Luo Binghe (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
demonvinegar) wrote2025-09-29 03:07 pm
demonvinegar) wrote2025-09-29 03:07 pm
memory post
OBLIGATORY SPOILERS WARNING FOR ALL OF SCUM VILLAIN SELF SAVING SYSTEM
Important Notes:
Important Notes:
- passages are directly copied from the official translation and only edited slightly to remove POVs outside of Luo Binghe's (to the best of my ability)
- information from outside POVs that is otherwise important to the scene will be [closed in brackets]
- certain names will be removed and/or replaced for Reasons
- [Gehou] = Luo Binghe
- [Kongxu] = Shen Qingqiu (both versions)
- [---- -------] = Shen Yuan in his mushroom body that looks vaguely like Shen Qingqiu
corpse hot potato
It was as if the entirety of Huan Hua Pavilion had become an enormous ice cave. A single step inside was like entering a land of frost and snow.
Not only was the temperature abnormally low, the doors were all sealed shut, the windows airtight. It was both freezing and dark. If it hadn't been for the intruder (that is, Cang Qiong Mountain's Director of Demolitions, Liu Qingge) forcibly blowing open a huge hole in the walls, the place would have been like a coffin made of ice.
The top of the sitting platform at the center of the pavilion was half-shrouded by curtains, and several black and white outer robes were messily piled beside it.
[Gehou] was only wearing an inner robe, and he looked like he'd just gotten up from bed. His black hair was disheveled and his clothes were in disarray, the neckline gaping and crooked. His face was abnormally pale, yet his lips had color, while his eyes flashed with a cold light, the aura sinister and menacing. It seemed he was prepared to fight, his claws and fangs bared.
Liu Qingge faced him from seven steps away, the bones protruding on his sword-holding hand, his entire face ashen.
He stared at [Gehou], who calmly sat next to the platform and enunciated each word: "You bastard."
A violent surge of spiritual light and killing intent burst from Cheng Luan.
[Gehou's] right hand was on Xin Mo, which never left his side, the snow-white blade already almost halfway out of its sheath, yet his left arm was, in fact, holding a person.
It was more correct to say a body. It was completely lifeless, its head lolling and limbs slack, yet also completely pliable. It too wore a set of flimsy inner robes, the neckline having slipped past its shoulder, exposing half of a paper-white back.
"What have you done?" said Liu Qingge
[Gehou] raised his eyebrows, tugging the limp body in his left arm further into his embrace. "You tell me: What have I done?"
Without a single word from Liu Qingge, Cheng Luan shot forward. Xin Mo had yet to be drawn all the way, so using only the sheath, [Gehou] blocked Cheng Luan's point. The energy from Cheng Luan's sword glares was overwhelming. Shifting sideways slightly, [Gehou] blocked the bitingly cold energy attacks, keeping the body in his arms safe behind him as his expression grew angry.
Liu Qingge instantly returned his sword to its sheath and began pitting his spiritual energy against [Gehou's]
As they tumbled around, locked in combat, the loose clothes on that body slipped completely down to its waist, and [Gehou's] palm pressed flush against that fair skin.
"Beast! No matter what, he's still your shizun!" Liu Qingge said with bloodshot eyes.
"You think I'd do this with an outsider?" [Gehou] said calmly.
The Huan Hua Palace disciples who'd formed several circles around them were all dumbstruck. [Gehou] paid them no attention, his entire focus on dealing with Liu Qingge. Spiritual energy roiled like boiling water in the air around them, shooting in all directions. As they clashed, their expressions worsened, each more frightening than the last. No one dared to step inside Huan Hua Pavilion for fear of being caught in the crossfire.
[---- -------] flashed behind Liu Qingge. The latter went on guard, believing this to be an ambush, and let out a dark laugh, preparing to send his assailant flying with spiritual qi. However, instead, a hand pressed against Liu Qingge's back, and a stream of steady, gentle, yet powerful spiritual energy flooded into his meridians.
