He was the one who had stood at the pinnacle of the world; Demon Lord Youming Jun.

He had come a long way from his humble beginnings.

He, an abused orphan – a half-human half-demon hybrid – had overthrown the previous order and held everything in the palm of his hand.

He’d done remarkably well for himself, even considering his pedigree; his father, while not endowed with any significant amount of sense, had been blessed with an excellent spiritual root, and his mother, while not the best at prioritising, had still inherited enough of the Youming clan’s blood to give birth to potentially powerful offspring.

That said, neither of them is alive now. And now is the past, not quite at the beginning but closer to that than to the halfway point.

Youming Jun’s parents are dead, his father at the hands of his mother, and his mother at the hands of her own brother.

In Youming Jun’s first life, said uncle had oh-so-kindly taken him under his wing and taught him his place in the world, and naturally, Youming Jun hadn’t forgotten to return the favour after usurping him.

And the latter was exactly what Youming Jun had attempted not long after waking up in the past. And it had been a mistake.

By now it was an old mistake though, and ultimately, many good things had come out of it.

It was said that the higher you are, the harder you fall. And he – ex-Demon Lord Youming Jun – had fallen very far and very hard indeed – both from that cliff and for that person.

In any case, he’s largely reinvented himself since, shedding his old skin like those snake demons that he isn’t at all related to.

He’s even ended up playing nice with Old Uncle Hongyan, after a mutual agreement to put old slights and assassination attempts behind them.

Because Youming Jun’s heart no longer has room for his old ambitions; he’s already tossed them out in order to make room for a more recent tenant.

“Jun...?”

The quiet murmur comes from underneath a pile – No, from within a cocoon of blankets. The first time Jun had observed this phenomenon, he’d been quite alarmed. Nowadays however, he is familiar enough with it to know what to do.

“It’s me,” he says. “Want tea? I’ll go make some.”

He lingers for a bit – watching, waiting, listening. Then he soundlessly makes his way over to the incense burner, adding in some new sticks and lighting them using his qi.

As he does so, there’s a shaky exhale from the cocoon, and Jun glances briefly towards it before heading off in direction of the kitchen.

It doesn’t take very long to prepare the tea; Jun has prepared this particular blend many times and also knows how to prevent the aroma from getting into his nostrils as he fills up the small teacups – one for now and another just in case.

Then he heads back into to the bedroom, setting down the tea on the stand next to the bed before using his qi to light a few lamps – he himself can see quite well without them, but at this point, he knows better than to assume the same for others.

“Yue.” He gentles his voice, putting his hand on top of the blanket cocoon. “Will you come out? The tea will go cold.”

The tea could certainly be reheated, but has a tendency to become excruciatingly bitter then. It could also be drunken cold though – like it has on a number of occasions.

Jun tries again. “Yue. It must be difficult to breathe in there. Let me help you, okay?”

Again, he waits, listening. Then he leans over, taking hold and pulling, and gradually, the cocoon unfurls, revealing a dazed medicinal cultivator.

“Why are you here, Youming Jun?”

Really, what kind of question is that? “I live here. Why wouldn’t I be here?”

“Are you here to kill me?”

Really. “Why would I kill you?”

“Revenge.”

Honestly. “That thing again? I’m over it, and frankly, I deserved it. Don’t worry about it. Actually, don’t worry your pretty little head about any of that. Just take your medicine and go to sleep, okay?”

“I don’t think I can get up.”

“All right.”

Jun props him against his side before picking the cup back up.

Yue takes it, downing practically all of it in one go.

“Well done.”

Jun takes the empty cup and puts it away.

“You look ridiculous in that thing,” Yue says.

“You of all people should know just how keen my sense of smell is,” Jun says, easing him back down. “You wouldn’t want me climbing into bed with you, would you?”

And the answer to that is obviously⸺

“I wouldn’t mind.”

⸺not that.

“Yue, are you cold? I could get you more⸺”

“I don’t need more blankets,” Yue says. “I need you.”

Well, he says that now, sure, but later on, he’ll definitely⸺ “Are you sure?”

Because the question obviously needs to be asked – multiple times even. Because while Jun wants to join him, he knows better. Still, he wants it so badly that he finds it very difficult to resist such an overt invitation.

Finally, Jun removes his mask, alongside his outer layers, then pauses and asks once again, simply to make sure: “You’re really fine with this, right?”

“It’s fine,” Yue murmurs.

Jun’s keen senses can detect no lie in that statement. Still⸺ “You won’t freak out on me and try to make me eat poison, right?”

“Won’t.”

“Yeah, but will you remember that in the morning?”

“Probably not.”

Well, at least he’s honest about it⸺

Putting out the incense and the lights, Jun crawls into bed to rest his ear above Yue’s heart. The other’s heartbeat is calm, which is good; Jun has experienced far too many nights when it’s been the opposite. Fast and strong is still better than none though – much, much better.

“Jun...”

Yue lifts his hand, placing it on the back of Jun’s head, making him stiffen and then relax as Yue begins to stroke his hair, and Jun closes his eyes, already a bit muddled from the scents lingering in the air.

“Master Bai is going to kill me,” Yue murmurs.

Jun huffs. “Master Bai is going to kill me. He can’t kill you. His guilty conscience wouldn’t allow it.”

The hand momentarily stills.

“I guess that’s true,” Yue murmurs. “But what about Jiao Ziyu?”

Jun sighs, making himself more comfortable. “Jiao Ziyu won’t touch you. He’s not that much of a fool.”

The man is still a bit of a fool though, evidenced by the way the man had died the last time around. There’s little risk of that happening again though – now, that is.

“You don’t know that.”

Jun opens his eyes, vaguely irritated yet also not. “If he is indeed that much of a fool, then he has it coming,” he says. “Don’t worry about it. Don’t worry about anything.”

