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Chapter Text

Xie Lian just stared up at the night sky, not hearing a sound as he lay in the pit he had been in all day long, long since numb from the feeling of Fangxin impaled in his belly.

Laughter began above him, the familiar voice asking, “What are you doing?”

When the owner of said voice failed to get a reaction he seemed disappointed, walking down to Xie Lian and bending down above him, “What are you waiting for?”

The former prince looked annoyed, “Get the hell out of here, you are blocking my view of the sky.”

White No-Face did not seem to be bothered by the outburst, straightening up and laughing again, “What is so good about the sky?”

“It is prettier than you!” Xie Lian snapped

“Why the temper?” White No-Face asked, “It was not me who stabbed you this time, and it was not me who left you here. You did this all yourself. Even if you have not gotten the results you were hoping for, you still cannot blame me.”

Again, Xie Lian did not reply.

Bai Wuxiang sighed, “You have wasted an entire day here. What exactly are you trying to prove? Or are you trying to convince yourself of something?”

“It is none of your shitty business!” Xie Lian snapped again

The masked man chuckled sympathetically, “Silly child, did you think someone would help you pull out that sword?”

Xie Lian was about to shout at him again, to tell him it was none of his business, but no words managed to spill from his mouth when White No-Face did something he did not expect.

He wrapped his fingers around the sword’s hilt and pulled it out, before tossing it down beside Xie Lian, his voice soft with pity, “It is alright, they will not help you, but I will.”

“No one else is coming to save you. The people would never come give you a cup of water or help you pull out the sword.” Bai Wuxiang stated, “Remember, tomorrow at sunset, if you still have not unleashed the plague of Human Face Disease, the curse will fall upon you.”

Xie Lian said nothing, his golden eyes wide as he looked back up at the sky as he processed what had just happened.

All day long the people of Yong’an had just gawked at him, looked at him in pain and ignored it, mocked him, or just did not even spare him a glance.

But Bai Wuxiang, the person who had ruined his life, who had orchestrated his being stabbed a hundred times, had harassed him for so long now, had also been the one to give his parents a proper royal burial and in such a way he would be able to visit them whenever he was ready without worrying about decay and now had been the only one he had seen today who helped him.

“ Admit it. What he said is true. ” Xie Lian thought, “ There is no one, no one, no one! There is not a single person who will help me! ”

The brunet felt something wet touch him and assumed it was raining, but when he reached up to wipe it off his face, he realized he was crying.

He was then overtaken by a sudden wave of sobs, Xie Lian laying there and just sobbing and he just could not seem to stop.

White No-Face just cooed at him, kneeling on the ground beside him like a parent coddling their child who scraped their knee, making Xie Lian sit up.

The masked man said nothing initially, just hugging him and letting him cry, before saying, “That was what you wanted, was it not? The common people are not worth such devotion, have they not shown it enough yet? You have given them everything you had to offer and yet they demand more and more until you are naught but ash and yet they still trample that in their want for more. You threw your godhood away for them, you tried to defy fate for them, you warred for them, you tried to heal them, and yet they could not be bothered to give you even the littlest bit of help and abandoned you the second you had nothing left to give.”

Xie Lian continued to sob, his grief catching up with him at last, starting to cling to the ghost that had become the only constant in his life as if he were his only lifeline.

When Xie Lian’s sobs became nothing more than wet hiccups, he was picked up bridal style and returned to the dilapidated temple of the Crown Prince he had made his base.

He was set down on the altar to lay down on, but he refused to let go to the masked man, whispering, “Don’t go.”

Bai Wuxiang made a noise of slight surprise, before teasing him, “Oh but I thought you wanted me to leave.”

“Shut up.” Xie Lian mumbled, slipping into sleep

Once he was asleep, the calamity set him down, and turned to wander off for now, just in time to see Wu Ming return.

The ghost pulled his sword at pointed it at Bai Wuxiang, “Stay away from his highness!”

