this fic decided that the abyss has creepy twisted trees that are ugly like deep-sea fish countless thorny blades, spinning whirlpools of wind, lava-encased ceaselessly-exploding boulders--they're having fun with descriptions
i read a little more and there's paragraphs about how binghe resents his shizun and wants to get his revenge and how he still remembers the look on his face when he tossed him into the abyss when is he gonna find fox shizun
i like this part near the end that says he'd hated ming fan and the others but he'd constantly been making up excuses for why shizun treated him the way he did
this says half of binghe is saying if he wants me to die then i'll grant his wish and die here, the other half is saying fight back, force him to look at you, force him to accept you, make him kneel before you, unable to ever again speak an unkind or rejecting word to you
and then a third tiny part of him says he's gotta make his way back and see if maybe, just maybe.....if there might be some other painful reason that shizun just won't discuss
copypasting means parts of this look like they're cut from conversations but that's because i'm easily distracted and not because i'm skipping anything
binghe's thinking more depressing thoughts about how shizun thinks he's no different from these demonic beasts, etc etc oh look a small fluffy animal a red fox! staring at him in fear
oh apparently it's been following him since he first woke up down here he's guessing it's somebody's pet fox that fell in with him oh the giant spike-tailed monster corpse that fell from the sky earlier almost hit fox-chan and that's why he bumped into binghe just now the lesser of two evils(?)
binghe has been ignoring this fox because he's too busy going through his emo goth phase he uses his broken sword to cut open his palm! and then yells at the fox to leave him alone!! the fox is shocked!!! judging by its reaction he's guessing it got the message but then the fox gets angry and starts yapping at him
sadly foxes don't sound scary at all...whatsover i'm glad the author mentions this oh the fox yaps, seems to realize its yapping sounds ridiculous, shuts up, slaps a dirty paw on binghe's leg, then runs away
and that fox is very small and cute and weak gonna die for sure but what's the difference! between him and some weak spirit pet! in this abyss where literally everything is dangerous! mope mope crawling in my skin etc he's 17
when he discovered binghe was a demon three days ago, one possible choice he could make was to kill him and thus avoid getting accused of associating with demons in secretly harboring one on qingjing peak, or he could just toss him back into the demon realm to go back to wherever the heck he came from and they'll never see each other again
so without a second thought, he sheathed xiuya and shoved this kid off the cliff and then it says "sorry, it's true that i'm not that kind of loving and forgiving shizun who gives his all to his disciples, but who let you be so unlucky as to run into me huh, just accept your own bad luck there"
narration: "he didn't bother considering the fact that this disciple was one he'd actively stolen out of liu qingge's hands, or that he was the first to ruin someone else's good luck, and now he had the gall to use luck as an excuse to wash his hands of it all"
then just as he was turning to leave a sudden force from who-knows-where wrapped itself around his waist and dragged him towards the abyss and then he tripped over one of the big rocks by the cliff and started tumbling down and down and down-
when he wakes up he's sitting surrounded by sharp rocks and there's a big round moon in the sky and there's some sort of bestial roars coming from the spooky woods and despite everything he's gone through in his life he has to admit this is pretty scary? so he summons xiuy oh wait he's a fox
he's been deprived of family, of faith, of the chance to cultivate, so that he can never in his life ever reach the heights he could have and now god has stripped him of even the qualifications to live the rest of his life in human form
and now he's like this is nothing, he's survived all sorts of terrible despair-filled excruciating environments, he can handle this!! it's just a bunch of brainless beasts, there's nothing to be afraid of! he can totally find some way to kill them all and escape!
