ask me about poly ships

yet, not long after that, calamity hit the kingdom of xianle. the crown prince went to the mortal realm to save his kingdom, but to no avail. heaven official’s blessing 天官赐福 (2020—)

[id: four gifs from episode two of ‘heaven official’s blessing’. the scene is a flashback to the fall of xianle. in the first gif xie lian walks through a destroyed land, in the second the shot pans to see there is someone behind him. the third is of that person — he has bandages around his head and neck and blood on his face, and moves forward as if calling out to xie lian and is cut off by a fire. the fourth shows xie lian — he is seen from behind through the fire and as it zooms in he turns.

the caption reads:

yet, not long after that, calamity hit the kingdom of xianle. the crown prince went to the mortal realm to save his kingdom, but to no avail. heaven official’s blessing 天官赐福 (2020—)

1. Digging for Orchids- betts @bettsfic

Explicit, No Archive Warnings apply

Spoilers- Non unless you don't know the basic plot of TCGF

This one. If you take no other recommendations from me, PLEASE read this one. It is a modern actor AU where XL has moved to LA after an accident on set and subsequent scandal. SQX then sets him up with a very hot, very shirtless art student to be his roommate while he's out of town. I cannot express how much I love this fic. I’ve re-read it more times than I can count and it just holds a special place in my heart. Needless to say I HIGHLY recommend it!

2. Take Your Pain Away- Saenda @saenda

General, No Archive Warnings Apply

SPOILERS- Chapter 2 references the worst thing that has happened to Xie Lian. If you're not sure what that is, then you don't know.

One of the first things you’ll learn about Hualian, is that we have some great hurt and comfort content. This is a sick fic where XL seems to really come down with something bad and HC struggles to figure out how to help his god. An enthralling read and again one I’ve gone back to a couple of times. And bonus: the author put in their art throughout the first few chapters!

3. Fly me too close to the sun- Linisen @linisen

Explicit, No Archive Warnings Apply

Spoilers- Again, basic plot points of TCGF

This one is self-indulgent, and a personal favorite. Do you like Recency Era high society content? Do you like swooning over hand-holding? Do you like questioning if it’s proper for HC to take XL home in his carriage without a chaperone?? Maybe even some indecent cuddle for warmth??? Then oh boy do is this the fic for you!

4. Love Like You- jeonenfant

Explicit, Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death

Spoilers- None beyond basic

An AU where XL is a prince who seeks out help from the gods when his people are burning. Little did he know he'd be making a deal with a very sexy HC. Mind the tags, but highly recommend!

5. we're after the same rainbow's end- Naamah_Beherit

Mature, No Archive Warnings Apply

I actually recommend everything @naamah-beherit has written for TCGF! I especially love their cannon rewrite series Crimson and Clover, but that is basically all spoilers.

Instead, I'll recommend their Modern accidental marriage AU. Well, it's not exactly an accident. XL's dad arranges a marriage for him without his permission, and HC's like "hell no, we're getting married instead". It also deals a lot with XL's mental health, and we even get to see him go to therapy! This is an incomplete fic, but each chapter is like its own little episode so you're never left frustrated that the chapters over (at least as of chapter 7). Great story so far and you should definitely subscribe for updates once you get caught up!

6. you'll know, you'll fall- mme_anxious

Explicit, No Archive Warnings Apply

Spoilers- None unless you don't know why XL gets so nervous when they talk about the White Calamity (briefly mentioned in Chapter 5)

Do you like seeing two people in a relationship talk about what they are comfortable with and communicate as they figure out intimacy together? If so, this is the fic. I'm an acespec person, so I personally really appreciated this story for really going slow and even exploring what happens if mistakes are made. Considering how many Kudos and Hits this thing has, I'm pretty sure it's required reading at this point, but I recommend non-the-less!

