there's more love in a dead man's arms
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Listing Series
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a heart needs blood to love by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
11 Aug 2020
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“I need-“
“You aren’t suggesting-“
“-an Alpha to see me through my heats.” Hua Cheng seemed scandalized. He Xuan took a drink from the tea, trying to ignore the way his mouth hinged open. “You are the only person in all the world who shares a status with me. One that I would…” The next word came as easily as swallowing the stem of a thorny rose. “...trust.”
“You’ve got to be joking.”
Series
- Part 1 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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until our marrows mix by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
22 Aug 2020
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“Surely a single God is not too much for Hua Chengzhu.”
“Too much?” Hua Cheng turned around, the hanging of his hair casting a shadow over the side of his face. “You would be wise to not underestimate even the most pathetic of opponents, Lord Black Water. They can sometimes surprise.” As Hua Cheng stepped closer, his bootheels clicked on the stone floor. “Is this not what you are attempting with your enemies?” The chill of fingers, long nails, scraped along his cheek. Hua Cheng grinned at him, a cocky expression. He Xuan drank him in, eyes glassed over as the Alpha drew nearer.
“I am not making an attempt,” He Xuan started to say, though his voice stuttered out when Hua Cheng dipped his fingers to his collar. The fabric was pulled aside again, and He Xuan’s eyes narrowed as the binds of a white bandage were revealed, the medicinal scent wafting over them. “What are you doing?” he hissed.
As if Hua Cheng had been glamoured by the sight of his slim neck wrapped in white, the sudden breaking of that trance led to his expression jolting. “Merely,” he started, only for the explanation to die. Behind them, the rattling of chains returned their attentions to the problem at hand.
Series
- Part 2 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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never really wanted your heart by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
14 Sep 2020
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Summary
“...speaking of the Black Water Isle, would Hua Chengzhu grant me a request?”
“Make it, Little Lord Black Water.”
His eyes shifted over. “My next heat can be spent in my manor?”
“Ah.” Hua Cheng’s brow pinched briefly. “I do not mind. Can I ask why?”
“...comfort. I have not been back in many months, and it will give me a chance to ensure my maintaining of the realm, as well. And with Hua Chengzhu with me, no other ghosts would even dare try to-“
“Say no more.” Hua Cheng’s smile stretched across his face as he leaned across the divan, long fingers carefully wrapping around He Xuan’s wrist. “Wasn’t it you who said frittering compliments were banal and uninteresting?”
“I do not believe that is what I said.”
“Close enough.” He lifted He Xuan’s hand, pressing a kiss to one of his long nails. “I do not need your flattery either, Little Lord Black Water.” Hua Cheng mimicked his earlier action, drawing one of He Xuan’s fingers past his lips. This time, he sucked the syrup from his skin, while two heavy-lidded eyes watched him.
Series
- Part 3 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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said too much (haven't said enough) by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
12 Oct 2020
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Summary
“Lord Black Water-”
“Don’t.”
Hua Cheng slid E’Ming into the hilt at his side, then he walked behind He Xuan and sat near him on the ground. “...it’s important that I say-”
“I ripped the hearts out of every individual who laid a hand on my lover. She was tormented and used by them, so I cut them open. Enjoyed seeing their bloody corpses strewn about like cut dolls. I know that your reaction was not logical, therefore you shouldn’t attempt to explain it to me.”
“You don’t deserve to be hurt by me for a crime you didn’t commit.”
He Xuan laughed, a dark sound like the bubbling of boiling water. It wasn’t a natural thing to hear from him. In fact, Hua Cheng didn’t think he’d ever heard He Xuan laugh before. “I’ve been paying for the crimes of others for my entire life, Hua Chengzhu. I am far past accepting that no one in life or death will ever treat me fairly."
Series
- Part 4 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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smilest upon the stroke that murders me by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
27 Oct 2020
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Summary
“When is your next heat?” Hua Cheng asked, his voice taking on that drowsy, near-sleep lull.
