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Liu Qingge was royally fucked.

What was supposed to be a simple jaunt into the forest, an easy mission to exterminate a demon pest that had terrorized a small mountain village turned into…this.

Was the pest problem solved? Yes, of course, Liu Qingge was extremely competent at his job, after all. He had a reputation to maintain. If the Bai Zhan War God couldn’t handle a job like this, then he may as well hand in his resignation and let the young Yang Yixuan take his place.

What he didn’t expect was the backup.

The elder of the mountain village failed to mention the monster’s numerous henchmen. Perhaps the elder thought them irrelevant, as they resembled simple spiders. What made them unique, however, were their qi-siphoning pincers.

Liu Qingge hadn’t noticed this while blocking the blows of the hammer-like tail from the Demonic Gavel-Wielder of Immense Power. It wasn’t his first encounter with one, but he would go so far to admit it was slightly challenging.

More challenging than usual, anyway.

Since his last encounter, Liu Qingge hadn’t gotten weaker in his abilities; it was now quite the opposite. He first met one when he was a young boy of fourteen. Despite not yet owning his beloved and dependent Cheng Luan, he impressed his peers and his shizun with his agility and sheer strength of qi by channeling blast after blast at that armoured shell.

The beast had succumbed to Liu Qingge’s onslaught, keeling over with a rumbling groan before thudding to the ground.

See? Not a problem. This was easy. A fourteen-year-old could do it.

So why was this adult man having such difficulty?

The stings of the spiders’ bites were sharp, but minor. A mere inconvenience as he dodged the falling trees from the weighted tail of the beast. With one swipe of his hand, he could wipe them off. They were insistent, but irrelevant.

It wasn’t that long before he had felled the great beast.

Upon seeing their master had collapsed, the spiders grew frenzied, crawling up Liu Qingge’s body faster than he could wipe them off.

He channeled his qi to fry them if they got too close, but they somehow pushed past the barrier.

Liu Qingge was exhausted. Fighting a Demonic Gavel-Wielder of Immense Power wasn’t that extreme of a chore, but maybe it was the toll of a poor night’s sleep and other stressors that caused this.

It had to be.

Gathering what little strength he had left, Liu Qingge unleashed a wave of boiling qi to char the spiders to a crisp. That simple action, though effective, left him gasping for breath.

What the fuck was wrong with him?

Maybe it wasn’t the Demonic Gavel-Wielder of Immense Power, but instead the spiders.

But something so small couldn’t cause this level of damage, right?

A wave of premonition washed over Liu Qingge. He needed to get out of there. If he stayed any longer, he wasn’t sure he’d make it back to Bai Zhan. Dramatic, sure, but even he knew when to take risks and when to fall back. It’s what made him such a great leader.

He hopped on Cheng Luan, making a mental note to remind Yang Yixuan to collect the payment from the village elder after Liu Qingge’s return.

However, as he got closer to Bai Zhan, Cheng Luan started to waver and shudder, as if it couldn’t handle Liu Qingge’s weight. Whatever qi Liu Qingge had left was rapidly decreasing.

That wasn’t the only problem.

Realistically, Cheng Luan shouldn’t have had any problems with Liu Qingge to begin with, but especially now as it seemed…to be…getting bigger…?

No, no, that wasn’t right.

His feet had more space to shift and balance along the trembling blade, but not because it was growing in size; but because Liu Qingge was getting smaller!

The realization seemed to speed up the process.

The wind tossed his body along the length of the blade beneath his feet. Its polished shine was exceptionally beautiful to Liu Qingge, but now proved to be impractical as he had no traction. If he didn’t secure himself to something or lower his flight path, he’d be whisked right off!

And with Cheng Luan growing longer and longer, and Liu Qingge’s body growing smaller and smaller, he found he had very few options.

With the last of the qi in his rapidly shrinking body, he angled Cheng Luan downwards. Bai Zhan Peak loomed threateningly overhead; so close, yet so far.

On any other day, the branches near the tops of the trees would have whipped his face and given him hundreds of thin lashes at best; something he could easily clear away with a wave of qi, but now they were the size of himself, even bigger, perhaps. Those leaves were wide enough to hold his whole body like a droplet of morning dew settling into the center before rolling off the tip. However, with gravity pulling him down, hitting any of those leaves or pines would bruise him until he was black and blue.

Adrenaline swooped in Liu Qingge’s stomach as he fell to the ground. Cheng Luan hurtled along beside him, spinning this way and that before spearing itself into the dirt.

The grass and moss approached faster than Liu Qingge could prepare. His body, though smaller than usual, hit the ground with an absurd amount of force. The breath was knocked from his lungs when he landed face-first into the soil. His limbs throbbed with the impact, and when he finally could wheeze out a groan, it swiftly blended into hacking coughs.

In this tiny chest, each breath felt labourious, like his lungs couldn’t handle the capacity of the breaths he felt he needed.

He hadn’t felt this shitty since the Ling Xi Caves…

Liu Qingge surveyed the situation after standing on shaky legs. Each breath felt like a boulder weighing on his chest. The forest grass came to his hips. His age hadn’t regressed, he was the in the same body as before, he just managed to get…smaller.

Looking in the reflection of his shiny blade, Liu Qingge deduced he was around ten inches tall. His hands, though still calloused from fighting, now appeared pixie-like and dainty.

He felt mostly the same overall, it was still his skin, organs, innards, everything that made Liu Qingge Liu Qingge, but he was now powerless, defenceless, vulnerable, exposed!

Oh gods, he was going to vomit. This—this truly was the worst-case scenario!

Qi deviation was one thing; that he could at least manage! But this?!

His reputation as a Peak Lord was over! No one would take him seriously like this! Finally, this was a problem Liu Qingge couldn’t muscle his way out of. He would need—he shuddered—help.

But who to ask?

“This is Liu-shidi’s sword…”

No, no, no! Liu Qingge’s limbs seized.

More gentle footsteps from beside him; robes swishing through the grass. “Why is this all the way out here?”

Anyone but him!

“Liu-shidi?” Shen Qingqiu called, his voice as refined as clear jade. Just those words alone sent an aching pain through Liu Qingge’s heart.

Despite that, Liu Qingge crouched low and ducked behind the bark of a wide tree. He peered out from the side, watching Shen Qingqiu approach Cheng Luan. That elegant hand, looking monstrous from Liu Qingge’s point of view, reached for Cheng Luan’s hilt.

The hand faltered before drawing back into its sleeve. “I probably shouldn’t touch it unless I want that brute to skin me alive.”

Liu Qingge rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to make a snarky retort, but upon remembering his own compromising situation, roughly bit the inside of his cheek until he tasted blood.

Shen Qingqiu hummed. “Super weird he would just leave it lying around. That’s not like him.”

Not like him indeed! Certainly not when he was ten inches tall and without qi! Please just leave, he willed through gritted teeth.

But Shen Qingqiu had no interest in listening to Liu Qingge’s internal cries. He lingered around the area, occasionally calling out to Liu Qingge and investigating the clues Liu Qingge left behind.

Shen Qingqiu tapped his closed fan against his chin, an almost endearing gesture that Liu Qingge had grown fond of seeing. During these times, Shen Qingqiu’s eyes would drift upward in thought, pink lips pouting slightly.

However, when Shen Qingqiu began to fall into that familiar routine, his gaze caught on something. Using his qinggong, he leapt upwards towards the latticework of tree branches, robes billowing elegantly out behind him. When he drifted back to the ground as delicate as an autumn leaf preparing for winter, he clutched something between his fingers.

Liu Qingge’s eyes bulged out of his skull.

There, in Shen Qingqiu’s hand, was a scrap of fabric from Liu Qingge’s robes!

Sure enough, when he whipped around to investigate, a portion of his outer robes had been shredded!

Just his fucking luck.

A confusing expression crossed Shen Qingqiu’s face, something that looked dangerously close to worry. He weaved in between the trees, calling Liu Qingge’s name until his voice grew distant.

Desperate, Liu Qingge ran back to Cheng Luan. Maybe, somehow, there was enough residual qi in the spiritual weapon to fuel him…

But a palm pressed to Cheng Luan’s shiny blade confirmed his worst fears. That’s what he got for trying to be optimistic for once!

What else, what else, what else…

Mu Qingfang. He had to go to Mu Qingfang. He would know what to do. He would be clinical, precise, and not sugarcoat Liu Qingge’s predicament. But he thought of that gentle expression, the awkwardness of their relationship, and Liu Qingge found he couldn’t bring himself to face the Qian Cao Peak Lord. He rarely consulted him for medical issues regardless, which always resulted in a fatherly scolding when the blood didn’t start to congeal, and the wounds didn’t start to scab.

There was no blood to be seen here, but this wasn’t just something Liu Qingge could push through!

“Liu-shidi?” A voice, that voice behind him asked, too close and too pointed for Liu Qingge to pretend that Shen Qingqiu was still searching for him and hadn’t found him here, so close to the ground.

Liu Qingge abruptly seized from head to toe. “D-don’t,” his entire body shook, “don’t look at me.” The mere thought of turning around to face Shen Qingqiu had Liu Qingge swallowing back blood.

Shen Qingqiu seemed to be reacting similarly. His words were tight, clipped. “Y-you’re—”

“Don’t say it.” But Liu Qingge’s brain was filling in the gaps and he knew Shen Qingqiu was doing the same.

Small, tiny, minuscule, fragile, weak, puny, defenceless, the list really went on and on!

Fabric shifted behind him, Shen Qingqiu’s voice closer than before, more on his…level. “How did you—”

Could this get any more humiliating? If Liu Qingge were his regular size, with his regular powers, he would have surely blasted Shen Qingqiu with a ball of qi halfway across the mountain by now and gods, he wanted to. “I don’t know!” A lie.

Liu Qingge finally, with clenched fists, turned himself to see the Qing Jing Peak Lord crouched in front of him. Upon seeing that pinched face, Shen Qingqiu’s lips started to twitch, irises filling with controlled mirth.

“Don’t laugh!” The defiance in his voice paired with the tininess of his body made Liu Qingge realize he must have looked like a fussy child. All he needed to do was stomp his foot and the look would be complete.

Shen Qingqiu instantly schooled his expression. “We should visit Mu Qingfang.” He said resolutely, but his words were still laced with shaky restraint.