White No-Face merely rolled his eyes under his mask and vanished, wondering if Xie Lian would fail again and not unleash the plague or if this had finally been his wake-up call.

***

Hours later, Xie Lian woke up with a groan and sat up, seeing Wu Ming standing in front of the broken statue praying.

Xie Lian just watched him, having confirmation now that the ghost was his final believer and the one who had left the little flower before.

“Did you find the location?” Xie Lian asked, putting his mask back on

Wu Ming nodded, “Yes, your highness.”

“It has to be perfect.” The former prince said, “Nothing can be amiss.”

The ghost ‘general’ nodded along to his words, “Does your highness still plan to unleash the curse tonight?”

The former god paused, thinking about it for just a moment, “No, I will do it at noon, when the most people are out.”

The smiling mask stared at Xie Lian for a few moments before nodding along, “Yes, your highness.”

Xie Lian stared at him for a moment, “Take your mask off.”

Wu Ming paused, before saying, “I do not wish to burden your highness with this one’s ugly face.”

“Take it off.” Xie Lian ordered

The nameless ghost’s hand shook slightly as he reached up to take his mask off, clearly worried about the reaction his face would elicit.

But his face was far from ugly, he was actually very handsome, with the only thing that could possibly be considered ugly was his red eye with its black-slitted pupil.

Though Xie Lian did not even consider finding him ugly, instead he beckoned him closer, as he knew him, and recalled his face well, “Hong Hong-er?”

“Your highness remembers me?” Wu Ming asked in a soft voice, the disbelief clear, “This one did not dare to hope such.”

Xie Lian just stared at him, his heart aching, “It’s you. And you are the only one who still believes in me.”

Wu Ming nodded, “Your highness is the only god worth worshiping.”

The former god did not know how to reply to that, just running his thumb and pointer finger along the ghost’s face, before running his thumb across his lower lip and noticing how his lips twitched like he was desperate to clean his fingers with his mouth.

“Who was your beloved?” Xie Lian asked, “The one you wish to avenge.”

Pale cheeks flush a cute pink, his silent answer is loud, and Xie Lian understands it and promptly shoves his thumb between the ghost’s soft lips.

His teeth parted instantly, and he immediately started sucking on Xie Lian’s thumb like a baby with a knotted rag.

Xie Lian is not sure what prompted his following words, as he did not even  realize he was saying them until he was done, “What a good boy.”

A pathetic sound escapes Wu Ming’s lips that mades a heat pool in Xie Lian’s belly.

After a few moments more, he pulls his thumb out of the ghost’s mouth reluctantly and watches as a string of saliva momentarily connects them.

***

A few hours later at noon, Xie Lian and Wu Ming walk into the City on Lang’er Bay with their masks on, ready to unleash the curse of the angry fallen soldiers onto the people.

He lifted Fangxin into the air and watched as lightning struck the blade, unleashing the souls of the fallen soldiers into their vengeance.

The sky was rapidly overtaken by dark clouds rolling with thunder and lightning, littered with countless limbs and faces, all howling and shrieking.

In the city below, the citizens looked up into the sky in terror and awe, crying out questions: “What’s going on?”, “What’s all that noise?”, “What the hell?! What’s that in the sky?! Is that a human face?!”, or “It’s chaos! It’s a bad omen! The world is ending!”

Like a mimicry of rain, the souls fell from the clouds and hit the people below, infecting those hit with Human Face Disease.

Xie Lian watched as people started screaming in terror, those yet to be infected hurrying away from those that were, the whole street descending into chaos.

Tears slid down Xie Lian’s face and out from the bottom of his laughing-crying mask before laughter bubbled at his throat, howling out laughing as he watched this all.

It felt so good like something had been unlocked inside of him.

All these people had turned their backs on him after all he had done to try to save them, and now he was the one causing their doom!

Yong’an might have won the civil war, but he was going to make sure that ending was just a footnote in the history of Xian Le, not even lasting more than a year.

A voice came from behind where Xie Lian was laughing, and first the former god looked to Wu Ming, but looked to the other side to see White No-Face chuckling.