Once Liu Qingge received this aid, he could somewhat push back against [Gehou]. The two peerlessly powerful streams of spiritual energy merged into one.
Though [Gehou] could block it perfectly, this blast of offensive spiritual energy would travel down his body and into the corpse in his arms. He could dissipate the energy, but the dead could not; if he didn't let go, the shock would probably cause the body's facial apertures to rupture. [Gehou] was unwilling to harm the corpse, so he could only release it. The body was shortly tossed away by the boiling spiritual field, flying outward.
Even after letting go, [Gehou's] gaze remained firmly fixed on that body, his expression both helpless and reluctant.
Several disciples lacked sense and moved to take action.
"Don't touch him!" [Gehou] yelled. Even from a distance, a wave of his sleeve filled that direction with screams.
[---- -------] withdrew the spiritual energy he'd been applying to Liu Qingge's back. With a tap of his foot, he launched himself forward, catching the body within his arms.
[His old body's complexion was actually still decidedly rosy, its four limbs pliant. Other than the tightly closed eyes and lack of breath, it was no different from a living person in a deep sleep.
After self-detonation, one's spiritual energy was entirely dispersed; no cultivation remained within to prevent the corpse's decay. On top of that, more than five years had passed since his death, so just preserving the body with ice wouldn't have yielded this level of success. The body didn't smell of herbs, so it probably hadn't been treated with chemicals either. It was unclear what method [Gehou] had used.]
[---- -------] dodged a spiritual blast strong enough to split stone and looked up. [Gehou] was currently staring dead at him, his expression ferocious.
[---- -------] hurried pulled up the corpse's clothes, then sent this hot potato toward Liu Qingge. "Catch!"
[Gehou] wanted to seize it, but he was intercepted by [---- -------].
Liu Qingge caught the body with one arm and called forth Cheng Luan with his free hand, easily beating back the circle of attacking Huan Hua disciples.
Due to being tossed back and forth between them, the corpse's top had finally ripped completely. Liu Qingge's entire body froze. Finding no appropriate place to hold the body, he almost sent it back once more.
Luckily, he managed to resist this impulse in the end and took off his outer robe, the white cloth spreading like wings, and bundled up the body in his arms. Cheng Luan flew back and steadily hovered before his feet.
[Gehou's] eyes had turned fully scarlet. The entire Huan Hua Pavilion was like a tightly sealed box, and inside the box a bomb had been placed. When the bomb exploded, the walls collapsed with a loud rumble.
Falling alongside the flying sand and hurtling stones -- aside from people, people, and more people -- were two objects that hit the ground with a metallic clang. They were actually two swords:
Zheng Yang, and Xiu Ya.
These two swords had originally shared the same fate and broken into numerous sections of blade shards. It was unclear how they had been repaired, but they had been tied together and placed in Huan Hua Pavilion. Only with the pavilion's collapse did they once again see the sun and sky.
"Liu Qingge." [Gehou] shouted, "for Shizun's sake, I've let you live over and over again. But since you want to die so badly, you can't blame me!"
The force of his subsequent eruption of spiritual energy and murderous intent almost made [---- -------'s] internal organs shift inside him. He knew [Gehou] was furious, and he hurried to yell at Liu Qingge. "Still haven't left?!"
Liu Qingge gave him a glance, then was as decisive as expected -- he left without delay, tucking the body beneath his arm and jumping onto his sword, then flying off at lightning speed.
eye for an eye
After an unknown length of time, someone knocked on the door twice, neither light nor heavy.
[Kongxu] hastily stood from the table. "Liu-shidi? I've been waiting for you all night. Come in, quickly!"
The room's set of double doors flew open.
[Gehou] stood in the entrance. Behind him was unbounded darkness. His hands were tucked behind his back, his lips curved slightly upward, but his eyes seemed like icy pools a thousand meters deep.
Yet those eyes smiled as he said, "Shizun, hello."
[Kongxu] grabbed his fan and, with a nimble flip, leapt out the window. Even while fleeing, his movements were easy and graceful. He landed solidly on the ground, and with a tap of his foot, darted away like a flying bird.