he's used to going around all by himself anyway, who cares if he'll never see that bunch of annoying noisy people back at cangqiong, he sure won't miss 'em! this isn't actually written with exclamation marks, that's all me
it says he walks for a while (away from the howling) and sees countless different lava-filled scenic areas nobody's ever heard of in the human realm, and then goes back to where he started, and is like hm well maybe this is tougher than i thought (where's the exit)
and then he steps on something alive it says despite all his hot air earlier he knows perfectly well that he is a weak little creature not even a foot long without an ounce of spiritual energy and would die on the spot if he ran into any monsters but to his surprise, whatever he stepped on does not immediately jump up and rip him to shreds and devour him
jiu just like it says it's very difficult to describe how he feels right now about this kid he's spent so many years calling a little beast he doesn't like binghe! and thinks it's very unfair that he didn't also get turned into a small animal! but binghe is also a human being, and somebody he knows at that i almost wrote human bing
it says in this jungle of an abyss with danger spreading endlessly in every direction, when compared with all those beasts that know nothing but to roar and rip each other to shreds and eat the flesh of their enemies, he can't help feeling a sense of security and intimacy at the sight of binghe
especially considering he has no means of defending himself, and binghe is a human being who for the moment might be headed in the same direction as him best choice would be to stick close
he suddenly remembers yingying shaking his arm and telling him over and over again that a-luo is a good person, he's very kind, he's just been framed by ming fan and the others, etc etc he hopes, just a little, that what she said was true after all, in his current form who's to say an unkind binghe might just skin and eat him
and then jiu suddenly realizes that maybe binghe's kindness isn't actually important, because in the entire time since he dropped him into the abyss this disciple of his hasn't moved an inch did he die.....
it says in all fairness, although he doesn't want binghe to have an easy time of things, and purposely tripped him up a good few times, he never actually wanted the kid to die
so now foxjiu is lying on binghe, feeling as his body gets colder beneath him, and for a moment doesn't know whether to be happy at this extremely annoying heaven-blessed child's terrible fate or to bemoan the fact the only person capable of helping him is probably gonna get eaten by monsters any minute now, or to feel remorse...for having ruined his life
opens up foxjiu again--i like that it says binghe appears to have fallen behind this very large rock which perfectly hides him from any potential predators and that's how he's been able to stay knocked out so long truly a protag halo
oh there's a monster bone stuck in binghe, and jiu's worried if he lets it bleed out the smell will attract more monsters, so he...has to use his teeth to pull it out and oh gosh it smells so bad he's dying
and then he proceeds to somehow manage to wrap the injury with binghe's own ripped shirt, and then gather a bunch of dead branches and leaves to make a tiny shelter sort of thing this took over two shichen because he's a fox
his gums are sore using your mouth for everything sure is tough it says binghe's got a lot more than just the one stab wound but y'know what, he doesn't care what doesn't kill you won't make foxes worry jiu took a moment to admire his own heroic deed he feels very proud of himself
he thinks to himself "alright little beast, i've raised you almost ten years, and today i've done everything i possibly could to help you, so from tomorrow on it's your turn to repay my kindness"
he's being a good guy here it says by the time binghe woke up on the third day jiu had already gotten used to this fuzzy-tailed body (the author really likes reminding you how fluffy soft he is)
as a fox he's doing great at avoiding any pitfalls and getting out of danger a master of hiding in the woods although if he was still a sword-wielding cultivator he wouldn't need to hide to begin with there's always gotta be a downside, huh jiu glass half empty
when binghe wakes up jiu rolls right off him because he'd been sleeping on top of him....nights in the abyss are very cold apparently even with his fluffy fox body the bone-chilling cold and terrifying demonic energy coming at him from every direction were too much so he gave up on day one and started sleeping on binghe
binghe is very warm, it says he's got that hot-blooded youthful energy, and demonic spiritual energy that's currently working actively to heal him, which means he's basically a living heater
binghe threw him off without thinking upon waking up and is now staring dazedly ahead while jiu glares angrily at him from where he'd rolled to a stop because hey he was sleeping!! show some gratitude!!
binghe is ignoring him.....binghe pulled apart the grass pile jiu had put so much effort into building and is now walking away jiu follows behind him thinking he was right all along, binghe is a self-centered shameless little brat absolutely nothing like yingying said he manages to toss a rock at binghe but gets no reaction and then binghe kneels!