“It is quite the sight, watching you enjoy the sweetness of revenge.” Bai Wuxiang stated, “Your hands wrought this; you should appreciate your handiwork.”

Wu Ming drew his sword and pointed it at the other masked ghost, ready to defend Xie Lian from him or die (again) trying.

“Put that away, I was hoping he would show up.” Xie Lian told his last believer

The younger man seemed hesitant, but obeyed, resheathing his sword.

White No-Face seemed to be smiling under his mask, “Oh, I am invited to the party this time, hmm?”

Xie Lian scoffed a bit at that, “Is that not what you wanted? To hear that you were right? Savor it, I will not repeat it. You were right.”

Bai Wuxiang paused, as if he were in disbelief, before recovering, “What now then? How will you go forward? Will you try to reascend”

The former prince thought for a moment: did he even want to ascend again, could he even, he had left so dramatically after all and he doubted he would be welcomed back so soon.

So he just shrugged, he just wanted to live each day at a time now, but in this moment he wanted to continue to relish in what he had done.

Chapter Text

The city was utterly empty as Xie Lian walked through the streets, with only corpses littering about that all were disfigured with Human Face Disease.

Wu Ming was mere steps behind Xie Lian, ready to protect him in case they came across any survivors -not that he needed to act as a guard, as Xie Lian was even more skilled with the sword than he was, but the thought of not acting as a guard was unthinkable to the ghost.

Bai Wuxiang was also still present, but he was staying some ways away just to watch, and he occasionally disappeared but returned after a while.

Eventually, they reached the main palace and found that all the guards and servants were dead there as well, the disease fed by the dead soldiers had killed their victims in minutes.

They went deeper in, just following after Xie Lian until they arrived at the throne room.

The chopped-up bits of Lang Ying’s body had not been cleaned up in the few days since Xie Lian had killed him -the servants had not been brave enough to touch his infected corpse- and the throne room now stunk with the sickly sweet scent of decay and the throne and the flesh-mush were covered with flies and maggots.

“ A fitting end for a usurper. ” Xie Lian thought, a small smile forming under his mask, “ Left to rot. ”

The former crown prince knew that no announcement had been made about Lang Ying’s death, so his heir was not yet king, so Xie Lian wondered where that brat was -or rather, his corpse.

Xie Lian did not wonder long, soon finding the only survivor in Yong’an; hiding away in a lone hall was a teen boy wrapped up all over with bandages: Crown Prince Lang Ying.

“How curious.” Bai Wuxiang hummed, “The unleashed spirits did not touch him.”

But the bandaged boy did not spare Xie Lian nor Wu Ming a glance, instead going past them to yell at White No-Face.

“You tricked bofu! Bomu and tangdi were supposed to live!” The teen yelled, hitting the white-clad ghost’s chest like a toddler having a tantrum, “You lied!”

The former god did not listen to the rest of the other prince’s whining, seeing red.

How dare this little brat think that he and his family were getting everything they lost back and the new royal titles that they stole? How dare he complain about not receiving exactly what he wanted just because he bitched and whined and ‘suffered’?

He lost his entire family, his home, his homeland, his friends, his godhood, everything , and got nothing in return but more suffering.

Xie Lian pulled Fangxin from the sheath at his hip, ready to teach Lang Ying what it truly meant to lose everything.

Wu Ming noticed what Xie Lian was doing and went over to grab Lang Ying’s wrists to hold him in place for his god’s convenience.

Lang Ying struggled in the ghost ‘general’s’ hold, trying to squirm away, but Xie Lian just ripped the bandages off his face.

There, they saw why the unleashed plague had left him alone: he was already infected with the original slower strain of Human Face Disease -likely having gotten it from his uncle.

“Let me go!” Lang Ying whined, still squirming annoyingly

Xie Lian raised his hand and promptly stabbed the other crown prince in the belly, sliding the sharp blade aside to gut him properly.