Gehou's clear, bright voice pierced far through the air, reaching his ears while carrying a hint of cold, drifting laughter. "During the day, Shizun was so intimate and gentle with Gongyi Xiao, and this evening you lit a lantern, waiting for Liu-shishu until late into the night. What sincere affection. Why, then, are you so distant when it comes to this disciple?"
[Kongxu] drew in a deep breath and shouted from the pit of his stomach, "Lie Qingge!"
[Gehou's] voice drew even closer. It was no longer as tender this time around, and instead it came with a wintry laugh. "Liu-shishu is embroiled in a fight, so I'm afraid he doesn't have the leisure to come. Shizun, if you have orders, why don't you give them to me?"
In the next moment, a hand flashed forward to clutch [Kongxu's] throat and his back crashed hard into a cold, solid rock wall.
[Gehou] was already in arm's reach. He had slammed [Kongxu] into the wall with one hand.
Under the streaming moonlight, [Gehou] looked even more peerlessly beautiful, as if his silhouette had been carved from ice and jade. He pressed very close, and he spoke with slow deliberation.
"After so many years of separation, we meet amidst golden wind and jade dew, yet Shizun incessantly calls someone else's name. That truly saddens this disciple a little."
[Kongxu's] throat bobbed with difficulty, and it was hard to breathe, let alone speak. And [Gehou] was pressing harder and harder, his hand gradually tightening.
[A large chunk of the main character's inner thoughts is cut here.]
[Gehou's] hand around [Kongxu's] neck suddenly loosened.
[Kongxu] propped himself up on the wall, barely managing to stand upright and not sink to his knees on the spot.
Seconds ago, [Gehou] had almost choked him to death, and now he was coming over all smiles to help him up, just like in the past, when he had helped [Kongxu] alight from carriages or brought him snacks.
[Gehou] sighed. "Why did Shizun run so fast? This disciple almost couldn't catch up."
[Kongxu] panted, then gingerly opened his mouth, his voice a bit hoarse. "You have quite some nerve, running in such a grandiose fashion. Aren't you afraid someone will discover your true identity?"
[Gehou's] eyes flashed. "Is Shizun concerned or worried?"
[Kongxu] couldn't resist asking, "Unless you think I won't tell anyone?"
[Gehou] looked at him, and then said pityingly, "Shizun, that would require someone to believe you."
[Kongxu's] heart jumped.
He rubbed his throat and stood for a while, then realized that [Gehou] was actually still staring at him, seemingly with no intention of attacking again. After a while, [Kongxu] asked out loud, "What are you planning to do with your return?"
[Gehou] replied, "I was merely reminiscing about how Shizun had treated me well, and I wanted to see you."
Without changing his expression, [Kongxu] moved his hand tow his sword hilt. "Just to kill me? Then what about the plague in Jin Lan City? Has every resident of this city 'treated you well'?"
Who could have expected that as soon as those words came out of his mouth, they would touch some sore spot inside of [Gehou]. It was like a cold star had fallen within his eyes, and the faint hint of a smile on his face disappeared without a trace.
"Shizun harbors a truly relentless hatred toward the demon race," [Gehou] said mockingly. There was a hint of forcibly suppressed anger in his voice.
[Gehou] clenched his teeth. "No, I should say, a relentless hatred towards me."
[Gehou] took a sudden step toward him. [Kongxu's] expression quickly became cautious, and he retreated a step. But behind his back was a wall, and so there was nowhere to go.
Their gazes collided in midair. Then [Gehou] seemed to realize that he was too worked up, and he closed his eyes, only opening them again after a few moments had passed.
"Does Shizun honestly think that I would kill, burn, massacre cities, and inevitably topple countries just because of that half of my lineage?"
When [Kongxu] looked down without a single word, [Gehou] took it as tacit agreement. He sneered. "Then why did you tell me not to put too much weight on race and that no one is intolerable to the heavens? Why say such pompous things?"