this tear is the straw that broke the camel's back, it says after struggling to survive for three whole days in this horrendously terrifying place he has to admit that maybe dropping the little beast down here by himself might have been a little too cruel binghe says "he wants me to die" and jiu's like :0 :<
the look on binghe's face shows a level of despair he's never seen before! also hate he has no idea what kind of person binghe is and never bothered to find out but binghe had always been pretty well-behaved around him, y'know, and he'd even noticed an irritating amount of respect and admiration why did admiration annoy him? don't ask
anyway this is the first time he's ever seen binghe look so hateful it says he knows binghe has a million reasons to hate him, and personally if someone threw him into this hell more terrifying than asura he'd absolutely hate them enough to rip them to pieces
he'd originally been wavering over whether or not to let binghe know his true identity, because even if admitting that he - the genuine article xiuya sword - had turned into a totally helpless little beast was really incredibly embarrassing, in a scary place like this the deterrent force of his shizun status might be able to protect him
if things really got dangerous then he might as well say it, right.... except now things are uh binghe's grip is practically about to break that fan in half
jiu goes around binghe and quietly nestles on the rock behind him the name of this fic is "i have a little fox" which sounds a little cuter in chinese for no particular reason other than i think it does
oohhhh wait i think this is timeline-wise going back to the beginning when awake binghe told the fox to get lost jiu is running! to the monster roar-filled forest! it says the discomfort he feels from running so hard over the rocky ground is nothing compared to his Anger and Embarrassment he is cursing out binghe in his head lots of curses all the curses!!!
it says he'd done everything he could to take care of binghe while he lay unconscious for three straight days binghe had almost died a good few times during that, it says and then after he woke up jiu had even dropped his pride enough to follow the kid around
but ever since waking up all he got from binghe was indifference and a closed-off expression and eventually he gets yelled at to leave and y'know what maybe he wasn't meant to be a good person that's what this is telling him
it says in the decades he's been alive, if he did anything bad then he'd absolutely get paid back 100-fold, so that his situation would end up even worse than he was before but if he shows benevolence and kind-heartedness then all he gets is verbal abuse
admittedly liuliu didn't appreciate him either being good sucks so jiu as he's running is thinking to himself he should've just stabbed that little beast to death
next scene: he's run into the forest! deeper and deeper he goes! it says he's focusing on nothing but cursing and hating and rejecting that little bit of grievance he refuses to admit he feels
i can never think of a good english phrase for 委屈 the dictionary says "to feel wronged" and yeah it's like, when your feelings are hurt? his feelings are hurt yes
it says he doesn't even realize he's about to step into an incredibly dangerous area his sense of direction has been impacted by the black sky, his body completely lacking any spiritual energy, and the complicated feelings exploding in his chest but also even if he had a sense of direction it wouldn't be any use here
the next part is him having a staring contest with a giant centipede with humongous red eyes when crawling on the ground, this bug is about as tall as a human there is green acid dripping from its open mouth the description of the fox, meanwhile, is a cute and fragile stuffed doll
jiu stares at this giant centipede, centers his breathing, turns his gaze out behind the centipede there's a lot more centipedes he's accidentally run into a nest there's a "heh" in the narration
luckily only the one has noticed him so far and it hasn't done anything but stare at him it says he's killed a lot of demons and ghosts and the like in his time, but none have terrified or disgusted him so much as the creatures in the abyss if he had xiuya with him right now! he'd kill every last one of these disgusting things!
it says "but the cultivation and spiritual energy he'd been so proud of that had been with him for so long, that he'd shed blood, sweat and tears to train for a majority of his life, after falling off the cliff and turning into a beast, had completely disappeared without a trace"
jiu is angrily thinking this and also the fact that he's probably gonna get turned into food or - even worse - a toy then the centipede lifts up its two barbed front legs and rubs them together, like a starving gourmand or innocent child looking forward to the delicious meal set out before them
jiu veeeeeeery slowly backs up a couple steps, then suddenly knocks the scattered rocks in front of him into the centipede's big round eyes and makes a break for it the only sharp things he's got on him now are his claws and teeth, and his fuzzy soft paws probably wouldn't be able to pierce the thing's hide anyway
he fights off a wave of dizziness to struggle and break the spikes stabbed into his body, and squeezes himself into a crack in the nearby rocks surely a bug that big can't get in here! he hasn't eaten anything in three days and is exhausted it says
after getting his blood sucked and probably also injected with some poison or other he can barely keep himself awake judging by the sounds outside he's guessing the whole nest has learned of his presence by now
if he doesn't escape now either he'll die squished in this hole or he'll get ripped to shreds and devoured by a pile of centipedes he's managed to make it through all sorts of pain and suffering and humiliation in his life, he's gotta make it through this too!!