The teen gasped, watching his innards spill outwards, his intestines smacking the floor with a wet squelch, foot by foot just continuing to fall like a rope that seemed to never end.

Wu Ming let Lang Ying’s arms go and the three masked men watched the unmasked man collapse to the floor and slowly bleed and die.

Xie Lian had chosen not to cut him up as he had his uncle, wanting him to know true suffering, merely sitting beside where the younger man lay to watch him perish oh so slowly.

For a moment, Xie Lian wondered if this feeling was what Bai Wuxiang experienced when he watched him get stabbed in the temple all that short eternity ago that was the past few weeks.

Once the light dimmed in Lang Ying’s eyes and he was truly dead, Xie Lian stood up and began to walk away.

The ghost ‘general’ quickly followed after his beloved god while Bai Wuxiang dawdled behind at his own pace -like he was merely an amused spectator.

***

Once they were out of the empty city and into the equally empty countryside, Xie Lian did not stop walking until he reached a small stream and just sat down, pulling his shoes off and setting his feet into the water, and staring up at the cloudy sky.

“What will you do now, your highness?” White No-Face inquired, curious, “You have gotten all the revenge available to you. So what remains to you now?”

A deep sigh escaped the brunet’s lips, “I don’t know what I want anymore. You are clearly fishing for a particular answer, so tell me, what do you think I should do now?”

For the first time, Xie Lian did not flinch when he felt the White Clothed Calamity touch his shoulder, the older being crooning in his ear, “Come with me. Let me teach you all I know. Become mine .”

“And what would that entail?” The former crown prince asked, actually considering it

The hand on his shoulder squeezed a bit tighter, more possessive, “You would become my partner in life and death, dearest .”

Xie Lian’s golden eyes closed, leaning back slightly into the touch, “Partner in what way?”

“Romantic, of course.” The masked man answered, the hand not on Xie Lian’s shoulder going to rest on his hip, “No one could understand you as I do.”

The banished god said nothing for quite a while, deeply thinking, before asking another question, “If I agree, will it stop? The pain in my heart.”

“Yes, I can take it all away.” The calamity cooed in his ear

“Then yes.” Xie Lian agreed

Despite not even facing him, Xie Lian could tell that Bai Wuxiang was grinning under his mask.

***

It took many days of walking, of fruitlessly asking where they were going, but they seemed to finally reach their destination when a large seemingly dormant volcano came into view.

They had passed three mountains to get into the area around the volcano, mountains that Xie Lian could not help but to think were moving , but they were now standing in what seemed to be the ruins of an ancient city.

“Why are we here?” Xie Lian asked, his arms crossed

As usual, White No-Face was utterly unhelpful, “All of the answers to all of your questions can be found within these ruins.”

The brunet scowled under his mask, “You said you were going to teach me!”

“I am.” The calamity replied monotonely, though Xie Lian could practically feel him smirking, “Everything you need is here, you must learn to put the pieces together by yourself.”

Xie Lian looked around, as if the answers would just jump out at him, and when he looked back Bai Wuxiang had disappeared.

“Bastard.” Xie Lian spat at the empty space White No-Face had been in moments previously

He then looked the other way, seeing Wu Ming patiently waiting for direction.

“Go look for a building that does not look like it is about to collapse and then look for supplies.” Xie Lian ordered, “I am going to go look for the ‘answers’ he was talking about.”

Wu Ming nodded, seemingly as happy as his mask made him look to be of use to his god, “Right away, your highness.”

With his last remaining believer busy, Xie Lian began looking around the buildings closest to him.

They all just seemed like abandoned homes, empty, many of which were missing roofs or walls or even led into pits where floors had fallen out presumably due to earthquakes.

***

By the time night fell, Xie Lian was still yet to find anything of note in the ruins and so decided to give up for the night and continue his search in the morning.

He spotted a small fire in the distance and knew that Wu Ming was the most probable cause of it and walked over to it.