His face abruptly grew dark, malice overflowing from between his brows, and he lashed out. "Utter hypocrisy!" he snarled.
At this moment, [Kongxu] rapidly retreated, only just managing to dodge. When he turned his head, he saw that the wall he'd just been leaning against had been pulverized.
It seemed like [Gehou] hadn't really intended to hit him. After venting his anger with this attack, he calmed down a bit, tilted his head, and reached out, seemingly to grab hold of [Kongxu]-- so [Kongxu] hastily drew Xiu Ya (sword).
Watching [Kongxu], [Gehou] slowly raised a hand, letting him see the violet-black demonic energy roiling in his palm.
"Shizun," he said leisurely. "Take a guess. If I grab Xiu Ya, how many strikes will it take before it's corroded all the way through?"
[Gehou] took another step closer, and [Kongxu] could only raise his sword to take the attack.
He had mentally prepared for Xiu Ya's destruction, but in a blink, as if [Gehou] had seen something, he started. Then he suddenly withdrew the demonic energy in his palm and caught the tip of the sword with his bare hand.
[Gehou] chopped down on his wrist. [Kongxu's] hand loosened in pain, and his sword fell, whereupon it was sent flying with a flick of [Gehou's] finger.
[Gehou] clamped down on [Kongxu's] wrist with a single hand, and fresh blood flowed from [Gehou's] palm, soaking [Kongxu's] sleeve.
While [Kongxu] was still in the midst of confusion, [Gehou] flipped his hand over. "You were infected?"
Some small red patches were scattered across the back of [Kongxu's] hand, a few more than there had been during the day.
[Gehou's] slender fingers flitted across his hand in a barely-there touch, and the red patches disappeared under his fingertips like ink dropped in water. As expected, a little thing like this was no threat to [Gehou].
[Gehou] seemed to have moderated his epxression. "This hand of Shizun's is plagued with misfortune."
A fist suddenly slammed into [Kongxu's] stomach.
[Gehou] smiled. "An eye for an eye. Since Shizun sowed the seeds, he should reap the bitter fruit himself. Shizun should personally make up for the wounds he gave me."
There was a sharp pain on [Kongxu's] scalp, and his neck was forced to straighten so that [Gehou] could press his hand to [Kongxu's] lips. The taste of blood flowed into his mouth.
[Kongxu's] shot wide open as he finally realized that the "wound" [Gehou] was talking about was the one he had only just left on his hand with Xiu Ya.
[Kongxu] furiously slapped away that hand and bent over to retch up the mouthfuls of blood he had swallowed, but [Gehou] dragged him back up and continued to pour blood into his mouth.
[Gehou] further opened the wound on his hand. Hot blood flowed endlessly from it, yet he seemed even happier. "Shizun, don't spit it out. Even though a heavenly demon's blood is dirty, you won't necessarily die from drinking it right?"
He wouldn't die, but he would live a fate worse than death!
into the abyss
"If you're awake, let's have a thorough discussion. [Gehou], tell me honestly, exactly how long have you been practicing demonic cultivation?"
As soon as [Kongxu] said this it was as if [Gehou] had been plunged from the stifling upper heavens into a bone-chilling pool. It would have been impossible for him to not return to complete consciousness.
He stared at [Kongxu's] wintry face, and his heart sank straight down. In the past, [Kongxu] had always called him [by his given name]-- he had never addressed him by his full name.
"Shizun," he said quietly, "This disciple can explain."
Though [Gehou] was still a youth, he'd always remained calm and unperturbed, often acting mature beyond his years. Now actual panic surfaced on his face, like he was frantic to explain but didn't know where to start.
[Kongxu] burst out to cut him off. "Silence!"
He seemed to have scared [Gehou]. The boy stared at him blankly with pitch-black eyes, like a child who'd been slapped, muddled and confused, and indeed he obediently went silent.
"When did you start?"
"Two years ago."
[Kongxu] went silent and didn't speak. To answer his question so quickly, and so honestly to boot -- it seemed [Gehou] really was scared witless.