There’s no need to worry; Jun would take care of everything.

It takes a while before Yue’s breathing finally evens out, and Jun remains where he is for a while yet, finding it quite comfortable. He moves away eventually though, and once no longer trapped in place, Yue quickly rolls over and curls up onto his side, back facing him. Jun would rather lie there and watch Yue’s sleeping face, but at the same time, he cannot deny the rush he gets at the thought of Yue showing him his back – because unintentional or not, it is what it is; an implicit sign of trust.

Unable to help himself, Jun reaches out. He tucks a stray lock of hair behind Yue’s ear and then slowly withdraws his hand before rolling over onto his back.

For a long while, he stares up into the darkened ceiling, temporarily lost in thought. He should probably sleep though – sleep a few precious hours before it’s time to get up again.

Thinking this, he closes his eyes, deliberately evening out his breath. But then⸺

Yue stirs, suddenly growing restless. He shouldn’t though, because it’s still way too early – still way too early for the effects of the medicine to have worn off, especially since Jun had started increasing the dosage.

Something’s wrong; Jun can feel it.

“No...” Yue whispers, curling up tighter. “Won’t⸺”

A nightmare?

No. That isn’t it – that isn’t all of it, at any rate. Because in the moment that follows, Jun senses it; that strange presence brushing against the outside of the barrier.

It’s not the first time, either. Jun has sensed it before, but never quite this close. He’d even tried to track it down at some point, only to get thwarted. He’s not quite sure what it is, but he knows it’s something slippery and he knows that he doesn’t want it anywhere near his territory – and especially nowhere near his mate.

Still, instead of heading outside to confront it, Jun remains right where he is, even when he feels the intruder slip inside. He does get out of bed though, shielding his own presence as he steps into a dark corner, watching and waiting.

The intruder doesn’t feel human – and neither does it feel like a demon. It’s not a spiritual beast either, nor is it a ghost, but the closer it gets, the more restless Yue grows. He’s still asleep though, and Jun fervently hopes that he’ll sleep through it all – because things might prove even messier otherwise.

Because even without knowing what he’s dealing with, Jun has already decided it’s a threat and that it has to go. And so, he waits, ready to pull out his sabre.

Then finally, that moment arrives; the moment the intruder enters. It passes straight through the screen door, confirming Jun’s suspicions that it’s not strictly corporeal – not that it matters, because Hóngyá has cut through plenty of things lacking a proper physical form.

As for this one, it’s quite strange, flittering around the room like some sort of demented firefly. It’s not a firefly though – it’s a strange, glowing orb.

For a brief moment, Jun is absolutely mesmerised by it. But then, he hears it speak, and what little he understands immediately makes him act. He strikes before the thing can get another word in, and the thing lets out a loud screech of pain, shock and indignation – then it sputters at him, darting away from him as he pursues it. Jun isn’t letting it get away though, and Heavens know that he’s a very good hunter.

He finally gets it, slashing cleanly through it before hitting it with burst of demon fire both to get rid of it and to shut it up. He doesn’t quite manage to do both though, and when Yue suddenly sits up with a gasp and stares in wide-eyed horror at the scene, Jun’s focus slips just enough for that thing to make its escape.

Jun has clearly damaged it tough – clearly weakened it – and although that’s better than nothing, Jun cannot help but be alarmed. Because even in that moment, he recognises that this isn’t a good look – him standing in a mostly darkened room, brandishing a glowing crimson sabre. Jun quickly puts it away, despite knowing that the damage has likely already been done – Yue would undoubtedly misconstrue this as yet another attempt on his life, and then he would⸺

“Look,” Jun said, holding his hands up. “Yue, don’t freak out. This isn’t what it⸺!”

 

---

 

“⸺I told him it wasn’t what it looked like, but like, I didn’t actually expect him to believe me,” Youming Jun finished. “He did though. He even hugged me and told me I’d done a great job.”

Out of all things Jiao Ziyu had expected to come tumbling out of the Demon Prince’s mouth, this certainly hadn’t been it. Still, it had proven interesting to say the very least. “And then what?”

The Demon Prince’s smile was a mixture of smugness and immense satisfaction. There was also a slight but noticeable flush, making Jiao Ziyu immediately regret asking that particular question.

“I meant, what happened to the... thing? That glowing orb thing?”

At this, there was a mild shrug.

“No clue,” the Demon Prince said. “It hasn’t been back since then.”

Hah. “It hasn’t been back yet, you mean?”

“It hasn’t been back yet,” the Demon Prince remedied. “And if it comes, well... I’ll take care of it.”

Saying this, Youming Jun patted his blade, and Jiao Ziyu privately supposed that even such obviously cursed weapons could have their uses. Still⸺ “What about Yue?”

“What about him?” the Demon Prince asked.

Well⸺ “Have you talked to him about this?”

“Right,” Youming Jun snorted. “I would, but... ugh, I’d rather not.”

“And why is that?”

The Demon Prince opened his mouth to answer, but something distracted him.

For a good moment, the other’s attention became fixed upon something out in the courtyard, and Jiao Ziyu turned his head around to look but found nothing worthy of note. It was only when he employed his spirit sense that he noticed it; something small and fluttering.

Jiao Ziyu scarcely had time to see what it was before his attention was abruptly drawn elsewhere as Youming Jun swore, grabbed his blade and then, in-between one moment and the next, vanished for destinations unknown.

Said destinations did not remain unknown for long however, because soon thereafter, Jiao Ziyu both heard it and sensed it – something akin to a small explosion.

Wasting no time, he got up on the residence’s outer wall, confirming what he’d already feared – a smoke plume rising from the direction of a certain clinic.

Jiao Ziyu had a very bad feeling about this.