Just as suspected, Wu Ming was tending to a small fire outside of a home that was a bit away from the others and seemed to be in better condition, a small pot hanging over it that seemed to contain a soup of some sort.

Wu Ming noticed his arrival immediately, “Forgive this lowly one’s presumptiveness, your highness, but you did not eat during our travels so I thought to make you food. After I found this home, I spotted a river nearby and caught a fish to make into a soup for you with some wild herbs and mushrooms I found. If it pleases you, I also saw some wild wheat, I can harvest it tomorrow and dry it to make flour to make noodles or bread.”

Xie Lian frowned a bit, recalling the untouched final meal his mother had made him; he would do anything to eat it when she gave it to him now.

The banished god did not reply, but he did sit down on the large rock by the fire and took off his mask.

When the soup was done, Wu Ming took the pot off of the fire and took it to the nearby stream, submerging it in the cold water nearly to the top without letting water spill inside and ruin it -just cooling off the metal with a hiss and a small wisp of steam.

He then carried the now cooled-ish pot back to Xie Lian and offered it to him, “Forgive this useless one, your highness, I was unable to find any intact bowls nor any spoons in my search. But I swear to look harder tomorrow to not repeat such a mistake.”

Xie Lian stopped him there, “It is alright, I can just drink it out of the pot.”

The brunet placed the pot’s rim’s to his lips and took a sip of it, tasting the surprisingly flavorful herbs and the earthyness of the mushrooms, the fish being flakey and almost buttery as it seemed to dissolve in his mouth with very little chewing required.

Once he was full and the small amount of soup was eaten, Xie Lian set the pot by his feet and gestured for his last follower to kneel in front of him.

Wu Ming fell to his knees with no hesitation at all, the smiling mask staring up at him with an almost eagerness.

“Take your mask off.” Xie Lian told him, “I do not want you to wear it when we are alone at night like this.”

This time, the ghost seemed hesitant to do as told, but he did take the mask off and set it on the floor by the pot, looking up at Xie Lian with his mismatched eyes.

Like before, Xie Lian did not know where this was coming from within him, but he cupped his ‘general’s’ cheek in his left hand and used his thumb to stroke his bottom lip, “You are such a good boy.”

Yet again, a pathetic little whimper escaped Wu Ming’s lips, but after a few moments Xie Lian realized it was not a whimper after all: it was a moan.

Under normal circumstances, Xie Lian would be rather distraught by that revelation and cling to his purity oath; but things had not been normal for years now, and after drinking, swearing, and causing a plague of his own, what was this one last thing to throw away -especially after he had agreed to be Bai Wuxiang’s ‘partner’?

His thumb went deeper against the ghost’s lips, slipping into his mouth where it was eagerly welcomed.

Unlike before, where Wu Ming just sucked on his finger with scared, half-hearted suckles, this time his apprehensions seemed to be tossed away as he sucked on it with vigor.

As he sucked on Xie Lian’s thumb, Xie Lian felt that warmth pool in his belly again and finally realized what it was: arousal.

Chapter Text

Nothing happened of note for the next few days, and Bai Wuxiang was yet to return.

Xie Lian continued to explore the ruins, finding more ruined homes, the rubble of what might have once been temples, and a trail of debris that he suspected might have been a bridge to seemingly nowhere.

It was not until the end of the first week that Xie Lian found a painting on the wall of one of these abandoned temples.

Unlike the divine statue that was so destroyed that you could not even begin to try and tell what gender of god it was supposed to be, much less what type, the mural looked significantly newer -like it was painted within the last century or two.

The mural depicted a martial god by Xie Lian’s best guess, serenely above four junior officials, with dozens of random silhouettes below them to represent the common people; behind the god depicted was a golden bridge that led into the sky, and in the background it showed an erupting volcano and a sky full of smoke.

That explained what the rubble he had found before was, and Xie Lian knew this had to be at least part of what White No-Face had meant by the answers being here.

He was on the right track.

***

Since the sun was finally dipping past the horizon and he was loosing the light, Xie Lian went back to the ‘camp’ Wu Ming had set up for them.