“No.”

Shen Qingqiu’s eyes lifted to the sky in such a brief flicker that Liu Qingge would have thought he rolled them. “Do you want to stay sm—like this?”

Liu Qingge couldn’t argue with that. “No one else can see me like this.” He would have preferred death to Shen Qingqiu witnessing him in this compromising position, but here they were now, having a conversation about his size!

Shen Qingqiu pursed his lips in thought. He hummed. “Well, at least let this shixiong ask on Liu-shidi’s behalf.”

“Fuck off.”

Shen Qingqiu stood, snapping open his fan. “This one understands. Liu-shidi will figure it out himself, of course. Best of luck.” He began to swish away.

Good riddance. Liu Qingge didn’t need Shen Qingqiu’s help. He knew the Qing Jing Peak Lord wouldn’t go blabbing about Liu Qingge’s condition to anyone, so he truly had no reason to fear.

It would go away in a few hours; of that, Liu Qingge was certain.

It did not go away in a few hours.

After Shen Qingqiu abandoned him in the forest, Liu Qingge made the trek back to his abode on Bai Zhan Peak. It took more than three times longer than usual because of his size and lack of qi. Any other day, and he’d have been there within thirty minutes.

He was exhausted, drained, humiliated. He had to resort to crawling through an open window after dodging the peak’s disciples running about and picking fights with each other. What he wouldn’t give to throw a few punches right now!

Huffing and puffing, he arrived back in his familiar space.

The sun had long since set and very quickly Liu Qingge realized how privileged he was to have qi in the first place.

Simple actions like waving a hand to light a candle were now impossible. Simple actions like being able to reach a motherfucking candle were impossible.

Thus, Liu Qingge leapt straight into his bed. To get there, he, of course, had to scurry up the leg of the bedframe before being able to relax on the mattress. He used a bunched-up corner of the blanket as a pillow for his wee head and, before falling asleep, thought about how much simpler life would be if he were only his usual size.

With the rising sun peeking through Liu Qingge’s curtains came the dawn of a new day, a flicker of hope on the horizon. The light at the end of the tunnel, if you will.

It was foolish to think this.

Nothing had changed!

Liu Qingge awoke with a jolt, hands patting his body down from top to bottom, but when his eyes focused on his bedchambers, everything was exactly as it had been a few hours ago.

How long was this qi deviation going to take?!

A sensible, rational Liu Qingge knew that qi deviation didn’t just go away because one willed it to, but that there was some medicine or method one had to use in order to get back to their original state, but Liu Qingge wasn’t in the mindset for sensible or rational.

He wanted the problem fixed, and he wanted it now.

The Bai Zhan War God must have looked like a mess with his long, black hair dirty and disheveled from sleep. He was still in his tiny robes from last night, too exhausted and humiliated to take them off. It was a thin, flimsy layer of protection from reality.

With a practiced reach, Liu Qingge’s hand extended outward to grab Cheng Luan beside his bed.

The blade didn’t respond because the blade wasn’t there. Cheng Luan was still speared lonelily in the forest’s moss, waiting for its owner to return.

A hot wave of rage washed over Liu Qingge’s body. While small, he was still capable of feeling the same level of anger as he usually did. He punched the mattress with all his might, but it didn’t do any satisfying damage. That angered him all the more.

Liu Qingge needed tangible evidence of his strength, of his power. He could hardly stomach being so weak as to not do any lasting harm on anything.

Fine; he would claw the pillow to shreds with his fingernails until they bled, he would tear out his own hair and then grow it back when his qi returned, he would punch the leg of his bedframe until the wood became dented and warped under his fists, he would—

A knock!

Liu Qingge’s heart seized in his chest. No, no, no! Leave me alone!

Another gentle rap on the door. “Liu-shidi?”

His heart seized for an entirely different reason. Shen Qingqiu? Liu Qingge straightened his robes and re-secured his hair into a ponytail. He didn’t know why he was doing such when he planned on refusing Shen Qingqiu entry anyways.

Shen Qingqiu, a little more exasperated: “Liu-shidi?”

Fuck! If he let Shen Qingqiu in, it’d just be a repeat of the humiliation from yesterday. But if he didn’t, it could be one of three options: the first, being Liu Qingge would be forced to reveal his shrunken self to Mu Qingfang or any other peak lord who saw him, resulting in more people being exposed to his disgraceful circumstances; the second, a chance of his qi just sorting itself out somehow, ideally soon enough that he could forget this event ever happened; and the third, worst scenario, being that he never naturally recovers and after days, maybe even weeks of seclusion, he has to seek out Shen Qingqiu or Mu Qingfang on his own after losing a battle of patience.

All three options were maddening, but he knew which one he ought to choose.

He jumped from the mattress and ran across his chambers to the low table. Sitting on the cushion wouldn’t suffice, so he’d have to sit on the table like the barbarian everyone perceived him to be.

“Come in,” he said just loud enough for Shen Qingqiu to hear. Gods, how badly he wanted to bang his forehead against the table until his skull cracked open!

Upon entering, Shen Qingqiu instantly coughed into his fan. Liu Qingge wasn’t stupid enough to pretend like he didn’t know it was for the Qing Jing Peak Lord to hide his laughter.

“If you’re just here to make fun of me—”

“This one swears it, I’m not.” Shen Qingqiu folded his knees and made himself comfortable at the low table Liu Qingge was standing atop of.

Liu Qingge was instantly filled with a sense of loss. At this table was where he and Shen Qingqiu drank their tea and bickered lightly about Cang Qiong affairs. Here they had discussed battle strategies for demon hordes and relaxed after long weeks of fighting them. Here Shen Qingqiu had recited poetry as eloquently as the learned scholar that he was while Liu Qingge rolled his eyes but also puzzled to understand what the fuck Shen Qingqiu was alluding to.

Realistically, these things could still happen: two cups of tea between them, one big and one small; Liu Qingge being the size of the battle markers and Shen Qingqiu’s slender hands moving the pieces on the map; the breeze of flipping pages ruffling Liu Qingge’s hair as he listened to Shen Qingqiu’s low and soft voice deliver line after line of scenes of nature, the curved branches of willow trees creating ripples on the surface of water.

“I brought Liu-shidi breakfast. In case you hadn’t eaten.” He reached into his sleeve and drew out a soft meat bun and placed it on the table between them. A peace offering.

Liu Qingge didn’t want to accept it, but his stomach growled loud enough for Shen Qingqiu to hear. He wisely pretended he hadn’t. He mirrored Shen Qingqiu’s position, crossing his legs to sit down in front of the bun. When sat, it was almost as tall as him. He nudged it to the side with his foot after tearing off a few pieces.

“You need to help m—”

“How did shidi sleep?” At some point, Shen Qingqiu had helped himself to a cup of tea. Did he come all the way to Bai Zhan Peak with a motherfucking hot cup of tea in his sleeve?

Liu Qingge’s hands clenched into fists on his knees. His teeth ground angrily into the breading of the bun—he hadn’t even hit the meat part, yet. This was Shen Qingqiu teasing him. After Liu Qingge had so crassly told Shen Qingqiu to shove it, this was his version of revenge. He wanted to help, deep down, but required Liu Qingge’s desperation as payment. Only then would he take action.

Why did Liu Qingge have to apologize for his own shitty situation? Anyone would react as he had if their martial brother stumbled upon them in an awkward state.

He decided to finally answer Shen Qingqiu’s question with a hmph.

Shen Qingqiu hummed, lips pressed against the rim of his cup. They’d be warm from the steam, Liu Qingge knew. “How did you make it back to Bai Zhan?” Another delicate sip.

Liu Qingge would play his little game for now. “Walked.” He fisted another piece of bun, then stuffed it in his mouth.

The twitching of lips returned. Preoccupied with the cup of tea, Shen Qingqiu didn’t whip out his fan to hide it. “How long did it take?”

“Are you going to help me or not?” Liu Qingge snapped. Okay, fuck Shen Qingqiu’s petty game, Liu Qingge needed solutions!

Setting the cup down, Shen Qingqiu trailed a fingertip along the circular rim. It was coquettish, playful, alluring. Infuriating. “Hmm, your shixiong is very busy…”

Every tightened nerve in Liu Qingge’s body screamed at him to dismiss Shen Qingqiu, just figure it out him-damn-self, but he couldn’t, he couldn’t. This was urgent and any second longer he spent as a shrunken version of himself was a second he wanted to climb a tree and jump from the topmost branch until his body dropped like a stone and his bones were crushed in his weakened state.

Fuck this peace offering bun! Fuck Shen Qingqiu and his stupid cup of tea!

Liu Qingge tongued his cheek. Something flickered in Shen Qingqiu’s gaze as he watched Liu Qingge battle within himself. The way his cheeks and ears and neck warmed under that intense stare must have amused Shen Qingqiu, like Liu Qingge was just some toy to entertain him.

He had to. “…Please.”

Shen Qingqiu smiled warmly. “I guess I can find the time.” He tossed back his tea in one shot before placing the empty cup back into his sleeve. “Shall we go find Mu Qingfang?”

Just like that? One little word and now Shen Qingqiu was all niceties? That slimy bastard.

Shen Qingqiu was already walking towards the door.

“Wait--!” Liu Qingge called after him.

Refined and elegant, Shen Qingqiu twisted his waist to listen.

“I can’t…” do anything! “Use qinggong or ride on Cheng Luan.”

“Oh? Then what does my shidi suggest we do?”

Why was he playing dumb right now? Liu Qingge scoured for the least humiliating option. “Bring Mu Qingfang here?” But he already knew the answer was no.

Shen Qingqiu hummed again. His closed fan tapped lightly against his chin. “I’m afraid not. For such a…small matter, it’s best we don’t tear him away from his clinic. Any other ideas?”

“Go alone. Ask him and come back here.”

“I may forget some important information,” Shen Qingqiu tutted. “I think it’s best shidi comes along with me so he can hear it for himself.”

Rejection after rejection! Why was Shen Qingqiu so adamant on dragging him along!?

Liu Qingge huffed. “Fine. Why don’t you think of a suggestion, then?”

Shen Qingqiu was silent for a hair of a second. “Shidi can ride in my sleeve.”