he bites his tongue to wake himself up and starts tottering farther into the cave it's darker in here than it was outside and he has no idea where he's going... he can hear the echoes of all sorts of sounds he can't for the life of him discern, all of which are stressing him out
....foxjiu! is focusing straight ahead and walking and walking and walking and walking and when his limbs have completely lost the energy to move and his fluffy short legs have turned into stiff, sore iron sticks covered in bubbles, he finally sees a light in the distance
it says if jiu still had the energy to think he'd know that suddenly revealing himself in the light would put him in even more danger than before but he's too tired....and too desperate for that tiny bit of light reminiscent of the human world three days ago already feels like a lifetime to him
back when he was human he used to hate the light and his foolish fellows, but now that tiny bit of warm yellow light makes him tremble with joy that part about hating light could possibly have a double meaning? since it translates to "1. bright; well-lit, 2. bright; promising, 3. open-hearted; guileless"
anyway he sees that light and can't help thinking, maybe.....maybe if he walks out there, he'll have returned to the human realm? so he grits his teeth and makes the leap out only to discover this is a cliff and the light was from lava down below jiu turns around again
the centipedes he'd hoped to have shaken off by now have instead surrounded him this entire mountain is apparently vampire centipede territory they all lift their front legs in unison and rub them together, as if it's some sort of signal, or a song sung before the sacrifice he has nowhere to run
at juedi gorge, binghe had been pushed back against the cliff by the suddenly intruding monsters, using his broken sword to support his bleeding body as he kneeled on the ground and begged jiu, only to have him push him down below but now it's jiu's turn to get backed into a corner
part 8: something grabs his tail a great start jiu looks up to see a handsome teen with a red mark on his forehead wow he released a burst of demonic energy and it sliced all the bugs in half there's a huge white full moon hanging behind him
it says the moonlight is bright enough that the little fox can see every last detail of his face jiu's heart skips a beat- binghe's so powerful....even at a time like this, he still can't help envying binghe's natural-born strength
it says he'd been hiding for three days, constantly on the run, surrounded through what was clearly the will of the heavens, and had thought he was doomed for good suddenly his feelings are hurt again he doesn't want binghe to save him
it says maybe he can't bite through those demons' thick hides, but surely he can injure this little beast's normal flesh body right? jiu bites down hard! he can totally rip off a piece of meat if he tries!! binghe does not let go
now that jiu's no longer hanging upside-down he feels a little safer...he sticks his head out of binghe's shirt to discover that oh, not only did binghe not kill all the centipedes, there's even more showing up
there's more and more centipedes coming over, crawling over their comrades' dead bodies, the sounds of their pitterpattering feet making his skin crawl there's too many!
even with binghe's surprisingly amazing talent, there's no way he can face off against a billion of these things! binghe's sword is broken so he can't fight with that either
it says he used demonic energy to clear out a path and then made a run for it pressed up against binghe's chest, all jiu can hear is the steady thrum of his heartbeat why is this fic so cute
anyway! binghe erects a barrier at the entrance to this cave he's stopped in, then summons a fire because he's not a non-magical fox it's a small cave with only the one exit so they're safe for the moment jiu is huddled in binghe's lap and shaking all over
it says that unlike the pain of getting beaten and whipped as a child, this pain drives straight down into his flesh, like his innards are being devoured, or like there's a hand reached in and messing with his heart with the intent to rip him apart from the inside is this from the centipede poison
binghe's sitting cross-legged on the ground, not saying a word as he holds down jiu's neck and pulls the barb right out of his--it never said exactly where in his body this barb stabbed but anyway he pulled it out and the narration's like "couldn't you at least give a guy a warning first?"