It was in a one-room home they had found on the edge of the fallen kingdom, significantly less destroyed than the rest of the homes that were closer to the volcano, and while any items of use or worth had long since been plundered from it, it was a perfect place to stay in the meanwhile.

But, Wu Ming had been busy these past few days simply making furniture out of wood he chopped and carved himself and now they had a set of chairs, and a table; he had also somehow procured a rather thin blanket and partially ripped-up pillow, a straw mat, as well as a cup,  bowl and spoon that were a bit chipped but still functioned.

It was nothing grand, a far cry from the comforts and luxuries he had once enjoyed as a prince and then a god, but something he had grown accustomed to since Xian Le fell.

Wu Ming noticed Xie Lian’s return immediately, quick to bring him the freshly prepared food and a cup of water collected from the stream.

As previously requested, the ghost ‘general’ was maskless, but his smile made it seem like it was still on with his ever-present smile.

Xie Lian ate the served meal, eating the roasted fish with stewed lotus root.

It was always simple fare being made up of whatever the ghost scavenged, but after spending all day wandering the ruins it was always delicious and filling.

Once the fallen god was finished, Wu Ming was quick to take the dirty bowl, chopsticks and spoon away to wash in the stream later and return to Xie Lian’s side for whatever else he might want.

“I found something today.” Xie Lian told his last believer, “ A mural. It was of a god I have never seen before, perhaps just a local deity. The odd thing was that the paint was newer, it went into the cracks of the wall instead of being fractured by it and it was only a bit peeled.”

Wu Ming was kneeling in front of Xie Lian, looking up at him with his mismatched eyes full of wonder, soaking up every word, “That is strange. Do you think that was what Bai Wuxiang meant by ‘all the answers being here’?”

“I do. Or at least the first clue, I know it is something important.” Xie Lian replied, his gold eyes then widened, “It is him.”

“Who, your highness?” Wu Ming asked

“Bai Wuxiang.” Xie Lian replied simply, not elaborating

The ghost looked around as if the White Clothed Calamity had suddenly popped up in their base, “Him?”

“He is always talking about how no one will ever understand me like he does.” Xie Lian said, “The god in the mural is him. He is a fallen god turned ghost. That is why he is so powerful, why he knows so much. He has to be ancient, older than even the Heavenly Emperor, with how old the ruins are -at least a thousand years old.”

The younger man’s eyes widened as well, neither had ever heard of such a thing before, that a god could fall and become a ghost.

“This in itself is a major revelation.” Xie Lian said, “But I cannot help but feel that it is just the first step in a monumental discovery.”

***

After that talk, Xie Lian went over to the mat and had Wu Ming lay down beside him.

His last believer was always eager for this part of their routine, smiling so brightly Xie Lian sometimes wondered if his face was frozen.

For the past week, nothing had happened when they lay together like this, but today Xie Lian felt emboldened and well, he felt like he did not have anything else to lose so why should he hold back from his desires anymore.’

He leaned his head up, getting closer to Wu Ming, before pressing his lips to the ghost’s.

Neither of them had ever kissed someone before, that quickly became evident with how sloppy the kiss was, but they both very much enjoyed the kiss.

When they parted, Xie Lian pulled away and looked at his devoted believer, how his Wu Ming’s youthful face was somehow beet red despite being a ghost.

Xie Lian smiled at him, feeling happy for the first time since before he had lost his parents.

“Never leave me, Hong-er, ever.” Xie Lian said to him softly, cupping his chin

Wu Ming leaned into his touch, “I will never willingly leave your side. I would claw my way up to Heaven if I had to to return to you, or fight my way through Hell.”

“Are your ashes hidden well? Are they safe?” Xie Lian inquired

The ghost rusted through his pocket, pulling out a crystal ring and handed it to his god, “They are here.”

Xie Lian’s golden eyes widened at that, trying to return them, “Hide them.”