Shivers danced all across Liu Qingge’s body. Just what was this guy thinking!? What kind of relationship did they have that would allow Liu Qingge to just hop inside Shen Qingqiu’s robes!? He hated the way his skin warmed at the thought of being one layer closer to Shen Qingqiu. To be able to smell him so closely without inhibitions. He hadn’t dared consider it as an option because that would mean exposing his hand. It would mean that he’d have to admit to thinking about being near Shen Qingqiu. Like he had a chance.

But then he suggested it himself!

“Or, shidi can sit on my shoulder.”

And risk being seen? “Fuck no!”

“Those are your only options.” Shen Qingqiu shrugged, looking as refined and unbothered as ever.

Currently, Liu Qingge was the opposite. He was an absolute mess.

“What does Liu-shidi prefer?” He pressed.

Nothing! Neither! Death!

Shen Qingqiu waited patiently. His face, though neutral, radiated a smugness that made Liu Qingge want to punch him. Not that he would do much damage in his drastically shortened, qi-less body.

After some time gnashing his teeth, he grumbled: “get over here.”

Shen Qingqiu returned to the table Liu Qingge was still perched on. Standing directly in front of it, he towered over Liu Qingge. “What did you decide?”

Liu Qingge was cast in an ominous shadow. The back of his neck pinched from looking upwards. “Gimme your sleeve…”

“Hm? What was that?”

“I’ll take the motherfucking sleeve, Shen Qingqiu.”

Shen Qingqiu smiled gently, something warm and inviting. Liu Qingge wanted to drop his guard and fall victim to that tender expression, to put all his trust in the palm of Shen Qingqiu’s hand to do with as he pleased.

That thought would be his downfall.

The Qing Jing Peak Lord leaned down. Instead of sweeping open his sleeve to allow Liu Qingge to climb inside, Shen Qingqiu’s long fingers wrapped around behind Liu Qingge’s spine and lifted him into the air like a doll.

“Put—me down!” He scrambled to his feet in Shen Qingqiu’s palm, but with the sensation of being lifted so high into the air, he wavered and had to drop to a knee.

“Don’t worry, I won’t drop you.” Shen Qingqiu tucked Liu Qingge into his sleeve, fingers loosely curling around Liu Qingge’s body to ensure he wasn’t jostled around inside.

Shen Qingqiu’s bamboo and eucalyptus smell assaulted his nose. He was bombarded with it; that subtle, dewdrop scent he associated with his shixiong. Liu Qingge nearly moaned. This was a smell he only caught whiffs of when he walked past Shen Qingqiu, when he was invited into the bamboo house, when he collected Shen Qingqiu’s lost fans and hoarded them for just a little bit until he was ready to give them back, one at a time in some lame excuse to see him more frequently.

And now he was enveloped in this calming fragrance with Shen Qingqiu’s fingers holding him securely in the inside of his warm sleeve.

“Are you ready, shidi?”

No, was Liu Qingge’s initial reaction. A selfish, greedy part of him wanted to stay here in the safety of Shen Qingqiu’s robes, surrounded by this aroma that caused his stomach to swoop. A side effect of the shrinking, perhaps.

But he grunted a confirmation.

Shen Qingqiu started to move, and Liu Qingge had the odd feeling like he was clinging onto a giant; those normal steps swaying and rocking exaggeratedly in his smaller size.

He heard his door slide open and the shouts and cries of fighting disciples on Bai Zhan Peak.

Shen Qingqiu walked slowly, closer to the sounds of wooden and metal swords clashing. Where is he going?

The man coughed politely before he spoke. “Excuse me everyone.”

Maybe because of Liu Qingge’s teachings (could he consider what he did for work as actual teaching?), maybe because of respect (unlikely), or just curiosity alone, Liu Qingge’s disciples ceased their fighting to listen. It wasn’t every day they were addressed by the Qing Jing Peak Lord after all, unless it was to admonish them for their childlike behaviour. Liu Qingge would argue that Shen Qingqiu’s disciples were no better.

“Your shizun is currently—”

Currently what?? Was he going to make Liu Qingge lose what little face he had left? He pinched the meat of Shen Qingqiu’s hand as hard as he could.

“Ah—currently very busy and away on urgent business.”

Oh. That wasn’t so bad.

“He’s instructed me to tell you to continue your…training until he returns.”

“When will shizun be back?” One unruly disciple called out. Liu Qingge had half the mind to stomp out from Shen Qingqiu’s sleeve and tell the brat to have some goddamn respect. Shen Qingqiu may not have been their shizun, but he was a person in power, nonetheless.

Shen Qingqiu heaved a delicate sigh. “It is unknown. Your shizun will return when he is ready. This master will update you when he can.”

More grumbling from the disciples. “Why can’t he just tell us?”

Why can’t they just suck it up?!

“Because,” Shen Qingqiu’s voice became curt, authoritative. He obviously wasn’t going to take any more fussing from Liu Qingge’s little brats. “This is what your shizun instructed. Be good disciples and respect his wishes.”

They couldn’t argue with that. Even children could understand that Shen Qingqiu really meant ‘mind your own goddamn business and shut the fuck up’.

The clashing of blades continued as Shen Qingqiu walked away. He used his qinggong to shoot up into the air in bounding leaps.

Qinggong didn’t scare Liu Qingge, he himself had a solid foundation, but the realization that one tumble from Shen Qingqiu’s palm would mean he’d hurtle, defenceless, to the unforgiving ground had him clutching onto Shen Qingqiu’s fingers.

Some jumps away, Shen Qingqiu caught his breath. They must have been somewhere in the forest between the peaks. “Your disciples are…” He trailed off, not finding anything nice to say.

Liu Qingge hmphed. That sounded like a direct blow against his methods. “They’re fine.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

He hmphed again. His silence said everything. “Are we at Qian Cao Peak yet?”

“No.”

“Could we hurry it up?”

Shen Qingqiu chuckled. “If shidi insists.” He took off again, fingers tightening around Liu Qingge’s body. The pad of his finger pressed against the side of his throat. So easily could Shen Qingqiu crush him if he desired.

With Shen Qingqiu’s abilities, they made it to Qian Cao Peak in record time. Shen Qingqiu must have rushed for Liu Qingge’s sake, an act he begrudgingly appreciated.

The peak was relatively calm. The disciples had similar behaviours to Mu Qingfang. The passing conversations Liu Qingge heard were scholarly and unhurried, a stark contrast to the bets and taunts Liu Qingge so often heard on his own training grounds.

They arrived at Mu Qingfang’s residence, Shen Qingqiu drawing his tucked hand out just enough to knock on the door.

Mu Qingfang opened it immediately. “Shen-shixiong,” he sounded surprised. “Is everything alright?”

“Yes, Mu-shidi, this one simply has…a medical question.” He was quick to add, “a hypothetical medical question."

"Of course, come on inside."

Mu Qingfang’s residence smelled somewhat clinical, a fitting scent for his profession. It made Liu Qingge’s nose itch and was reminded of all his painful injuries that he’d rather forget.

“I trust Shen-shixiong is doing well?” There was some rustling as Mu Qingfang sat at his table. Shifting as Shen Qingqiu mirrored him.

Shen Qingqiu hummed in confirmation. “And Mu-shidi?”

Mu Qingfang’s voice was warm and calm. “Yes, this one is fortunate that there are few injuries to tend to.”

Enough with the niceties already!

“How can this shidi help shixiong?”

Thank the gods!

Shen Qingqiu hesitated, seeming to choose the right words. “Say someone has suffered qi deviation and hypothetically shrunk. How would one restore them to their original size?”

Mu Qingfang paused as well. “May shixiong be more specific? Did this person hypothetically shrink in size or in age?” As expected, he caught on quickly. Mu Qingfang was quick to realize that this situation wasn’t truly hypothetical after all. As long as he didn’t connect the pieces and discover it was Liu Qingge who had shrunk, he’d be fine.

“In size,” Shen Qingqiu explained, “around…10 inches in height? There appear to be no other problems besides the size and the absence of qi.” His delivery was awkward, too late for his addition to be natural. “Hypothetically.”

Liu Qingge cringed. He just wanted to die.

But Mu Qingfang continued, blessedly neutral. He was a professional, after all. “Hm. It would be awkward, but, hypothetically—”

That word was starting to lose its meaning.

“—dual cultivation is always the easiest and most effective way to alleviate qi deviation of any kind.”

Both Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge stiffened.

D-dual cultivation?? Who the fuck was Liu Qingge supposed to fuck when he was 10 inches tall!?

There was a sharp crack of Shen Qingqiu’s fan being drawn. Liu Qingge hadn’t even noticed it’d been extracted from his sleeve. “Is, ahem, dual cultivation the only method?”

The use of the fan didn’t go unnoticed by Mu Qingfang, but he wisely made no comment. “I would think so. This one would need to conduct further research, but as Shen-shixiong has mentioned, hypothetical medical questions are not this one’s utmost priority. It may take some time.”

Some time? Liu Qingge didn’t have time! Mu Qingfang was always frolicking to and fro to assist in villages or bandage up Liu Qingge’s bruised disciples! Who knew how long it would take for him to pore over various scrolls of his specific condition!?

“Of course. This shixiong understands. Do let me know if you end up finding something.”

No! This is urgent, Shen Qignqiu!

But Shen Qingqiu was already saying goodbye to Mu Qingfang and heading out the door.

Some distance away, Liu Qingge realized he should make some comment about the verdict, but was rendered speechless.

Shen Qingqiu took the initiative. Without being able to see his face, Liu Qingge could only guess what he was feeling. “Shidi, I’m sure there’s another way.”

“There better be!” Liu Qingge wasn’t going to wait for two months for Mu Qingfang to find the time to research an alternative.

“There’s one more person I want to check in with.” Shen Qingqiu unsheathed Xiu Ya and leapt on top, giving Liu Qingge no time to prepare himself.

Before he could adapt, Shen Qingqiu’s trembling fingers tightened around him minutely, securing him in his palm. Though they were flying through the air, mountain mist ruffling Shen Qingqiu’s robes, Liu Qingge felt warm, no, burning hot while being embraced.

Maybe being small wasn’t so bad if it meant Shen Qingqiu could hold him without reservations.

…

What a stupid thought!