jiu shudders from pain and lets out a tiny whine and almost bites binghe's hand again now that he's no longer in immediate life-threatening danger, rather than feeling grateful for having been saved, he's starting to feel like all the horrible things that have happened to him these past few days should all be blamed on binghe
jiu moves his stiff, sore front paws, but before he can actually do any sort of revenge and vent out his frustration he suddenly realizes something's not right binghe's burning up he looks up and sees that binghe's leaning against the wall with his eyes shut tight and he can't tell if he's sleeping or fainted
binghe's skin is pallid, his lips are dry, the only bit of color in his face besides the scratches and blood is the wavering and increasingly brilliant little demon mark on his forehead jiu is very sure this isn't a good sign
oh when he was fighting monsters at the tournament he'd gotten an injury that went straight down to the bone and he never got treatment for that because there's no doctors in the abyss
there's also a scratch from some creature or other on binghe's wrist that is still bleeding and the place jiu bit earlier just happened to have been on that injury so binghe's bleeding pretty badly here!
no wonder he's been using his left hand all this time, thinks jiu jiu slides his gaze over to see what little he can manage of binghe's back--he's leaning with his side against the wall and his back is covered all over in different-sized....syringe-like things, which i remember they used to describe something from the centipedes earlier
he'd been nestled in binghe's shirt that whole time and didn't hear him make a single sound of pain, so he'd honestly thought this heaven-blessed child really was just that lucky
binghe's mouth moves! it seems like he's saying something? jiu moves closer binghe is mumbling in his sleep! he said shizun author's note: the map and monsters for the abyss are taken from elder scrolls online
he can't actually say for sure how many days have passed what with the lack of a proper night or day and the uncertainty of time and space around here but he's still making an educated guess it's been ten days! and binghe has been awake for a total of ten shichen overall he's burning up!
it says jiu is trapped in this little cave with this never-ending call resonating in his ears, like a patient but stubborn monk nervously tapping a wooden fish right by his ear, incessantly inquiring, absolutely refusing to let him go he's annoying or annoyed? he's annoyed shut up
their little cave is halfway down the mountain, on a tiny, narrow stretch of grass he's guessing the lack of monsters and bugs and things is because this is a very rocky cliff area there's just a few stray grasses growing here
apparently it's the full moon all day and all night down here there's a nice description of how the cold moonlight shining on the vegetation makes the grasses look like metal blades dancing in the wind
the little fox takes a water bottle that he'd dug out of binghe's qiankun pouch and stops in front of--some sort of tree maybe? with very large leaves and starts shaking it with his paws! to try to fill the bottle with dew because that's all the water available around here
it says ever since falling down here the only liquids he's ever seen are magma and blood binghe's still out cold and he's afraid to go too far from him so every day when the temperature has just begun to rise he'll run out and shake all the nearby large plants
then when he's confirmed that there's not a drop left for him to shake down, he carefully laps up a few mouthfuls for himself because wow his throat sure is dry oh his mouth is sore from carrying stuff in his mouth so often
oh there's like, a leather clasp or something on this waterbottle so for going back he uses that to carry the full bottle on his back there's a line that's like "how great, this venerable one has already gotten completely used to this little beast's body"
he's looking! for medicinal herbs! once again he blames everything on binghe i like that he calls binghe a little beast but he also calls himself a little beast they're both little beasts together
anyway today binghe's problem is that the only things in his inventory are his broken sword, the water bottle, two and a half hotcakes and a folding fan and the fan is jiu's of course who could believe that there'd be such a fool in this world brave enough to participate in the immortal alliance conference empty-handed and totally alone?