Wu Ming again put them in Xie Lian’s hands, “You keep them. If anything happened to you, I would have no reason to exist.”

The ghost pulled at a string coming off of the mat, looping the ring through it and then tying it around Xie Lian’s neck as a necklace -he wished he had a real silver or gold chain to offer him instead of the string, but that was all he had to offer for now.

Tears formed at Xie Lian’s eyes as he realized that Wu Ming was putting his life -his afterlife, more accurately- in his hands, and cradled the ring of ashes in his palms just as tenderly as he previously had the ghost’s face.

They kissed again before laying down again properly to sleep.

***

In the morning, Xie Lian woke up curled up against Wu Ming, yawning as rays of sunlight entered through the rotting shuttered windows.

He started to sit up, smelling a pleasant scent in the air, and quickly realized it was tea.

At first, Xie Lian wondered if Wu Ming had made it and where he had found such leaves, but he turned towards the table and saw White No-Face sitting at the table with a pot of tea and three cups, his mask slightly ajar just enough to reveal the corner of his mouth and a scarred cheek as he sipped his own cup.

“Good morning.” Bai Wuxiang greeted with a hum, fixing his mask back into place

Wu Ming shot out of bed at the sound of the calamity’s voice, reaching for his sword immediately.

Xie Lian stopped him by putting his hand on Wu Ming’s shoulder, assuring him everything was fine.

Both the ghost and the fallen god stood up and went over to the table, Xie Lian taking the other chair while Wu Ming kneeled obediently at his feet. 

Xie Lian and Wu Ming’s masks were resting on the table while they had their tea, both just staring at the masked man in silence, waiting for him to speak after a week missing.

“Have you learned anything yet, your highness?” The White Clothed Calamity asked

“You were a god but fell.” Xie Lian stated, “I am guessing this was your homeland, due to how similar all the temples I have found are and the quantity.”

The masked man hummed, clearly pleased, “You are correct. Anything else?”

“No.” Xie Lian replied

“I see.” Bai Wuxiang said, “Since you have done well, I will answer three questions for you.” 

“How old are you?” The former crown prince asked after thinking for a few moments

“One thousand two hundred.” The calamity answered, moving his mask slightly again to have another sip of tea, “I do not recall the exact number, but it is in that range.”

“When you were a god, what was your title?” Xie Lian asked next

White No-Face paused before answering, “Mò Chóu Wǔ Shén.”

Well, that told Xie Lian that he had been a martial god as well, but that was not at all a surprise to the former crown prince.

No, it was the first part of the title that surprised him: ‘Mò Chóu’...‘free of sadness’, or rather ‘the Happy Martial God’.

And well, for a being that went around wearing a mask that was half-laughing and half-crying, such a title was unexpected.

“And your last question?” Bai Wuxiang inquired, curious

“Where do you go when you are not harassing me?” Xie Lian decided after pondering for a few moments

The masked man set his teacup down, and Xie Lian could feel him smirking a bit under his mask, “Spoilers.”

He stood up, clearly about to leave.

So Xie Lian grabbed his hand, “You said you would answer three questions, not that I could only ask three. What is the name of this land?”

“Wuyong.” The older man answered, stroking Xie Lian’s knuckles with his thumb before pulling his hand away

Xie Lian frowned at that, “For someone claiming to want to be my ‘partner in life and death’, you seem keen on disappearing constantly.”

A chuckle escaped the masked man’s lips, “Oh, dearest Xianle, you are . You are putting the pieces together so wonderfully, everything will make sense soon.”

He stroked the top of Xie Lian’s head affectionately, his hand dipping down so his fingertips ghosted along the skin of Xie Lian’s neck where his cursed shackles lay, before finally pulling away.

He then walked towards the door, glancing back at Xie Lian before walking off back to wherever he went.

Xie Lian sighed, still feeling like he had so many more questions than answers, before looking to Wu Ming, “I am not making much progress on my own. We need to split up to look around the ruins. With any luck, we might find a library.”

Wu Ming nodded, eager to obey.