“Who are you going to see?” He shouted over the whipping wind.

“Shang Qinghua,” Shen Qingqiu responded.

Shang Qinghua? What would that weasel know?

But they were already landing at An Ding Peak. The atmosphere was a complete 180 from Mu Qingfang’s Qian Cao, where disciples were having frantic, panicked conversations about orders and shipments and god knows what else. If the concept of anxiety could be tangible, it would be An Ding.

Shen Qingqiu barged right into Shang Qinghua’s office without knocking. “He wouldn’t hear me otherwise,” Shen Qingqiu muttered lowly in explanation. “That buffoon is always knee deep in paperwork.”

It was true. Liu Qingge had never seen the man without fifteen scrolls tucked under each arm, tripping over his robes and verbalizing some directionless thoughts under his breath.

“Shang Qinghua.” Shen Qingqiu must have stomped right up to Shang Qinghua’s desk. Liu Qingge could hear agitated scribbling from a scratchy quill pen.

“Ah, I’m a little busy right now, could you come back—” A sharp intake of breath. “Aha! Cucumber-bro! What a surprise! What a delight! Visiting right when I’m at my busiest! What convenience! Of course, waltz right in—”

“I have a question. It’s urgent.” Shen Qingqiu was unusually blunt. After his relaxed tones with Mu Qingfang, he talked to Shang Qinghua like they were one word away from a catfight.

There must have been something in Shen Qingqiu’s expression, because Shang Qinghua was fumbling, pushing papers off his desk and moving to boil a pot of water for tea.

“Tea, Cucumber-bro? Ah, actually, I don’t have any water, let me go grab some—but wait, I can get a disciple to—hold on, I’ll just be a minute—wait, while I’m there, what kind of tea do you want? Oh, hold on, I don’t know what we have—I personally prefer green tea because of the caffeine but—that’s right, I should put another order in, let me write that down—god, I would kill for an energy drink—”

“I don’t need tea, Shang Qinghua.” While Shang Qinghua scurried around like a chicken with its head cut off, Shen Qingqiu made himself comfortable at the low table. He brushed some papers with the edge of his sleeve so they fluttered to the floor.

Shang Qinghua squeaked. “Hey—! Those are very carefully organized—”

Liu Qingge doubted it.

Seeing as there were no other options, Shang Qinghua finally sat down on his cushion. Even sitting, the man was always twitching, shuffling papers into piles, tying them with string. “How can I help you, bro?”

Shen Qingqiu decided on a similar method he had used with Mu Qingfang. “Let’s pretend someone has hypothetically grown smaller to around 10 inches in size. How would they get restored to their original height?”

Unfortunately for them, Shang Qinghua had nowhere near as much tact. He howled with laughter. “Who got themselves fucking shrunk?” If he knew it was Liu Qingge, chances were high he wouldn’t be laughing so hard. Each gasp for breath followed by more guffaws was a sharp knife in Liu Qingge’s dignity.

“I suggest Great Master Airplane zip it unless he wants this one’s fist in his face.” Shen Qingqiu spat through gritted teeth.

Liu Qingge didn’t recognize those strange words Shen Qingqiu had used, but his chest grew foolishly warm at the protection of his reputation.

Shang Qinghua squeaked out a few more laughs before calming down somewhat. “Okay, okay, I’ll stop.” He was all business after that. “How did this person get shrunk?”

“Qi deviation.”

“Well, no shit, Sherlock. Did they encounter any plant or creature?”

Liu Qingge frowned. Since when were Shen Qingqiu and Shang Qinghua so close? How were they this informal? Was it a result of their strained relationship? Or was it all an act?

“Uh,” Shen Qingqiu stuttered. Liu Qingge hadn’t told him about the spiders. “Just in general.”

More rustling of papers. “Hm. In the original works there were a few different methods of shrinking. There was the Lessened-Scent Multicolour Petal, the Waterfall of Changed Appearances, the Shrunken Wax-Skinned Succubi—”

A few methods indeed! The man didn’t shut up!

“—the Purple Poisoned Bullhorn-Bullfrog, the Qi-Siphoning Scarlet Sidekick Scorpion-tailed Spiders—”

Spiders! That sounded right! Liu Qingge kicked Shen Qingqiu’s finger.

“The,” Shen Qingqiu coughed, “the spiders sound kinda right.” Then, quieter, “that’s a stupid-ass name.”

Liu Qingge couldn’t help but agree. Not that he could think of anything better.

Shang Qinghua started to laugh again, wheezing, in fact. “The spiders? What else would be the solution? The shrunken person has gotta get fucked.”

Liu Qingge’s ears rung. What he wouldn’t give to unhear that sentence! The implication wasn’t lost on him. Mu Qingfang said dual cultivation in general, but Shang Qinghua said that he had to get fucked. H-how could a man even—!

Shen Qingqiu’s fingers tightened. “Dual cultivation is the only way? There’s no plant or potion or anything?”

Shang Qinghua was bordering hysterical with the way he pounded the table with his fist. “God, I would hate to be that sucker!”

While Shang Qinghua laughed, Liu Qingge was fuming, steaming up Shen Qingqiu’s sleeve with the redness of his face alone. He was already planning a way to send a nicely wrapped box of those very spiders to Shang Qinghua’s house.

“Answer me, Airplane.”

“Did you read the story I wrote?” Shang Qinghua was still laughing. “The answer is always dual cultivation! There’d be no plot without it!”

What did this sleazeball mean with his talk of stories and plot? Liu Qingge felt as if he were missing important context for this conversation.

Liu Qingge was jostled as Shen Qingqiu abruptly stood from his place on the floor. “You’ve been very helpful,” he said sarcastically. He excused himself, leaving a hooting and hollering An Ding Peak Lord inside.

“Thanks, bro!” The pair heard just before Shen Qingqiu slammed the door shut. “This is the best entertainment I’ve had all month!”

The journey back from An Ding Peak, Liu Qingge had nothing to say. His brain rifled through all the possibilities. In the end, dual cultivation rang through his head over and over and over again.

Above him, Shen Qingqiu muttered numerous profanities under his breath, words so unrecognizable and creative that Liu Qingge was almost distracted by the foreignness of them.

Lost in hopelessness, Liu Qingge didn’t even recognize when they arrived at the bamboo house.

Shen Qingqiu briskly swished inside, carefully depositing Liu Qingge on his mattress (which smelled like him, gods) before settling in at his desk. He opened the drawer and fished out a hefty book that Liu Qingge vaguely recognized as an encyclopedia of botany. Often when he would come in for his frequent meetings over tea would he find Shen Qingqiu’s nose nearly pressed to the crisp pages before he, with reluctance, would close the book shut and return it to its rightful place.

Liu Qingge didn’t see what all the fuss was about with books and literature, but it was frustratingly endearing seeing Shen Qingqiu nerd out about his plants and monsters when he got the chance.

Liu Qingge began to pace on the bed. His feet sunk into the mattress, but only barely. “Shen Qingqiu…” He hated how weak and pathetic his voice sounded.

“There’s gotta be something…” Shen Qingqiu flipped rapidly between the pages.

Yes, he was probably right. There did have to be something.

While Shen Qingqiu flipped, Liu Qingge sat neatly on his bed, surveying the room. It was in pristine condition, everything placed neatly where it should be. Liu Qingge guessed this more Shen Qingqiu’s disciples’ work than his own.

Propped up against Shen Qingqiu’s desk was a familiar friend. Cheng Luan sat, blade pointing up towards the sky, resting on his hilt. It was dangerous. If Shen Qingqiu knocked it askew, it could give him an injury.

The sheath, shrunken along with Liu Qingge, still sat on his hip. He instantly craved that comforting weight. As contradictory as it was, he felt off-balance when Cheng Luan wasn’t on his person.

Liu Qingge wore a track in Shen Qingqiu’s mattress while the man’s posture got progressively worse the more he read and flipped pages. His fingers ran through his hair until it hung in messy strands around his face.

“Shidi…” Shen Qingqiu sighed. The sun had begun to set, and lost in his trance, Shen Qingqiu forgot to light the lanterns along his walls and the candles lining his table. He waved his hand, casting the room in a warm glow. “I think…we have to…” He didn’t finish his sentence. Liu Qingge didn’t want him to.

Deep down, Liu Qingge knew his search was fruitless, but an icy spike of anxiety still pierced his chest all the same. Conflicting emotions roiled inside him like the clashing swords of enemies. He yearned to be close to Shen Qingqiu. All his loyalty was devoted to him. But the concept of revealing himself in front of him was a shame too great to bear.

“I’ll wait until it passes.” He grit his teeth.

Shen Qingqiu abandoned the desk to sit beside Liu Qingge on the mattress. The intimacy of being so near in a place where Shen Qingqiu lay, stripped of his outer robes caused goosebumps to trail up the backs of his arms.

“Qi deviation can be fatal. It’s not wise to wait it out.”

Couldn’t he spare him some dignity? “Why does it matter so much to you?”

“It was almost,” Shen Qingqiu cleared his throat, pink dusting his cheeks, “a little humourous at first.”

“Humourous?”

Shen Qingqiu rolled his eyes. “Okay, calm down, not like that, but just seeing the Bai Zhan War God in such a compromising position…I wanted to…protect you.”

Liu Qingge scoffed. He didn’t need protecting. But he thought of the warmth of Shen Qingqiu’s hand embracing him, the way he practically ripped the pages from his most treasured botany book in search of something to help his shidi. “Hmph.” What else could the brutish man say besides hmph?

There was a lilt at the end of Shen Qingqiu’s sentence that made Liu Qingge feel like there was more to be said. He waited for a moment, but Shen Qingqiu didn’t elaborate.

“Ahem, but I didn’t think this would be the…solution.”

Everything was hopeless.

“Your shixiong appreciates Liu-shidi’s—ahem—allyship. It would be unfortunate if this qi deviation caused more serious injuries than…the shrinking.”

Allyship was a confusing word. For someone like Liu Qingge, he couldn’t understand the nuance of such a word and didn’t quite know what Shen Qingqiu meant by that. He didn’t say friendship. He didn’t say partnership. So did that mean it was neither of those things?

They were, after all, just martial brothers. Allyship was probably the best word to describe their situation. Fellow peak lords. Occasional teammates on the battlefield.