[Gehou] automatically took this silence to mean: "Is that so? You wicked disciple, you managed to hide this from me for so long!"
"Two years," [Kongxu] said quietly. "No wonder you were able to progress by leaps and bounds, and to such an extent. You truly live up to your reputation, [Gehou]. You are gifted with spectacular talent."
[Gehou] instantly fell to his knees before [Kongxu].
"Get up!" [Kongxu] waved his sleeve at once.
Hit by the gust from this wave, [Gehou] couldn't help but stand again and back up a few steps, even more stunned out of his senses.
Had he done something wrong? Something so wrong that it couldn't be absolved -- that he didn't even have the right to kneel and plead for Shizun's forgiveness?
"But Shizun, you said before that just as people can be good or bad, demons can be good or evil," he mumbled. "That in this world, there is no one... intolerable to the heavens."
"You are no simple demon," [Kongxu] said. "That mark on your forehead is a mark of sin -- the mark of the demons who fell from the heavens. These demons have murdered countless humans, and moreover, their temperaments are impossible to contain. From ancient times, they've been the cause of calamity after calamity. Under no circumstances can they be spoken of in the same breath as other demons. I cannot wait and hope my earlier words were true while you develop a taste for slaughter and lose all control."
As these words touched his ears, [Gehou's] hopes shattered, and the rims of his eyes reddened. His voice quivered. "But you said..."
[Kongxu] raised his head and formed a sword seal to summon Xiu Ya, and he held it within his hand. The hand yielding the sword shook slightly, thin veins surfacing through his skin.
"Shizun, do you really want to kill me?" [Gehou] couldn't believe it.
"I don't want to kill you." Unable to meet his expression, [Kongxu's] gaze went right through him.
[Gehou] searched his memory, but he'd never seen [Kongxu] so cold and emotionless, not towards him. Even back when he'd just entered Cang Qiong Mountain Sect, when Shizun had disliked him, his eyes had never been this empty -- like he was looking at nothing.
His gaze held not even a trace of warmth. It was exactly the way he looked at heinous demons whom he had executed with that same sword.
"It's only, what that man said wasn't wrong," said [Kongxu]. "The human realm is no longer a place for you. You ought to return to the place you belong."
He stepped forward, and [Gehou] stepped back. [Kongxu] pressed him backward until they were right on the edge of the Endless Abyss.
If one looked into the ravine, they could see the simmering demonic qi roiling unceasingly within it, and they could hear the anguished wailing of tens of thousands of spirits. Hundreds and thousands of deformed arms reached up from the cracks towards the Human Realm, hungering for fresh blood and flesh. The deeper regions faded into black fog and eerie scarlet light.
"Will you go down yourself, or must I force you?" [Kongxu] asked, Xiu Ya pointing towards the Abyss.
[Gehou] refused to give up hope.
He refused to believe that the teacher who had been so kind to him would actually hurt him. He refused to believe that all those years of companionship every day, morning to night, could lead to this conclusion.
Even as Xiu Ya stabbed into his chest, he clung to a last strand of hope.
[Gehou] lifted his hand to grip the blade, but he didn't use any of his strength and only lightly held it. If [Kongxu] decided to exert force, Xiu Ya would continue to stab into him until it pierced straight through his chest.
[Gehou's] throat lightly bobbed; he said not a single word. The blade point clearly hadn't pierced his heart, [yet [Kongxu] felt like he could hear that heart's pained thumps, traveling up the blade and into his hand, spreading through an entire arm, until arrived directly at his own heart.]
[Kongxu] suddenly withdrew the sword.
With that action, [Gehou's] body swayed a little, but he quickly steadied himself. Realizing that [Kongxu] hadn't dealt him a killing blow, his eyes, which had dimmed faintly, shone once more, like sparks struggling within burnt ashes. The corner of his mouth also managed to twitch. Perhaps he was trying to smile.
Then [Kongxu] unleashed a final strike, which extinguished the last trace of light within [Gehou's] eyes.
[He knew he would never forget [Gehou's] expression from the moment of his fall.]