considering getting on the board at the tournament allows nameless unknown cultivators to display their talent, dazzle the entirety of the cultivation world, and even raise the power and status of whichever sect they represent, the participants all spare no effort on preparation and leave no loose ends
each sect has a limit to how many disciples they can send, and those disciples have to first go through many levels of selection before getting the go-ahead
so most of the kids who get chosen are naturally the ones with the most talent, the teachers' pets that have been trained with utmost care when they arrive they're totally covered in spiritual tools, their pouches full of medicines and spell seals
so jiu's mentally cursing him out like umm there's this phrase that translates to "boldness of execution stems from superb skill" you sure are that, binghe! must be real confident!
i like how when you read fics with jiu in them some people have him actively harrassing binghe, a lot of english writers try to excuse his actions because of course they do, then there's this one going "no he just straight-up neglected him"
actually the funny thing is in the beginning part where you got to see binghe's hot topic whining he was blaming jiu as actively participating in the harassment and it was definitely jiu who gave him that faulty manual
it says trying to find familiar and useful plants in a place like this where literally nothing is familiar is not easy! luckily jiu read his fill of scriptures as a disciple and then got access to cangqiong mountain's 1 library after becoming peak lord so his knowledge of herbs and plants and medicines could rival mumu
this grass he's picking now is apparently about as common as weeds back in the human realm, and about as valuable but at the very least it has a tiny bit of healing properties so i guess this is like newbie level healing herbs in a video game thanks airplane
jiu's sitting here thinking are there really no convenient tools around anywhere he kinda half-spaces out for a good long while before finally sucking in a deep breath, doing a cute little stomp with his feet, quickly cleans his claws on his fur, and then starts carving the rotting flesh off binghe's arm
the little fox sticks out his tongue and Leaps! far away those herbs taste Absolutely Disgusting they're giving him goosebumps gross oh his fur all stuck up poof
there's a big white space in here and then a bunch of dots and then jiu shakes his fur and nobly and elegantly sits down in a very proper manner you saw nothing
binghe doesn't react though...not only does he not show any sign of feeling the intense pain of his injury and the earlier treatment of it but he's also basically ignoring the cute fox that was just spinning in circle and then pretending like nothing happened
he uses his broken sword to push himself up and hobble out of the cave, looking like he might fall over at any minute his dark eyes staring steadfastly forwards are like a tenacious lone wolf waiting in the shadows for its prey, but also like a dispirited traveler with nowhere to go and no home to return to
aaaand now he's spitting out blood coughing it up the noise he's making is like a falling-apart bellows on its last legs and then he collapses! things are looking great in this fic
and then the little fox jumps forward to block the entrance and stop him from totally murdering himself because jiu worked very hard here!!! don't ruin it!!! oh jiu only just now realized why binghe's injuries are so bad it's not that he couldn't avoid all the attacks and dangers that came at him, it's that he didn't even bother to dodge
when binghe first woke up down below the cliff he'd just walked straight ahead without paying attention to where he was going, headed who-knows-where, seemingly not even noticing the broken limbs and flaming rocks falling around him and now, having just woken up, unable even to stand properly, the first thing he did was try to throw himself out there to die
so binghe's lying here, quietly looking at the little fox stubbornly staring at him with eyes that are practically blazing wipes the blood off his mouth with the back of his hand "i didn't ask you to save me"
rude!!!!! he is described as having flecks of blood on his teeth which, in the pale light of the setting moon, make him look like a monster who's just finished eating a child there's another saying here that translates to "take an honest man's heart for a donkey's liver and lungs" totally just stomping on jiu's goodwill here
jiu has been holding back his temper for over a week and this is the final straw if it weren't for the fact he can't talk he'd be cursing him out so bad right now
"who're you putting on this act for, of abandoning yourself to despair and begging wholeheartedly for death? aren't you supposed to hate me, then pull yourself out of this damn place and come get your revenge on me"
it says jiu was acting very bossy just now but if he actually managed to irritate binghe there's no way he could fight back he quietly backs away, thinking you little brat, you better not actually be thinking of taking advantage of this fox's difficulties to cook and eat me "taking advantage of a person's difficulties" is an idiom