“You know, it’s completely natural.” The last syllable squeaked upwards. Liu Qingge knew that Shen Qingqiu was saying that to try and be comforting, but it just made everything feel all the more awkward. “We’re just bros, after all.”

The fact they were martial brothers was true, however, Liu Qingge couldn’t help but frown at the implication. Just bros. Thinking it in his head was one thing, hearing it from Shen Qingqiu’s mouth directly was another.

While this was one step, no, one leaping bound closer to the realm of…friendship Liu Qingge wanted with Shen Qingqiu, it was still extremely uncomfortable.

Which was worse: staying shrunken for an indeterminate amount of time, or getting fucked by your best friend?

Liu Qingge unfastened the belt around his waist. “Let’s just get this idiocy over with.”

Shen Qingqiu’s mouth opened and closed rapidly, like a fish. What was this shock for when he was the one who suggested it in the first place?

In silence, Liu Qingge had made it as far as his inner robes. When he peeled them off his shoulders, he realized his hands were trembling faintly. He gathered the robes at his waist, too shy to drop them.

Stripping when the other party was still fully dressed was really too much! He spat out the first words he could think of. “Why aren’t you—”

“I don’t have to!” Shen Qingqiu sputtered.

His retort was frustratingly sound. “So you’re just going to watch?”

He huffed. “There’s a dual aspect to dual cultivation, shidi. This one must.” Shen Qingqiu swallowed thickly when he looked at the small man in front of him. “In fact,” he reached down and whipped Liu Qingge right into his palm! “I think it will be a little easier this way.”

The pads of Shen Qingqiu’s fingers on Liu Qingge’s shoulder blades had him squirming at the sudden warmth. The skin-on-skin contact…even a brush of fingers when Liu Qingge returned one of Shen Qingqiu’s fans made him break into a sweat!

“E-easier? What nonsense!” What good would this do?

Shen Qingqiu’s free hand tightened around his closed fan, but he didn’t open it. If he did, one flap probably would have sent Liu Qingge tumbling. Shen Qingqiu’s thin face twitched. He didn’t know where to look; one second his sharp eyes were meeting Liu Qingge’s, the next they were lingering on the bare skin of his hips, only partially covered by his remaining robes, and after that they looked towards the door for an escape. “Didn’t you say you wanted to get this over with? Just do it, already.”

Liu Qingge was too nervous to get erect. This was Shen Qingqiu he was half naked in front of. He couldn’t just whip out his member and start going at it!

“Chop chop.” Shen Qingqiu had dropped the fan onto the mattress during Liu Qingge's moment of panic. His finger came to poke at Liu Qingge’s abdomen, nail hooking into the waistband of his pants.

While Liu Qingge didn’t possibly know how he was going to manage to ejaculate before, with Shen Qignqiu’s tugging at his inner robes and his warm skin on Liu Qingge’s taut stomach, his lower half became interested.

Just like that! One touch from Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge grew hot and heavy? How pathetic was he!?

Shen Qingqiu was relatively chaste in his countenance, and had been such since Liu Qingge had met him. So who was this stranger yanking his pants down his thighs and tossing them to the other end of the bed?

“It’s okay, Liu-shidi,” Shen Qingqiu whispered, practically gasped. Liu Qingge covered himself with his splayed hands, face flushing a violent red. “You look very…” he swallowed thickly. “…Very pretty.”

Pretty was reserved for women. Liu Qingge was a War God, he wasn’t pretty.

Regardless, his lashes quivered at the compliment. Liu Qingge didn’t get bashful; he got angry and mad and vicious and snarky. Shen Qingqiu’s one adjective, however, made a warm, gentle wave crash over his body. His fingertips tingled with the praise and the object of Shen Qingqiu’s words.

Right. Shen Qingqiu was probably doing this and saying these things to help him along. Of course.

Settling back into Shen Qingqiu’s palm, the hand covering Liu Qingge’s half-hard length brushed against it. A choked gasp wriggled its way out of his throat. How was he so sensitive already? Was it because he had an audience?

Shen Qingqiu seemed to mirror him, his soft lips going slack at the embarrassing noise.

This is absurd…Liu Qingge thought, the knuckles of his shaking hand skimming his dick again. On purpose? On accident? He didn’t dare let Shen Qingqiu see it, but it was hard to hide it effectively while his shixiong stared down at him and as he continued to totally on accident touch his hardening pillar.

Some kind of switch had flipped in Shen Qingqiu. That awkwardness and hesitancy was still present, for sure, but his half-lidded eyes carried a hunger for something Liu Qingge had never witnessed.

It scared him. It aroused him.

“S-stop looking at me.”

Remembering himself, Shen Qingqiu jerked his head away so fast something in his neck popped. He winced, but worried his bottom lip between his teeth and stared at the ceiling.

This was helpful for two reasons. With Shen Qingqiu looking away, Liu Qingge could smear the small amount of pre cum beading at the tip of his cock along his length with fewer inhibitions. With Shen Qingqiu looking away, Liu Qingge could also admire that sharp line of his proud jaw, the earlobe that appeared so soft and sensitive, the elegant slope of his neck, the swoop of his nose, the fluttering of his eyelashes as he tried desperately to not look at Liu Qingge defiling himself on his hand.

The list went on and on. With each observation, Liu Qingge’s hand moved faster up and down his cock.

Shen Qingqiu…truly was otherworldly. Liu Qingge’s whole body was held in his soft palm as he stroked himself, shamelessly examining that face.

What would it feel like if he held it in his hands? If, when at Liu Qingge’s original size, he stood over him, cupping Shen Qingqiu’s cheeks in his grasp, would he shyly look up through his lashes? Would Shen Qingqiu lean into his touch and say his name? Would those lips part under Liu Qingge’s thumb? How would his wet, warm tongue feel against his body in the throes of passion?

Liu Qingge groaned.

Shen Qingqiu’s gaze locked onto Liu Qingge. It was sharp and dark, eerily similar to the way a predator eyed its prey before pouncing and sinking its teeth into the vulnerable creature’s throat.

And how vulnerable Liu Qingge felt!

It wasn’t often he was in the position of the prey; he was always the predator, the strongest of the group with the sharpest claws. If he wasn’t the black leopard with tensed muscles waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike, he forced himself to be by scratching his way to the top of the food chain.

Here, however, he was a shivering rabbit caught in the trap of Shen Qingqiu’s piercing stare. Nowhere to go, nothing to do but continue to work his length until his chest began to heave.

Shen Qingqiu’s face was incredibly thin, but the rosy blush on his cheeks only added to his allure. That, paired with the moistness of his parted lips and the warm breath that ghosted over Liu Qingge’s naked skin had him gnawing on his bottom lip between his teeth as he fisted his cock.

He felt so exposed.

Shen Qingqiu stared down at him in his palm, critical eyes locked to his every twitch and shudder. And to make matters worse, that gaze only encouraged his arousal to throb and drip onto his tense abdomen. His movements became slick, uneven.

While he grew hot under Shen Qingqiu’s eyes, his release seemed to evade him.

“Shidi,” Shen Qingqiu breathed, voice hoarse and tight.

Liu Qingge looked up from his fist to lock eyes with his sworn enemy. That he hated. A lot. His forearm grew tired from the constant pumping, but he didn’t dare stop. “What?” He asked, intending to snap it out, to show his obvious discomfort with the whole situation, but instead it came out more as a desperate gasp. The back of his neck burned.

“Do you need this shixiong to help you?”

No, please no! His rational brain was still thinking, but in a typical Liu Qingge fashion, he thought with his body first. His chin quivered and dipped once in a nod.

Before he could take back his words, Shen Qingqiu’s fingers were hovering over his tight body. “Let me,” he whispered, batting Liu Qingge’s hand away from his aching length with two fingers.

As much as Liu Qingge wanted this whole thing to be finished already, he couldn’t stop the stuttering groan that slipped past his open mouth when the pad of Shen Qingqiu’s finger pressed against his chest.

It was so big. If Shen Qingqiu wanted, he could grab him in his fist and squeeze him like a doll until he was crushed into nothing but bone dust and guts.

But that delicate index finger dragged down to one of Liu Qingge’s exposed nipples, rubbing it in slow circles.

“Hnngh--!” While his body leaned into the touch, Liu Qingge’s mind was fried. Distantly, he knew he should be embarrassed to be treated like this, to have Shen Qingqiu’s teasing fingers brushing over him, but when the Peak Lord’s middle finger went to rub against the other pink bud on his chest, he couldn’t form the words to refuse.

The dual sensations had his thighs trembling. Thank god he was sitting in Shen Qingqiu’s palm, or else he would have collapsed to the ground already.

Every hair on his body stood on end. He was a taut string waiting to snap by Shen Qingqiu’s deft fingers. But while that skin was rubbed and tweaked raw by Shen Qingqiu, Liu Qingge had the sudden urge to beg him to touch elsewhere.

His chest was now overly sensitive, and when he tried to squirm away from the drag of the tips of Shen Qingqiu’s fingers, the digits around him tightened minutely. Liu Qingge couldn’t register if Shen Qingqiu did that on purpose or on accident.

A little, tiny part of him hoped it was the former.

His filthiest desires were confirmed. “Stay still, shidi.”

Liu Qingge allowed himself to be manhandled. Never in his life had someone taken control of him so easily and that was by design. Liu Qingge was strong and untouchable; he distanced himself from everything and everyone. If no one knew he had emotions and feelings like the rest of them, then he couldn’t get hurt.

Who knew what Shen Qingqiu was thinking? He had finally gotten his hands on the elusive Liu Qingge; the Liu Qingge who was unaffected by succubi and who had never looked at a woman for more than four seconds.

And now he was here in Shen Qingqiu’s palms, worked into a shivery mess, tears settling like dewdrops on the ends of his eyelashes.

His cock bobbed and ached. Liu Qingge hadn’t much experience with self-pleasure, or any pleasure for that matter, but he recognized he was close.

“Shen Qingqiu,” he found himself panting. It was only a name, but from his breathless voice it sounded erotic and charged, like he was nothing more than a whorehouse bitch begging to be fucked.