Fingers pressed to Hua Cheng’s chest, He Xuan curled them up and gently scraped his nails down pale skin. “...I don’t know. Not soon. They’ve...been more spaced out, recently.”
“Why?”
He Xuan opened his mouth to speak, but a soft kiss to his temple stole the words. Staring at the smooth line of Hua Cheng’s jaw, he felt the aching heart in his chest shiver. Old and still, the deadness radiated through him, reminding He Xuan of what he lacked. Hua Cheng held him close, a knowledge in the grip. If he didn’t hold on tight enough, He Xuan would flee. Out the door, down the streets of Ghost City, and back to the sheen of Heaven’s palaces. This was their new dance, the rhythm harsh and hard to follow. It hurt to follow.
It hurt more to pretend. He Xuan wasn’t the place Hua Cheng would rest his heart. The sight of a black pearl beneath a red one itched across his eyes - always beneath, always second, always covered. Just a place to nudge into and empty the loneliness.
Series
- Part 5 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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the undone and the divine by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
03 Dec 2020
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Summary
Surprisingly, they did not turn to go to the bedroom, and He Xuan found himself deposited gently on the throne. HIs hands folded over the ends of the arms, the wood biting into his wrists. “Wh-” His eyes widened when Hua Cheng slinked down to his knees, the expression on his face almost bordering on playful. “What are you doing, Hua Chengzhu?”
“Can I not give Lord Black Water the respect he is due in his own domain?” he asked, and He Xuan felt his dead heart tighten. One of his hands was taken, and Hua Cheng pressed an openmouthed kiss to the back. “...you were always meant to be worshiped as a God, but I think you’ve forgotten that.” He drew closer, pushing He Xuan’s sleeve up so he could kiss over his twiggy wrist. “Let this Ghost King remind you.”
Series
- Part 6 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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burns like lightning through my teeth by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
15 Dec 2020
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“I have to return. Slipping away from the Wind Master was difficult; all he wants to do is gossip about this new ascension.”
Hua Cheng opened his mouth, briefly. “...when-”
“I’m not coming back to Ghost City. Or the Isle. Not until it’s time to-”
“There is still time before-”
“No! There isn’t!” He Xuan looked up at him, an ocean of ice in his eyes. Hua Cheng’s hand shook, and his head dipped down with the weight of realization. “This is…” A soft sigh emptied onto the breeze, stale air from dead lungs. “This is how things are supposed to be. I was a cold fluke.”
Lifting his eyes felt as impossible as moving a mountain. A long time ago, Hua Cheng had promised himself that nothing would ever stop him from protecting his God. In a strange turn, at a point, he’d decided to protect He Xuan with the same fierceness. Moving mountains had seemed small, until he found himself thrown under the shadow of He Xuan’s doom. “...I never considered you a fluke.”
He Xuan nodded. “I know, Hua Chengzhu.”
“I love you.”
Lips trembled. “I know, Hua Chengzu.”
Series
- Part 7 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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burned yourself on something cold by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
15 Jan 2021
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“Bedding with you was a need, not something I wanted!” He Xuan shouted. Yin Yu inched to the side, leaving the space between the two Ghost Kings empty. Two pairs of eyes watched this verbal battle, spectators to what shouldn’t have exploded again. Once a powder keg was lit, there was no way to stop the blast. One merely had to ride through the fire and brimstone until it was done. And Hua Cheng, this time, had struck the match. “I tried to end things, but you’re the one who pursued me like a jealous, spoiled child who lost his favorite toy.”
“Like you didn’t beg for me.”
“How many times did you trap me in bed? Acting like your heart would break if I didn’t sleep through the night with you?”
Hua Cheng’s nostrils flared. “Did you not cry and beg for my forgiveness less than an hour ago?”
“Hah! And who kissed me seconds before crawling on his worthless belly before the precious Crown Prince? As if he would want to look at you when he has the bounty of Heaven at his fingertips again.”
“You gave me your ashes! I never asked for that devotion, and yet you foisted it on me!”