binghe bends down and picks up the fan, brushing off the dirt and blood with something approaching gentleness, then reaches over and scoops up the fox they both stare at each other if he wasn't around, this little fox would die
in the 10+ years that binghe's been alive it's a very rare thing for him to have been rescued by a creature who at the same time relies on him to this extent
he's a kid who was abandoned by his parents in an icy river in the middle of winter whenever people said his name, there was a little voice reminding him that he was something that had been abandoned the only person who'd ever chosen not to abandon him was his adopted mother, who washed other people's clothes for a living
and his adopted mother had died because of her efforts to buy that fake jade for him aside from the occasional girls who approached for his good looks, there wasn't a single person who'd ever accepted or even taken notice of him jiu, whose opinion he cared so much about, didn't even seem to see him
after chasing off the fox in chapter one he'd walked a little ways before suddenly noticing the strip of cloth wrapped around his abdomen and realizing it must have saved his life this was the first time he'd ever been rescued by another living creature, so he turned back and pulled that fox out just as it was falling into another abyss
while he was passed out in the cave he'd also had a dream about jiu he'd dreamed that jiu was feeding him water and pulling the barbs out of his back and spreading medicinal herbs on his injuries
having only recently broken the seal on his demon mark, he felt as if he was getting drawn and quartered by hate and desire, any struggle or persistence was just too painful, painful to the point that he had countless times wanted to just give up on the spot
but in his absent-minded daze it seemed like he really could sense jiu's chilly yet warm scent, and so had struggled once more into wakefulness in hopes of seeing his shizun one more time but there was no jiu
just a very ornery fox binghe kneels down on the ground, holding that folding fan, a fluffy red fox in his arms, and buries his face in its fur jiu freezes up
he can feel a shuddering hot wet something soaking through his fluffy fur, dripping down little by little, and getting his skin wet binghe's crying again.... end of 3
jiu is a very capable person who can do teamwork just fine when he has to, he just isn't good at recognizing anyone as a friend or ally or anything else worthy of paying attention to for any reason other than threat level
and then there's a flashback to three years ago, where on the way to somewhere for training yingying demanded they take a break and then immediately latched onto binghe, which made ming fan jealous, so he ordered binghe to chop firewood and catch and cook fish for everyone
i feel like this flashback is from the skinner incident, binghe's horseless binghe's disciple clothes have patches on them, his shoes have been worn through, there's bits of blood on the toes when ming fan gives the order he looks over at jiu, who's standing by the riverside and showing no intention of stepping in
maybe because he's favoured by the gods, even in this sad and dusty shape he still stands tall and straight and bright as he gets to fishing, looking abominably attractive jiu hates it
ming fan's such a jerk in this flashback he and his toadies are making fun of binghe while he cooks this fresh-caught fish, saying all he's good for is serving people and he sucks at cultivation and should quit before he shames his parents though they go quiet when they smell the fish cooking....
jiu meanwhile is sitting with his eyes closed and doesn't look up until binghe calls binghe places an absolutely delicious-looking fish before him, and after a moment of silence jiu tells him to take it away with a voice of disgust
back to the present, foxjiu swallows these cooked pieces of hard and sour monster flesh, the image of that fish floating up into his mind, and regrets not eating it back then after binghe hugged his fox and had a good cry he finally regained the will to live and stopped trying to get himself killed
it says the only thing available to eat in the area was vampire centipede so binghe hunted one and tried to cook it but his first attempt was a failure maybe because of the lack of seasonings, or maybe because his injuries made it difficult to control his strength, but it came out half-burned, half-raw gross
binghe is devalued by everyone around him but at the very least he's getting experience certain other people aren't aw it says jiu's disciple is a very smart and highly talented individual his second attempt was absolutely perfect
he's never tasted anything so disgusting in his life even the most rotten food he ever managed to beg as a child on the streets was a delicacy compared to this but binghe then eats the rest without a single change in expression jiu wonders if something's wrong with his sense of taste