“Does shidi want me to touch here?” When Shen Qingqiu’s fingertips left Liu Qingge’s reddened buds, his spine arched. Before he had time to recover from the loss, the back of Shen Qingqiu’s fingernail scraped lightly up the underside of his dripping cock. It was a ghost of a touch, but any harder would have snapped Liu Qingge’s dick in half.

Too much! Too much! If Shen Qingqiu kept that up, he’d—he’d—!

The soft pad of a finger circled the flared head of Liu Qingge’s cock and then he was gone.

The embarrassment of his exposure washed away with the thick pulses of his dick spurting ropes of white onto his stomach. Verbal protests morphed into choked-off moans with endless wave after wave of euphoria.

And Shen Qingqiu was right there, guiding him through it with his own shaky breaths. Through the ringing in his ears, Liu Qingge could barely make out a gentle “there we go, shidi,” before his dick gave one more pathetic squirt of cum.

Of all the times on one hand Liu Qingge could count that he’d pleasured himself, this was definitely the most satisfactory, though he would never admit it. His head spun while his eyes wobbled, unseeing. All he knew was the warmth of the skin beneath his body and the residual tremors of his limbs.

A moment passed. Then a few more. And more after that.

“Liu-shidi?” Shen Qingqiu asked. His voice was unlike anything Liu Qingge had heard before from him. Not embarrassed, not calm and collected, but borderline desperate. He didn’t know what it meant. “Are you okay?”

Liu Qingge grit his teeth. “Fine.” He peered down at his body, splayed across Shen Qingqiu’s palm.

Across Shen Qingqiu’s palm.

“Why am I not my regular size?” He cried. All that embarrassment for nothing? Exposing himself like a slut just to remain the same?

“Maybe it takes some time?” Shen Qingqiu suggested.

They waited until the come had dried on Liu Qingge’s chest.

Still nothing!? All that and I’m still not back to normal? Liu Qingge shot a desperate glance to Shen Qingqiu.

His face was equally pale, lips drawn tight together. They both hadn’t managed to think this far in case things didn’t work.

“I mean,” Shen Qingqiu started, hesitant and wary. He snapped open his fan in a final attempt to disguise the pink on the tips of his ears, but it was ineffective. Liu Qingge knew that excuse too well. “The texts did say dual cultivation…”

The meaning wasn’t lost on Liu Qingge.

His blood began to boil with the implication. “HOW ARE YOU GOING TO FIT THAT—”

“No!” Shen Qingqiu sputtered, whisking his fan closed and flapping his free hand around like a lunatic. “Not like,” he coughed into his fist, “like that.”

Now Liu Qingge was confused. To be fair he didn’t want Shen Qingqiu’s—he couldn’t bear to think of it—pillar anywhere near him, but what other option was there?

“I just,” another cough, “do what you did.”

How would that help? But before he could stop it, images of Shen Qingqiu’s eyes glassy with pleasure as his hand wrapped around his length invaded his brain. Would he bite his lip to stifle his moans, or would he wantonly cry up at the ceiling?

Liu Qingge, in a horrifying moment, realized he wanted to see it.

“Maybe if I…” Shen Qingqiu trailed off, gaze lingering on the dried residue of Liu Qingge’s release.

Every inch of Liu Qingge’s naked body flushed as red as wedding robes peeled off a lover. “I would rather die.” He spat.

“Do you want to stay small forever? Believe me,” Shen Qingqiu grumbled, “I don’t like this either.”

Foolishly, Liu Qingge’s heart seized. He immediately chastised himself for being such a fucking creep, lusting after the Qing Jing Peak Lord.

But this was their only option. He’d already lost enough face in front of Shen Qingqiu, he wouldn’t dare repeat the process with someone else. Even the thought of Mu Qingfang helping him for purely medical purposes left goosebumps skating up the backs of his arms.

“Fine. But at least put me down first.” If he stayed any longer in Shen Qingqiu’s palm, he wouldn’t be able to hide his very normal and natural reaction.

Shen Qingqiu agreed and placed him gently on his bed. It was neatly made, the uniform fibres of the tucked blanket all the more visible when Liu Qingge was so close to it. He sat down, crossing his arms and folding his legs as best he could to expose the least amount of skin. His robes were discarded at the other end of the bed, but he was too humiliated to retrieve them now.

Not with Shen Qingqiu hesitantly removing his own outer robe and folding it neatly beside him. He didn’t undress himself completely, he had the luxury of that, but he loosened his inner robe until Liu Qingge could see his pale pink nipples and sharp collarbones. His mouth filled with saliva.

If only he were full-sized…

Shen Qingqiu reached inside his pants to grab and release his member from its confines.

Liu Qingge was dumbstruck. “Why are you—”

“Don’t ask questions.” Shen Qingqiu hissed. “Anyone would react this way in this kind of situation.”

Liu Qingge understood what he meant, but then thought about other times he had walked past brothels, had heard other Peak Lords talk about their conquests. He had never reacted like that. His body had never gotten so hard his member was bright red and dripping like Shen Qingqiu’s was. Maybe he was just built different that way. Liu Qingge didn’t allow himself to believe that the rock-hard pillar was because of himself.

Shen Qingqiu released a breathy sigh when his hand closed around his dick. He stroked it gently, eyes fluttering closed at the sensations.

He was art.

Liu Qingge watched, enthralled, at the way Shen Qingqiu’s chest rose and fell with shallow pants, the way the palm of his hand, the one that had been holding Liu Qingge, became slick with precome. He wondered what it would taste like on his tongue.

Inhibitions lost; Shen Qingqiu groaned. “Qingge…”

A bolt of lightning shot through Liu Qingge’s spine. The sound of blood rushed through his ears as he watched Shen Qingqiu’s hips begin to twitch and buck into his hand.

“C-come here, shidi,” The Qing Jing Peak Lord gasped. When their eyes locked, Liu Qingge feared he would come on the spot.

Shen Qingqiu’s face was pure eroticism. Foggy eyes half-lidded, slack lips moist from his pink tongue and red from being bitten. His bare chest, now exposed as his robe slid defeatedly down his shoulders, trembled with his unstable breaths. The throbbing cock in his hand began to bob and twitch with each jerk.

Liu Qingge started to approach—I don’t have much of a choice, he tried to reason with himself—but before he could make it more than a few steps on the bed, Shen Qingqiu flipped to balance on his knees and free hand, hovering over Liu Qingge’s small body. “L-lie down,” he choked out as he continued to fuck his fist with increased fervour.

What else could Liu Qingge do but obey? He wanted to initially protest against the demand; you couldn’t just demand Liu Qingge to do anything, but he was already leaning back on his elbows and staring head-on at the dick that was about to release all over him.

He had half a mind to be disgusted at what was about to happen. The other half, the indulgent half, eagerly anticipated that wave of warm cum about to wash over him.

Shen Qingqiu stuttered out a moan. When Liu Qingge tilted his chin up to look at Shen Qingqiu’s face hovering over him, he sure was glad he did.

Shen Qingqiu’s robe curved around his body, drawing like curtains to protect Liu Qingge from the outside world. In this darkened space, he felt, dare he say, safe.

“Q-Qingge,” the man above him groaned a final time, and then Liu Qingge mentally prepared.

He should have mentally prepared sooner.

Liu Qingge wasn’t ready for the searing heat of Shen Qingqiu’s orgasm hitting him.

Realistically, biologically, scientifically, men didn’t ejaculate that much.

But Liu Qingge, in his reduced size, was instantly drenched in Shen Qingqiu’s well-aimed sperm. The stickiness covered his entire chest, trickling down his torso and pooling from his hips to the insides of his thighs. He shivered contradictorily, chest heaving, as it coated his slowly-hardening cock.

Shen Qingqiu flopped onto his back beside Liu Qingge’s defiled body, crashing so hard that the Bai Zhan War God got a few inches of air from the mattress recoil.

They both gasped for breath.

Liu Qingge waited for the inevitable poof of magic that restored his body.

It never came.

Shen Qingqiu rolled onto his side, propping up his chin on the heel of his hand. “Maybe…inside?”

What did he mean inside? Liu Qingge wanted to detonate himself and take the whole peak with him. Surely, he wasn’t thinking—

But he was grabbed and settled back into Shen Qingqiu’s hand. Without qi and significantly smaller than usual, he could do nothing but squirm and push at those fingers that tightened around him.

Shen Qingqiu’s eyes had gone distant as he continued. Was he disassociating or was he into this shameless perversion!? “Not me, of course, but just…” He parted Liu Qingge’s legs with an easy spread of his fingers before tapping his thin pinky to the space between Liu Qingge’s cheeks. “…like this.”

A yelp tore out of Liu Qingge’s throat. “You’re deranged!” His legs thrashed, but any kick he landed was ineffective.

“If I use my come…” Shen Qingqiu removed his hand to swipe his fingers through the remaining release on his stomach that didn’t land on Liu Qingge. “And put it here, it’d make it easier.” Left defenceless, Liu Qingge could only watch as Shen Qingqiu smeared his come around that tight, puckered hole.

Liu Qingge continued his squirming, but the insistent touches to somewhere so intimate had his traitorous dick standing in interest.

“Have you ever taken it here?” Shen Qingqiu continued his circular rubbing. He was distantly reminded of the way Shen Qingqiu traced the rim of his cup of tea earlier that morning.

Thighs and calves twitching, Liu Qingge stuttered out, “N-no, of course not!”

Shen Qingqiu didn’t seem like himself; he was solely focused on Liu Qingge’s lower half. His usual thin face had melted away to candid lust. That look in his eyes promised a torture Liu Qingge didn’t know how to prepare for.

As the War God, Liu Qingge had endured many hardships. But while Shen Qingqiu’s pinky finger was thin and delicate, it was still a significant size for Liu Qingge’s virgin hole. It wouldn’t be easy to wiggle it in, and Liu Qingge wasn’t betting on it feeling very good either.

“It’ll be a stretch,” Shen Qingqiu muttered, almost to himself.

No shit!

Shen Qingqiu applied some pressure to that sensitive spot.

“You can’t! You can’t!” Liu Qingge had witnessed and experienced horrors on the battlefield, had bid farewell to loyal comrades and trained many a successful warrior. His years of gruesome demon battles and beatings from his shizun hadn’t prepared him for getting fucked in the ass.

“It’s for your own good, shidi.”