Series
- Part 8 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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still wrapped up in your strings by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
26 Feb 2021
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He let a bead of silence pass. Not true silence, since the Lady Wind Master was chattering on about her ridiculous, tragic story. Hua Cheng watched Xie Lian instead, the way he was framed by the light from the window. Bright gold, because that’s what he was. Unfortunately, He Xuan was here to see this stare. Her eyes were heavy, and soon Hua Cheng was looking away from his God and toward his mate, instead.
Former mate, by He Xuan’s standards. Though, there was nothing to be done about the bond still connecting them.
‘Little Lord, remember what I have?’ Hua Cheng lifted a finger and tapped the swaying braid that hung heavy with the weight of two loves. He Xuan’s eyes shifted, and the tea in her hands shook, slowly. ‘I know you severed us. But I still have this. And until your revenge is done, it will be a part of me. Same as I am a part of you.’
Series
- Part 9 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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let the dead bury their dead by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
24 Apr 2021
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‘What are you doing? This wasn’t the plan.’
‘New plan. I want to end it tonight.’
‘You cannot take on Shi Wudu without the Heavenly Calamity! You said so yourself!’
He Xuan cut Hua Cheng out, shutting the array out of his mind and ignoring any attempt to gain his attention through it again. Sweeping back to Shi Qingxuan’s side, He Xuan bent and grabbed the fan from his hand. His fingers splayed across the pretty bamboo, feeling how the power inside him responded to the fan. Shi Qingxuan watched him, much like a fish caught on a hook, lower lip dangling open.
He snapped the fan in half. The paper ripped, and he tossed the two pieces to the floor. Shi Qingxuan stared at the weapon, breathing hard as he realized that this was not boding well for him. He Xuan wondered if Shi Qingxuan knew snapping him apart would be just as easy.
Series
- Part 10 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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scatter the ashes in the shape of a soul by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
10 May 2021
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Summary
There was no answer for him. He Xuan did not expect one. After more lifetimes than he wanted to count, it was finished.
When the last deed was done, He Xuan returned to the cold and the dank. His manor had never been a welcoming environment. It was only a building of purpose, a mockery of the untouchable Heavens he had been denied. And now, a tomb made ready for him.
As He Xuan walked the lonely halls, his hand lifted and pushed beneath the collar of his robes. He found the bondmark, reminding himself of its existence. On the other side, he felt a mournful echo, and He Xuan refused to reach back. His heart still sat on the offering table, and soon a bloody head joined it.
Incense burned in the ancestral hall, and He Xuan returned to his family. Ready to join them.
Series
- Part 11 of there's more love in a dead man's arms
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so many more tomorrows by butchgoth (GremlinGirl)
Fandoms: 天官赐福 - 墨香铜臭 | Tiān Guān Cì Fú - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù
09 Jun 2021
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He Xuan cupped his hand around the bondmark, gazing toward the gauzy canopy. Spiritual power no longer flowed through the bond. It had diminished like a fading fire, until there was only cold. A curl of disembodied smoke.
Then, the bond cracked. It was like a bone shattering. The pieces ground together and sharpened into knife points to dig deep into He Xuan. From the base of his throat, down into his aching stomach, He Xuan felt gravity sucking him downward. His body hit heavily onto the mattress, and he clawed into the bondmark and ripped the skin with a despairing wail.
“No! No!”
The canopy was ripped down as He Xuan tore past it. His shoulder cracked into the wall as he hurried from the room, wood splintering. Running, he kept scratching in his bondmark while tears burned down his cheeks. When he lacerated the skin deep enough to hit bone, He Xuan fell to his knees. In a quiet hallway, shreds of skin and muscle raining to the floor, he sobbed.
“Hua Chengzhu?” he asked. Fingers batted against his ruined throat, trying to find the scarred bondmark he had destroyed. “Hua Chengzhu, why can’t I feel you? Where-where did you go?”
There was no one to answer him.
Series
- Part 12 of there's more love in a dead man's arms