7. Matchmaker, Matchmaker- pengiesama @pengiesama

Teens and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply

Spoilers- None

This one is so funny. The gay panic alone had my crying with laughter, but then you have Shi Qingxuan dragging Feng Xin and Mu Quing down to ghost city to work her Matchmaking god magic. I'm laughing now just thinking about some of the things that go down in this fic. It is a great one if you want to smile, and there's some great fan art that Checa drew for it!

8. Whoops, I Almost Killed You Again 天官赐苦，鬼拂🈲️忌- TentativeWanderer @tentative-wanderer

Teens and Up, No Archive Warnings Apply

Spoilers- If you don't know about the ring then don't read this. Midway through Chapter 3, you get into more spoilers through references. I'd say this is a very spoilery fic.

This one saw XL's tendency for disaster and recognized the comedic GOLD that could be mined. SO SO funny. lots of spoilers though so if you're dongua only and avoiding spoilers, save this one for later! It’s definitely worth it.

9. Wu Ming Loving Hours- featherpoet @featherpoet

Explicit, Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death

Spoilers- Do you know who Wu Ming is? If not, move along (also if you don't know anything about what happened in Xian Le)

This is technically a sequel to To Love a God, but that one is all pain train (in the best ways so still recommend), and this one is just *chef kisses*. Again VERY spoilers, but so worth it. It starts very plot and heavy, but then it shifts to domestic fluff, bed-sharing and so much pinning. It's honestly everything I want in a fic, so definitely check it out!

10. Iridescent- hypermoyashi @hypermoyashi

Mature, Graphic Depictions of Violence

Spoilers- General plot points (maybe, kind of blanking on this one)

This is where I mention that our art god STARember has blessed us with so many masterpieces and that almost all of them have great fics inspired by them. This one is a Mermaid AU, which I recommend for its uniquely moody atmosphere. I love the mermaid lore and the plot gets genuinely harrowing at one point (mind the tags). If you like that kind of drama and angst, this is a great place to get your fix.

And there you have it! 10 (plus some) fics I recommend you check out! I've been keeping a much longer list for my roommate, so let me know if you're interested in more. I'm also interested in the fics you're reading and would love your recommendations as well!

Also just want to give a general THANK YOU to all these authors. You've given me such joy over these past few months, and I cant wait to see what you all write next. (Also, I’m a big fan of all of you and think you’re really cool)

Heaven Official's Blessing // season 1 (now on Netflix!)

This Chinese BL novel is one of my favorite things I've read it. It's packed with emotion and twists and turns I never saw coming. It has a manhua (comic) and donghua (animated) both releasing updates and a live action in pre-production.

Xie Lian is an 800-year-old scrap collector who ascends to the heavens for the third time to become a god. When he first ascended at a young age, he was the Crown Prince of Xian Le known as the "Prince who Pleased the Gods" and was loved by all.

Now, 800 years later, Xie Lian ascends to the Heavens for the third time as the laughingstock of all three realms mocked as a "Rubbish God" and known for his bad luck. On his first task as a new god, he meets a mysterious demon who rules the ghosts and terrifies the Heavens... yet unbeknownst to Xie Lian, this demon king has been paying attention to him for a very, very long time.

This week I’ll be posting dumb jokes that I have

Merfolk are known to be quite the hoarders. They often steal, keep and search for precious little trinkets they find interesting and beautiful.

Most of the time, these treasures are used eventually as courting gifts. They’re little tokens of admiration, a representation of the mer’s fondness for the other.

However. There’s one gift they’re not too easy on giving out.

When a merperson is deeply taken by their partner, and wishes to cherish them for as long as life allows them, they pluck a scale off their tail; the biggest, glossiest of them, and offers it to their partner as a sign of loyalty, and love.

The process is incredibly painful, but to them, if accepted, the reward is worth the grief.

Levi: let me ask (y/n)…

Hajime Isayama: that’s not how this-

other Shingami: King, Ryuk is doing it again!

Shingami king: