie Lian's heart ache.
"Wu Ming, will you look at me?"
The ghost says nothing and the tension doesn't leave him, but slowly he does turn and the sheer terror and pain in Wu Ming's eye makes Xie Lian feel like someone just placed a fist around his heart and squeezed. Does Wu Ming expect to be rejected? Can he truly imagine that Xie Lian won't want him?
...But how would he know? When Xie Lian was so cruel to him, so dismissive, so...
"Wu Ming..." Xie Lian starts then trails off, the cruel name a bitter taste on his tongue. How can he say what he wants to and yet still keep using such a cruel name? "I can't keep calling you that. Is there some other name? Something you want to be called?"
"I..." Wu Ming's eye flicks to Xie Lian than away again, his voice hoarse with emotion. "Your highness can call me whatever you like."
"Stubborn." Xie Lian says it affectionately. "But I can't keep calling you that, I really can't. Isn't there anything else?"
Wu Ming is silent for a few moments, then, slowly, tentatively, "I was the third son of my family. ...Your highness could call me San Lang?"
"San Lang." Xie Lian repeats the name and at the sound of it the ghost's eye flicks toward him again, hope briefly gleaming in its depths, before it winks out as he looks away, and Xie Lian can't allow that any more than he can allow this to continue one moment longer. He throws his arms around Wu Ming, San Lang, and drags him close, clutching him to his chest and burying his face against the ghost's shoulder. "My San Lang..."
San Lang stiffens in surprise at the embrace, the breath he no longer needs catching in his throat. "W-What..?"
The question comes out in a voice shaky and hoarse and Xie Lian just holds him tighter.
"I've spent so long being jealous of your beloved, telling myself I wasn't, and then you came back to me, abandoned heaven for me, and I couldn't lie to myself anymore and I realized... Realized..."
A soft gasp leaves San Lang's lips and then cool arms close around Xie Lian, holding the god every bit as tightly as the god is holding him. "Your highness..." And now there's hope in the voice and joy and it's everything Xie Lian wants to hear there and he vows to himself that, no matter what it takes, he'll keep that joy there forever.
"Beloved..."
They stay like that for a long time, holding each other, two lost souls who have finally found where they belong. At last it's San Lang who pulls back first, not all the way, just far enough that he can look down at Xie Lian, adoration burning bright as starlight in his eye.
"Did you really come to Mount Tonglu to find me?"
Xie Lian raises his head from the ghost's shoulder and nods and his heart leaps at the look of in that beautiful eye.
"Did you really abandon heaven just for me?"
This time it's San Lang who nods.
A shaky laugh leaves Xie Lian's lips. "What did I do to deserve you?"
San Lang leans forward until his forehead is touching Xie Lian's. "You existed, that's enough."
Xie Lian's breath catches in his throat but before he can formulate any sort of response to those wonderful amazing impossible words, a startled gasp leaves his lips as San Lang suddenly scoops Xie Lian into his arms and begins carrying him back toward the cave he woke up in.
"San Lang!? I can walk..." The words come out half laughing and San Lang smiles but shakes his head.
"Your highness is still injured. You still need to rest."
"What about the things you brought? The rabbit and the firewood?"
"I can go back for them."
Xie Lian lets out a soft huff of breath, his cheeks going pink. "Stubborn..." Still he settles into Sand Lang's arms, and it's not a bad feeling.
As the ghost lowers him back onto the stone bed he asks, "Why did your highness ignore my note?"
"Your note?" Xie Lian blinks up at him blankly.
San Lang glances over toward the fire.
"My note, begging you not to leave the cave."
Xie Lian's eyes follow his and he remembers the strange scribbling he found in the dust when he went to eat and his eyes widen.
"That was... Oh! I'm sorry San Lang, I couldn't read it."
The ghost flushes slightly and glances away and Xie Lian reaches up quickly and rests a gentle hand on his cheek.
"It's alright. We were at war for years. It's no wonder you didn't have time to practice your calligraphy. Don't be ashamed. I can teach you."
San Lang looks back at Xie Lian eye wide and lips parted, the color creeping higher up his cheeks. For a long moment he just stares at Xie Lian like the god is the only thing in the whole world and then, slowly, he smiles.
"I would like that."
***
They spend another three days in that cave both resting and talking and holding each other close, healing from their wounds and from all that they've suffered. On the fourth day they walk through the tunnels to the place where the cave opens to the sky and to the kiln waiting below and they put their arms around each other and hold each other tight.
"Come back to me." Xie Lian whispers.
"I will. I promise. I'll always come back to you."
At last it's San Lang who breaks the embrace, pulling reluctantly from his god's arms, but he can't bear to part yet either so he catches one of Xie Lian's hands in his own and presses his lips to the back of it. Xie Lian's eyes widen, a faint flush rising to his cheeks.
"When I come back," the ghost tells him, "I'm going to kiss you properly."
Xie Lian's breath catches, the blush darkening and then he's nodding. "Yes, yes I would like that."
And so San Lang descends into the kiln and Xie Lian waits in the cave of Ten Thousand Gods and every day he comes to the cave entrance and looks down and waits, and every night he falls asleep clutching the crystal ring which now hangs around his neck.
Like that one day passes and then two, one week passes and then two, and then, finally, in the third week, the mountain opens and far above the heaven's tremble as the Crimson Rain Sought Flower emerges from its depths and there on the ledge of the cave, just where they last parted, he finds his god and takes him in his arms and kisses him in just the way he's always dreamed of and Xie Lian melts into his ghost king's arms and it's everything both could ever want.
From Heaven to Earth, From Earth to Heaven,
where ever, whenever, it doesn't matter,
As long as they're together.
Note: This is where the main story ends. What comes next is an epilogue about Xie Lian's third accession, so look forward to that if you want to see Hua Cheng bullying some gods loll