Luo Binghe voted blorbo of the year

Word of the "corpse army" had caught Luo Binghe's attention. Either the "army" was exaggerated, or the demonic cultivator was hiding more corpses. He wasn't quite sure how he wanted this meeting to go yet. As he circled the cultivator, the cultivator turned so that his back was never to him.

"I think I knew that," the cultivator continued, "from before. I just wasn't really paying attention. It's hard to really be aware when you're not really all there. But hey, I have a golden core now too!" He hummed as he thought, tapping his flute to his chin. "Though it interacts differently with resentful energy."

Luo Binghe decided he needed more information. He forced his stance to relax and pulled on a large, charming smile. "From before?"

"I don't blame you for not remembering," the cultivator said with a wince. "That place was..." He trailed off with a frown.

Either this man was a good actor or he was truly empathetic to Luo Binghe's struggles - whatever struggles he was referencing. Since the man was being vague, he was inclined to believe that this was all some strange ploy. He raised an eyebrow and teasingly said, "This lord would be bereft to believe he had forgotten a face like yours."

"Oh." The cultivator's eyes widened and a grin stretched across his lips. A blush pinched his cheeks, though he didn't seem to take the flirtation as genuine. He didn't react the way others usually did; their defenses falling apart and dissolving underneath one carefully charming smile. "Well. You wouldn't have known this face. Seeing as I wasn't a face. I was a spirit."

It was very hard keeping his smile after that. Luo Binghe stopped himself from lurching forward with wild desperation. His throat squeezed shut.

"That place" was the Endless Abyss. "From before" was when he was trudging through it with nothing but the floating fire of a spirit long dead. His heart trembled.

In a life where he had known nothing but abuse and abandonment, that one spirit fire had kept him company. It was discordant and never really there. It lacked warmth. It was nothing but an echo of a person.

But it tried to make him laugh. It gave him tips. It guided him through sand storms and pure darkness. It had stayed by his side almost to the end - when it stopped Xin Mo from consuming his mind.

"Wei Ying?" Luo Binghe asked, dumbly.

It was stupid to ask because - if... someone had somehow known about that, all the man had to do was nod and smile at him. There was no way to prove that it was actually-

But then Wei Ying laughed. It was his laugh. Head bent back, he cackled; it echoed across the plains, unbidden by any shyness. "So you do remember! After becoming so big and powerful, merging the realms-"

Luo Binghe was across the field of corpses in an instant. He meant to take Wei Ying in his arms, to hold him close and breathe him in. He was alive. He was alive. Alive, alive, alive-

Something suddenly slammed into his back. It felt as if a giant hand transpired from the air and pressed a finger against him and pressed him into the earth.

"Wow there!" Wei Ying said with a skittering laugh. "I know you came here to kill me - which... you don't need to! The army wasn't mine. I took care of it, actually. Easy enough. I kept a few... at least until you dealt with them..."

"W-Wei Ying!" Luo Binghe roared, shocked that his cheek was pressed against the earth. He tried pushing and shoving upwards, but an impossible weight held him down. He had never felt anything like this before.

Wei Ying crouched down beside him and stared at him curiously. He smiled. "You've done a lot for yourself. And I'm really proud of you, kid!" He reached out and patted his head.

With a shaky breath, Luo Binghe tried to reach out and grab onto him.

Wei Ying danced away with another laugh. "Don't worry! I won't be getting in your way again, Luo Binghe!"

"W-Wait!" Luo Binghe grunted, struggling. "Don't-"

"That talisman will wear off soon, especially with your level of power," Wei Ying assured him. "I'll make sure nothing comes by to take advantage of you. It was good seeing you again - and remember! I promised to stay out of your way."

"Wei Ying!!" Luo Binghe cried.