Liu Qingge hated the words, but it was the truth. If he wanted to get back to normal, he’d have to spread his pale, muscular legs for Shen Qingqiu.

Burying his red face in his arms, Liu Qingge tried his best to relax.

Above him, Shen Qingqiu’s breath hitched in his throat. “Good.”

It was one word, but Liu Qingge’s dick still bobbed at the praise. He grumbled incomprehensible words into his skin.

“Does shidi want to prepare himself?”

Prepare myself!? I’d rather fuck myself with Cheng Luan! “Just get it over with.”

Shen Qingqiu tutted. “It’s probably best if you stretch yourself out a little. You could bleed.”

What was a little blood? Nothing Liu Qingge hadn’t handled before! “Why can’t you do it?” He grumbled, but it was pointless. At this size, Shen Qingqiu’s fingers were the length and girth of a well-endowed man. He couldn’t possibly prepare Liu Qingge for his fingers without using them.

“Don’t be childish, you know why I can’t.”

Liu Qingge oddly found himself a little wounded at Shen Qingqiu’s words. He didn’t want to be childish; he was a grown adult! “Fine,” he spat.

His hand moved between his legs in an act of pure defiance and spite. He would prove to Shen Qingqiu that he could take it. He wasn’t a coward. He bypassed his aching cock and shoved Shen Qingqiu’s probing finger aside.

Before he could think about what he was doing, his body, as usual, acted on its own. His index finger thrust inside before he could stop himself.

The excess come from Shen Qingqiu’s release aided in alleviating the sting, but it was still definitely an intrusion. Liu Qingge’s body tightened reflexively, trying to squeeze the invader out. His mouth fell slack in shock. How could his own finger feel so big? How in the three realms could he possibly take Shen Qingqiu’s pinky?

“Move it around, shidi,” Shen Qingqiu instructed. The palm underneath Liu Qingge’s body was warm and solid; grounding him and encouraging him to continue.

Liu Qingge could only obey. He bent his finger into a mean crook, biting his tongue until he tasted iron flooding his mouth. How did anyone enjoy this?

But with each twist and thrust and bend of his finger, it became easier to maneuver and the sting faded away. That didn’t change the fact it was uncomfortably foreign. His hole began to relax around his finger as he worked it in and out. Though he initially tried to bite back his reactions, Liu Qingge found his lips parting around tiny gasps with each twitch.

Then he found it.

“Augh—!” Liu Qingge couldn’t school his reaction in time. There was something there, hidden deep inside that changed the whole game. When he pressed it, his joints became alluringly flushed; wrists and shoulders, the back of his neck, his bare hips.

Experimentally, he felt for it one more time, not believing it to be true. Maybe it was just a reaction from the prolonged clenching around his finger—

Another bolt of lightning shooting straight through him.

No, there was definitely something there that shouldn’t be there. Men shouldn’t have something like that in such a weird place!

“Shidi, I think you can put another finger in.”

Another one!? “Fuck off,” he growled.

Shen Qingqiu frowned. “It’s for your own safety.” He waggled his free pinky finger above Liu Qingge’s body. It cast an ominous, threatening shadow over his torso. “You won’t be able to take this if you don’t work a little harder.”

Liu Qingge was nothing if not a hard worker. What was another finger? His ass was already corrupted!

Not giving Shen Qingqiu the satisfaction of Liu Qingge’s defeat, he wriggled his middle finger against his sensitive rim. He ignored the burning and the way his thighs tried to close around the stretch in his lower half.

What was another finger, indeed? It made all the difference!

He bit back groans of definitely discomfort, nothing else for sure, as that second finger scissored at his passage. He hated to admit it, but after that first digit, he got used to the second one faster, sliding the two in and out, subconsciously searching for that weird spot that made the edges of his vision grow blurry.

“I think that’s enough,” Shen Qingqiu decided. He batted Liu Qingge’s hand away and his hole was left fluttering around nothing.

It didn’t stay that way for long.

Shen Qingqiu’s smallest finger pressed between his weakened legs.

“K-keep your fucking finger to your fucking self!” Liu Qingge’s thighs clenched.

But Shen Qingqiu wasn’t interested in listening. “After all that work you did? We’ll give it a try.”

What else could Liu Qingge do but watch in horror as Shen Qingqiu twisted that finger against his rim?

Leaning this close, focused so intently on his task, Shen Qingqiu’s breath smelled honey sweet and was warm over Liu Qingge’s legs. “Just relax for me, shidi.”

He couldn’t. The scene playing before him was too wicked, too shameful, how could his body not reject it?  

“Liu Qingge.”

His breath caught in his throat. He looked up from the confusing procedure being done to him, meeting Shen Qingqiu’s eyes.

They were softer now, warmer. Liu Qingge’s initial reaction was to spit in Shen Qingqiu’s face; he didn’t need to be coddled and babied, but Shen Qingqiu only wanted to help him. It was something they had to do. And who better to do it with than Shen Qingqiu? The man in front of him whose voice was low and comforting?

“Close your eyes, shidi, your shixiong will try to make it feel good.”

With no other options left, Liu Qingge squeezed his eyelids shut.

Instantly, all sensations were heightened. Liu Qingge’s rim felt especially sensitive with the pressure of Shen Qingqiu’s finger on it. Shen Qingqiu’s breaths were moist and heavy on his skin, almost as if he had gotten closer.

There was a sound, something slick and wet, and then there was something, slick and wet, dragging up along his torso.

“Ah—!” Liu Qingge wanted to open his eyes, slap Shen Qingqiu away, but the loss of the man’s tongue on his skin was a far worse alternative.

He squirmed under that attention, the slippery muscle circling the sensitive peaks on his heaving chest.

And then there was the intrusion.

Lost in the feeling of Shen Qingqiu’s tongue on his nipples, Liu Qingge completely forgot about the reason they were here in the first place: for the dual cultivation.

While Liu Qingge writhed under Shen Qingqiu’s tongue, he had managed to breach his reluctant rim up to the first knuckle.

Which was a lot for a man only 10 inches tall.

Acting of its own accord, Liu Qingge’s hole squeezed around that intruder, whether to push it out or keep it in, he didn’t know.

All he knew was that it hurt.

Liu Qingge couldn’t keep his eyes closed any longer. They shot open, his four limbs flailing uselessly. “I-I-I—” He was stuck in a loop, unable to say anything else.

“Shidi,” Shen Qingqiu’s voice was grounding him. “This one needs you to tell me where it feels good.”

Feels good? Feels good? “Nothing a-about this f—” a wheeze, “feels good!”

What felt like inches inside Liu Qingge’s already-minuscule body, but was in fact only the slight adjustment on Shen Qingqiu’s part, that finger pushed in yet a little further.

“When you were preparing, you found your—” a gentle cough; a show of embarrassment from Shen Qingqiu that Liu Qingge hadn’t seen since he watched the Qing Jing Peak Lord touch himself, “—a special spot. Where is it?”

W-would that help? He was in Shen Qingqiu’s hands now.

As contradictory as it felt, he huffed, “D-deeper.”

With a twist of his finger, Liu Qingge was stuffed impossibly full. He didn’t think that thing could wiggle inside any farther because of the sheer girth, but Shen Qingqiu found a way.

Where Liu Qingge had propped himself on his elbows earlier, there was no strength left in his body. His waist, his hips, his thighs all throbbed with dull pulses.

Shen Qingqiu observed carefully for any changes in Liu Qingge’s pinched expression. His scrutiny seemed almost clinical.

Then Shen Qingqiu worked his way in further yet. And finally hit the spot that had Liu Qingge’s toes curling.

A grin touched the corners of his lips.

Liu Qingge’s dick bobbed in anticipation.

Anticipation!? For what!? Because he was getting fucked in the ass!?

The thrusts of that pinky finger increased in speed and depth, stretching Liu Qingge more than he thought he was capable of. The Bai Zhan War God could handle many, many things, more things than the average person, hell, even some more than what the gods themselves had endured, but no amount of cultivation prepared him for the sensation of getting fucked.

There was no way his finger couldn’t hit the place that made Liu Qingge bite back moans of confused pleasure with the way it filled him. Once he found it, he didn’t leave it alone.

Shen Qingqiu’s sadistic smile was Liu Qingge’s undoing. He felt his stuffed hole tighten against his will around the finger pumping inside him, rubbing that sensitive point inside him raw.

Tears blurred the pristine face of the person defiling him so effortlessly.

“Go on, Liu-shidi,” Shen Qingqiu murmured as if he were coaching a student. “You can do it.”

Could he? Could he really? By now he had surely lost all face as unshed tears clung to his eyelashes, as he spread his legs for his martial brother, as he allowed his body to be sullied and fucked at the hands of Shen Qingqiu.

His passage had become warm and slick from being thoroughly abused, and each pass of Shen Qingqiu’s finger brought with it a dull pressure that gathered in his abdomen.

Long gone was the feeling of humiliation. Liu Qingge was just trying to survive.

“I’m—” Was all he could say.

Shen Qingqiu hummed. “That’s it, Qingge.”

And Liu Qingge came untouched. It was an out-of-body experience. Unrestrained, his sensitive dick bobbed and shot another round of cum into the air in a perfect arc. Coming from his ass alone didn’t logically make any sense in Liu Qingge’s mind, but his hole continued to clench and squeeze around Shen Qingqiu’s finger. He fucked him all the way through it, the waves of pleasure crashing again and again on the shore that was Liu Qingge’s nerves.

His vision glared as white as the inner robes he had shed.

He whined, squirming on Shen Qingqiu’s finger as he continued to ruthlessly press against that mysterious ball of pleasure inside of him. He spoke around choked groans. “S-Shen Qingqiu, s-stop plea—hnngh—!”

Blessedly, Shen Qingqiu listened. He pressed a thumb to Liu Qingge’s chest to hold him in place as he slid his glistening finger from Liu Qingge’s channel.

He choked around air. The loss of that burning pressure felt like he had been turned inside out. A minuscule part of him wished it back so he didn’t have to cope with the gaping emptiness.

Shen Qingqiu granted his unspoken wish. A finger was nudging back between his legs and, after a slight push, breached his thoroughly-fucked hole.

But this—this wasn’t—

“Look,” Shen Qingqiu sounded cruelly passive and uninterested, but through the dampness in his eyes, Liu Qingge could see the predatory darkness in the irises staring down at him. “You can even take my ring finger.”

Horror blanching his face, Liu Qingge dared to look down.

Sure enough, between his weakened legs was a thicker finger prying him open. The worst, most devastating part, was the bulge in Liu Qingge’s normally-flat stomach. It was proof of his smallness, of Shen Qingqiu’s digit being able to warp him in any way it pleased.

“Shen Qingqiu,” he wheezed.

The finger inside him dragged out, then pushed slowly back in. “Another one for your shixiong?”

Liu Qingge was helpless to watch as the finger started a languid pace. His body rocked with each gentle thrust. “My shi-shixiong can go fuck himself.” A slight change of angle to that tender, magical place. “Haahh—it’s too—I’m too—!”

“Sensitive?” Shen Qingqiu mused. “The mighty Bai Zhan War God can’t handle it?”

He had half the mind to reject everything. If what they’d done so far wasn’t enough, then Liu Qingge would cut his losses and live the rest of his life in this pathetic state. But he also couldn’t say no to a taunt. Liu Qingge knew he was playing right into Shen Qingqiu’s overly-large hands, walking into a trap, but he couldn’t let his name be thrown in the dirt like that.

“I—” He keened when Shen Qingqiu relentlessly tapped the pad of his finger against that well-worn spot inside him. “I can h-handle anything.”

And he could! Even now his body was preparing for another orgasm. The incessant rubbing paired with Shen Qingqiu’s critical stare was just a challenge he had to meet. He bit his lip to stop himself from complaining that it was too soon to try again. He’d been all fucked out at this point. There wasn’t a drop left in him that Shen Qingqiu could wring out.

Maybe he could bargain. “C-could you at least put—hnngh—put me down?”

“Hm.” Shen Qingqiu’s finger didn’t even stop pumping as he considered. “No. When else will your shixiong get to hold his little Liu-shidi in the palm of his hand?”

Despite getting fucked, Liu Qingge’s cheeks burned a ferocious red. What other mortifying words could Shen Qingqiu whip up next? He may as well spew them out now while he had Liu Qingge pinned like a butterfly!

The bastard didn’t disappoint! “It’s amazing. Your hole just keeps sucking me back in.”

Liu Qingge wanted to hate the words. He wanted to scream and kick and curse Shen Qingqiu to burn in the lowest hells for all eternity. All he could muster was a pathetic whimper and a futile buck of his hips into the air.

When would this overwhelming, all-consuming, delicious torture end?

His whole waist was numb. Any protests he wanted to make, verbal or physical, were impossible. His head rested limply on Shen Qingqiu’s fingertips, legs dangling over the heel of Shen Qingqiu’s hand. He couldn’t bring himself to fight Shen Qingqiu, not like this. The most he could do was part his lips and emit weak ah-ah-ahs with each thrust.

There was a warmth alongside the searing heat of Shen Qingqiu’s semen being pushed in alongside the finger that was fucking him. This warmth was something Liu Qingge could blearily recognize as a stream of qi being channeled into him.

Everything felt worse. Everything felt better.

How much time had passed? Liu Qingge’s cheeks were wet from the tracks of overstimulated tears, but his belly coiled tight and hot. Something was coming.

It was him. He was coming.

Again; just from Shen Qingqiu’s ring finger digging into that abused spot amidst his slick walls.

His body tightened and spasmed uncontrollably, the natural response, but Liu Qingge was lost somewhere else in the realm of lust. He was floating somewhere he’d never been before. He knew he felt good, really good, and he realized that those breathy moans were somehow coming from his own lungs, but he didn’t sense Shen Qingqiu sliding out from inside of him, didn’t comprehend the softness of the mattress beneath him, the way his shixiong drew the covers over his pliant body.

Shen Qingqiu had said some soft words, something along the lines of “wow, nothing came out” and “you did such a good job, shidi” and “get some rest, your shixiong will take care of you”.

What else could Liu Qingge do? He had final words perched on the tip of his tongue, some response, retort, but nothing came. His eyelids fluttered shut against his will, limbs sinking into the cushion.

Did Shen Qingqiu say anything else? Did he pour thick dewdrops of water down Liu Qingge’s scratchy throat? Did he massage Liu Qingge’s thighs with tender touches and brush the sweaty hair from his forehead?

Liu Qingge didn’t know. By that point, he had long since fallen into a dreamless sleep.

He ached.

All over.

Liu Qingge was no stranger to aching. It’s how he grew up: he tumbled down hills and climbed (then fell) from trees. He jumped from cliffs into water for the adrenaline rush and walked proudly away with bruises littering his hamstrings. He endured beatings from his shizun and then attempted beatings from his own disciples.

All that to say, the feeling was borderline comforting.

Except it wasn’t an ache he had ever felt before. His limbs tingled with heaviness, but the real kicker was his back.

Good gods, Liu Qingge had never felt a throbbing like this at the base of his spine. Eyes still pinched shut, too exhausted to peel them open, he experimentally bent a knee.

A gasp tore its way out of his mouth. What the fuck?

Then, memories of last night flooded his brain like a tidal wave.

Him, sitting on Shen Qingqiu’s soft palm, stroking himself while Shen Qingqiu observed before stepping in. The electric jolt of Shen Qingqiu’s fingertip rubbing against the head of his cock until euphoria blanketed his body.

Him, laying underneath Shen Qingqiu when his hot seed drenched him. The slightly bitter, salty taste of it at the corner of his lips.

Him, back in Shen Qingqiu’s hand, getting fucked within an inch of his life until Shen Qingqiu coaxed him into two more orgasms.

What the f—

“Oh? Liu-shidi is awake?” Shen Qingqiu, at his table, pouring two regular-sized cups of fragrant jasmine tea.

Regular-sized cups…did that mean—?

Liu Qingge lurched upwards on the bed. His body…! It was—!

In pain.

Sitting up so abruptly had sent pulsing throbs to his hips, a pressure so intense he immediately crashed back down to the mattress.

But—but—! He was normal!

The heels of his hands digging into the sockets of his skull, he allowed his lips to quirk upward in disbelief. After all that! All the wild goose chases, all the humiliation, he was finally Liu Qingge again!

There was a strange sound from Shen Qingqiu, followed briskly by a cough and the familiar snap of his fan opening to shield his face. “Will shidi join me for tea?”

Tea sounded nice. Tea with Shen Qingqiu after he fucked him until he passed out sounded like suicide.

Shen Qingqiu had no plans on leaving Liu Qingge an opportunity to escape. He sat patiently at the table until Liu Qingge threw the covers off himself.

And he was still as naked as a newborn.

Shen Qingqiu politely turned his head. His cheekbones were dusted with the faint pink of rose petals.

What reason did he have to be embarrassed for!? Liu Qingge was the one who got pounded into pulp last night!

“Ahem, there are some robes at the corner of the bed for you.”

Sure enough, a neatly folded pile waited for him.

The Qing Jing Peak Lord had the decency to pretend to peer out the window while Liu Qingge tugged and fastened the robes over his body. The fabric was a protective barrier. With these clothes on, Liu Qingge could pretend that last night never happened. That he didn’t have to expose himself so wantonly to Shen Qingqiu.

The clothing over his body was appreciated, indeed, but these were Shen Qingqiu’s spare robes after all, so his shoulders strained against the seams and the lapels didn’t completely cover his chest. He looked like some rogue playboy flaunting his muscular pecs like this.

When he sat down at the table, Shen Qingqiu’s eyes flitted to that exposed skin. He promptly snapped open his fan and brought it to cover the lower half of his face. “It would appear that—" he cleared his throat, “it worked after all.”

Liu Qingge’s fingers began to twitch. Only at the expense of his dignity! “Tell me what happened after I—“ He couldn’t finish.

Shen Qingqiu appeared equally awkward. “After last night’s…events, you fainted from…exertion.” The fan beat rapidly in front of his face, small strands of hair flying behind him. “While I…made you presentable, you already started to return to your original form.”

Liu Qingge didn’t have the balls to ask what ‘making him presentable’ meant. He sat opposite Shen Qingqiu and took two aggressive gulps of scalding tea. The faster he drank this, the faster he could run away. “Where are my robes?” He asked with a throat raspy from being burnt.

Shen Qingqiu scowled. “You’re welcome, and they didn’t recover their size.” He huffed. “That’s what you get for being ungrateful, you brute.”

Liu Qingge didn’t like that either. How could he possibly thank Shen Qingqiu? It’d just be so awkward. He grunted instead of responding to the passive aggressive comment. “What do I wear back to Bai Zhan, then?”

“Figure it out yourself.”

Liu Qingge looked down at his exposed chest; the seams now bursting on his shoulders. No way he could go out in public like this! “Give me some extra—”

“I don’t have any.” The eyebrows behind the fan were raised haughtily, voice clipped.

The ceramic cup cracked under Liu Qingge’s grip. “I don’t believe you.”

“Well, your shixiong can’t do anything about shidi’s lack of credence.”

Fine. Liu Qingge stood from the table, rattling the edge with his knees. Shen Qingqiu stubbornly refused to react to the tantrum. He stomped to grab Cheng Luan, relief flooding his body at the heft of it in his hand once more.

When he stomped to the door, Shen Qingqiu had lowered his fan and replaced it with the cup of tea against his lips. He didn’t take a sip, not yet. Liu Qingge hoped he would say something. Apologize, maybe. Let out a low chuckle and tell him to sit back down and pass him another set of robes he could wear, at least layer on top.

Determined to not lose this battle, Shen Qingqiu didn’t spare him a glance. “Have a safe trip, Liu-shidi.”

Ha! Safe trip, his ass. The whole time he balanced on the length of his blade he’d be clutching desperately at his robes to keep them shut so he didn’t flash everyone in the Cang Qiong sect.

Liu Qingge was going to let Shen Qingqiu have the last word, he had no more fight left to give on his shaky legs. But he hesitated in the doorway of the bamboo house. Maybe he couldn't thank Shen Qingqiu, but he could pretend, foolishly, that nothing between them had changed.  “Tea with me tomorrow? As usual?”

Shen Qingqiu choked on a mouthful of his drink. “…Yes.”