The Colors of Water

VS

Medka is good with a bow, and a pretty skilled hunter.

It's just unsettling, sometimes, to remember his own life is more fragile than that of the animals he hunts

The Chief Cultivator Jin Guangyao 💛

#I tried typing a whole essay about why I feel this realisation of wre is so important but it's too early and my brain's not there#but yessss yhj was slowly self destroying his true self for wre! and it is probably the true reason for his qi deviation!#and wre would never have known if he had stayed 'alive' the whole time

So I wrote that essay for you...

But I already have so many AUs to continuuuuueeee...

*sigh...*

...

"Jiu-ge, you should really try being nicer to Liu-shidi. Having looked at him long enough, this one can tell he's just emotionally constipated. The man has barely considered an emotion in his life."

Shen Jiu raises an eyebrow, the Heart Demon in the Mirror prattling on as they comb through their hair.

It was a habit he already had, but this ritual has new meaning to him now.

The Mirror Demon doesn't always mimic his movements. Sometimes he defies his actions and does something else, but when he does something harmless, like caring for his body, they move in sync, like a dance to a song only they can hear.

It reminds Shen Jiu of swans, necks bent and turning in tandem.

"He's a thorn in my side."

"He's just trying to feel you out after you let him take that disciple you both wanted. Which, you were very gracious to let him do that, Shen Jiu. Besides, this one doesn't think you would've had much enjoyment with the little one running around. Your hands are full enough with the current children, especially since you've decided to take on a more hands-on approach with them."

Shen Jiu scoffs. "You're the one who suggested it."

"Which, this reflection only did because I believe you have much more to teach them directly!"

The Mirror Demon opens his eyes where he'd had them closed, his irises an inexplicable green, somewhere between moss and malachite. Shen Jiu's are slate, with frown lines seemingly etched in place. The Mirror Demon has many expressions, a swath of them, like the guilty amusement making him push out his lower lip as he continues explaining himself. It makes Shen Jiu's face look like it belongs to someone else. It feels like someone else entirely.

Someone better.

"You learned so much from your time in the streets—and I know you don't like to talk about it. You don't even have to mention or reference it. But this is the peak of the arts and strategy, and knowing how the world works in its darkest places is imperative for that, isn't it? Your experience is perfect for that role, moreso than anyone else."

His Mirror sways his head as Shen Jiu does, switching the side their hair is on and returning to combing oil into it so it's shiny and smooth. Shen Jiu's gaze lingers on the long curve of his Mirror's lithe neck.

"Your survival is nothing to be ashamed of, no matter what anyone else says."

"...Hmh."

"Don't you 'hmh' me, I mean it!"

"In what world is it good for an immortal to be sly and vindictive?"

"This one, clearly. I mean, I'm still quite pleased with how you handled the complaint from Huan Hua regarding 'training ground infractions'. Which, what kind of bullshit was that, anyway? There are villages full of people who need help, and their disciples hadn't cleared out the Viper Ocelot-Lizards in over two months, and it was right around time for hatching season, so of course there was going to be a problem! It only made sense for you to interfere in their sloppy—"

His Mirror continues, praising him for his technical subterfuge and the tonguelashing he gave those children, then the higher ups that came after those children went crying to them. Of course, back then, he and the Mirror had questioned why a semi-demonic creature was so close to a border between two immortal sects in the first place, leading to further investigations and border monitoring that continue to this day. But, it was the thought that someone else was on the same wavelength as him that really calmed Shen Jiu while Yue Qingyuan and the others questioned his insistence as needling until they too finally understood, some begrudgingly, that he was in the right.

Someone saw him and was pleased. Even if that someone looked like himself.

That someone was a better, kinder version of himself. Someone he could never be no matter how much the Mirror coaxed him with honeyed words and subtle nudging that he knew the other was doing.

That someone mimicked his movements, but in increasingly imperfect ways, the timing still just right regardless.

Loose and relaxed at the wrists. Shoulders light. Back a little hunched until he remembered to straighten it when Shen Jiu moved.

Separate, different, but with him.

His in a way no one else has ever been.

And all he has to do to get a little gratitude is egg him on, and it spills from his lips as easily as air.

Soft. Weak. Would such a silk-made thing survive outside of the mirror?

It's an inexplicable feeling. The desire to keep him in place and take him out of it one and the same.

"Jiu-ge?"

He blinks.

Shen Jiu didn't realize he had stopped combing his hair until just then, his left hand on the mirror. His Mirror's right hand mimics his, fingers separated by a pane of glass and a sliver of reality.

"Are you okay?"

...No, not one and the same.

"...Hmh."

His Mirror frowns as Shen Jiu pulls his hand away, grabbing a cloth with which to wipe his own oily finger prints clear.

"Again with the 'hmh'. You're starting to sound like Liu Qingge, you know."

"Excuse me?"

"Heh, that is more like it. Use your words, Jiu-ge."

"You use them plenty enough for the both of us. There's barely a moment since I've come to notice you where you shut your mouth."

"Hey!"

drawing shit I took screenshot of in dvawtk until I get my copy of book one, day 12

I love theeeeeeem and they love each otherrrrr

novel excerpt under cut

what type of milk do you think the lads men would be?

i think zayne would be like an vanilla sweetened almond milk but im not sure, please let me know ur thoughts 🙏

oh this is everything to me ok SO

xavier is one of two (choose ur fave) either he is the super sweet milk left over after finishing a bowl of cereal OR he is a glass of warm milk that has had multiple freshly baked chocolate chip cookies dunked into it

zayne is a pretty glass of super cold milk that’s been mixed with chocolate syrup to make chocolate milk. this IS different than regular store-bought chocolate milk. the added labor is important ^^

rafayel is coconut milk with a hint of cherry or strawberry juice, very much reminiscent of a refresher or smoothie base

sylus is steamed half and half that’s prepped for a breve beverage of some kind (i love breves sue me), super creamy, rich, sweet, and (somewhat) unorthodox in the grand scheme of things

caleb is banana milk but specifically a carton that’s not really all that cold and drank on a spring day

drawing shit I took screenshot of in dvawtk until I get my copy of book one, day 10

Have I said I love this woman? I love this woman. I swear, this novel might be a danmei but it has the BEST of female characters

ALSO, according to nebelland's latest estimates, today is the first possible day for the book to arrive. The real countdown begins!

novel excerpt under cut

Least unhinged Wenrenjiang interaction:

WRE: If I die, you can kys ❤️

Fan translation of the whole book

link to buy vol 1 of official translation

Join us

"Take the people who can be saved away for treatment, and when they’re half-healed, I’ll toss them back into the fight. No one who’s still breathing gets to slack off.”

Ch 13. excellent medical ethics. Top marks.

"Do you love the natural spiritual energy you cultivate with?”

also ch 13. Fun because a lot of the time the answer is yes. I love the home-made bread that sustains me and the car that takes me where I need to go. It's actually remarkably difficult not to love the things that help you. Not loving people is easier, because the people have their own motivations and hidden thoughts. (Like this asshole!)

“This book tells the story of a romance,” Wenren È said, in summary, then changed his mind and said, “This book led this Venerable to consider Protector Yin in a new light.”

ch 17 no possible confusion here

“Altar Master Qiu, now that you’ve grown a brain again, you should see Protector Shu sometime and learn how to use it. Don’t let it go to waste.”

ch 20. beautiful. no notes

"He didn’t kneel, instead facing Wenren È directly and saying in a clear voice, “Yin Hanjiang understands.”

No longer “this subordinate”, just “Yin Hanjiang”."

ch 24 - important steps!

"Yin Hanjiang didn’t understand love either. The only strong emotions he’d felt in his life were for Wenren È. It wasn’t just because Wenren È had once saved him, but that Wenren È represented all of Yin Hanjiang’s hopes and dreams."

ch 30 - excellent job of not understanding love. A+

“I don’t know what’s so good about shixiong. I just know that if he was in a crowd, my eyes would pick him out instantly. If he’s happy, I’m happy. If he’s unhappy, then I can’t bear it. I would be willing to give up everything for him to live a blissful life. I don’t know when I started liking him either. I suppose… it’s one of those loves that takes you unawares, and before you know it, you’re deep in its clutches.”

...

Wenren È pointed out the passage to Yin Hanjiang. “This is what we need. If we can accomplish these three things, Zhongli Qian should fall in love with her.”

He wrote them down and carefully considered each of them.

The first was to pick the other person instantly out of a crowd. He could put the tracking spell on Zhongli Qian and Baili Qingmiao. If each had the other’s blood dripped into their eyes, they would only be able to see each other.

The second was being happy when the other person was happy, and sad when they were sad. He could have Altar Master Miao put heart-linking parasites in them, so that wherever they were, they would always feel each other’s emotions.

The third one—love takes you unawares, and before you know it, you’re deep in its clutches—was a bit harder. He wasn’t quite clear on the meaning. For now, he decided to focus on the first two, and consider the third some other time.

ch 30 - very hinged, absolutely infallible

"Did the Venerable consider defying his orders “dependable”? In that case, it made sense how Protector Shu had maintained her position. When it came to acting behind Wenren È’s back, he, Miao Qiuqing, really could not hold a candle."

ch 33 - this is reminding me of how Transformers fanfic talks about Megatron and Starscream

---

C 51 I liked the mask reveal. And the (hopefully) end of one of the more annoying plot lines.

"This story’s title should be changed to “The Readers Also Want to Know”

 C56 I love the title drops in this story

Ever since he had picked up that child and told him to practice the sword, Wenren È had been filling him with his own notions, but it hadn’t been what Yin Hanjiang wanted.

C 56 

Wenren È was always direct and had crushed all his problems with force in the past, so he had never felt helpless like this before. It felt as though he was using strength enough to lift a mountain, to pick up a needle and embroider a flower.

C 59 a good description of human interactions 

Gesturing to his lips, he said, “He was stealing your spiritual essence through your mouth. Sect Leader, you must check the Violet Palace of your dantian. He may have done something underhanded, 

C 64 Yes. Very underhanded. Thoroughly unwanted. Should kill now. 

are you just intoxicated by the feeling of infatuation?"

C65 - no notes. This one needs an essay. 

The words that awakened her were “willing to give up everything”. She had always used this to justify her feelings. Subconsciously, she thought that she had given up so much for Hè Wenzhao, she’d been so good to him, she loved him so much, so how could he treat her like this? It wasn’t fair.

But right now, she suddenly realized that it felt like she hadn’t done much for Hè Wenzhao at all.

C66 - yes! I like the story calling out the way that we let the narrative 'Mr nice guy' people for us.

With some things and some people, the more you invest and commit to them, the more you want to be repaid, and if you aren’t, you become unable to let go. 

C66

even the perpetually oblivious Wenren È had learned to be a bit more considerate after causing his lover to cough up blood and nearly die

C67

Zhongli Qian was like a brick for the Xuanyuan Sect, which could be moved wherever it was necessary, very convenient.

c 70 - every office has one

“How could the Venerable be wrong?” Yin Hanjiang lifted his head, his eyes filled with admiration.

“Is this how you’ve seen me all this time?” Wenren È smiled and flicked his nose. “No wonder I’m the phantom least like myself in your eyes.”

c 74

Yin Hanjiang knew that these people were only his Venerable’s memories. His Venerable’s buried memories turned out to be so gentle.

c 74 - I like the way the story acknowledges that you need to have experienced love and gentleness to give it

Right now, Yin Hanjiang no longer wished to be Wenren È’s yes-man. He wanted to stand in front of Ah-Wu

c 79 - I like how clear and consistent this language shift is

Each of the readers acted as if they were proud to see their first daughter grow up.

c 80 - it has been fun watching the author use the 'reader comments' to shape how they want their actual readers to respond...

“Our story is the same. From the viewpoints of different people, it’s reflected in different worlds. Thus, no book in no world has the entire story, only the perspective of a certain person.

“If I have to give a judgment on both books...

c 80 - it's fascinating how direct a morality tale this is. I always liked Alcott (except for little women - try Jack and Jill), and I feel like despite the fantasy there's a lot of similarity here in the way they present their ethics

There. You won and I have passed on the recommendation to others, so that I may also have a chance to win.

Least unhinged Wenrenjiang interaction:

WRE: If I die, you can kys ❤️

I’m really happy to be able to work with you on this, so thank you very much!!