for a moment he seriously considers the possibility that binghe knows his true identity and is disgusting him on purpose foxjiu gags some more, as if trying to throw up all his stomach juices, then turns around with his tail all puffed out to bother binghe in revenge(?) but binghe has already curled up by the wall and fallen asleep
the light of the big round moon shines down through the trees onto his pale face the little fox stands next to him for a while, and ultimately does not scratch him awake after thinking for a moment, he turns around and kicks that now-cold piece of meat off to a corner, like he's venting an honest man does not accept handouts
this venerable one would rather starve to death than eat something so disgusting the next day jiu is so weak from hunger that he barely has the energy to open his eyes he looks dazedly out at the blurry cave entrance and thinks, if i die i die, maybe i'll get reborn back at qingjing peak
but before he can escape his mortal shell and return to the cycle of rebirth, something hard gets dropped in front of him he looks down to see that it's a hotcake the sad thing is, it's the Last hotcake he thinks to himself, once he eats this cake, he and binghe won't get another chance to taste food from the human world for a very long time
the tiny fox blinks, pushes himself up in a sitting position, and takes a tiny bite this cake has been sitting for a while and is now as hard as a rock he breaks that bite apart with his sharp back teeth, swallows it into his empty stomach, and feels tears pricking at his eyes
this cheap cereal cake without an ounce of grease to it tastes to him like the most delicious thing he's ever eaten in his life he eats a little over half the cake before he's full, and he no longer feels wobbly on his feet there's still a small half left
he doesn't want to admit he's having trouble with the idea of giving up a cheap cereal pancake jiu stares at it for a little while, then picks it up, hops over to binghe's side, and tilts his head toward him for you
binghe goes silent for a bit as he watches jiu turn away again, purses his lips, and says thank you i should stop here but the next scene starts with jiu being held upside down by his tail and feeling queasy because he'd just forced himself to swallow bug meat today and baring his teeth at binghe who ignores him
he uses his front claws to grab at binghe's shirt and tug it open and then crawls in and makes himself comfortable this is routine by now and then he lifts his soft fuzzy head to try to read binghe's face binghe's recovered enough by this point that they've started traveling
it says binghe seems like a very goal-oriented person, both cautious and fast, but not once does he bother telling the fox what this goal of his is or where they're going
wandering this freakish wasteland as a lone fox all by himself without even a single normal bird in the area for so many days had almost driven him to insanity-
back in the day he just thought binghe was an eyesore, but he never realized the little beast was an introverted and forbearing person who doesn't make a single sound no matter how badly he gets hurt
binghe makes no sound when he's in pain, stays silent when he's crying, acts like absolutely nothing is wrong no matter how bad the injury or how gross the food "this venerable one doesn't speak because i'm unable to but what, did you lose your ability to speak and turn into a mute as well?"
he looks up at binghe foreeeeever to the point his neck is getting sore, but doesn't see the slightest change to his facial expression i find it funny how this writer has jiu mentally refer to himself as this venerable one and there was another fic writer who had him call himself using the same kind of word gangsters and ruffians use
i'm translating 本尊 as "this venerable one" but if i remember right you can also use it to refer to others, in which case it means "the man himself" it's him! the guy!
okay so yesterday jiu was riding in binghe's shirt and thinking about how quiet and expressionless he is what a weirdo then suddenly he's pulled out and dropped from his shirt taxi
jiu's eyes widen in disbelief and he's all ready to forget all appearances and curse out binghe when suddenly he realizes he's standing...in fresh water
jiu shakes himself and then dives in, rolling around in the water like yaaaaay it says all those years keeping up the act of a cool and elegant gentleman has given him a serious case of mysophobia--is that the right word anyway he can't stand being dirty
this past stretch living with the sky for a roof and the dirt for a bed has left him incredibly dirty, his fur matted with dust and bits of blood, all he's missing is lice and he might as well die every day he was stuck with this all-encompassing stench, constantly repeating to himself that the dirty one is the fox, not me trying to dissociate i see
there's a short bit about jiu looking at binghe and oh look his chest is out, his muscles are out, the water barely covers his lower abdomen jiu backs away a few steps
i like that binghe's naked chest is described as pallid yet powerful there's no sun down here the layers upon layers of seriously deep injuries are already mostly healed, demons sure have it good there isn't the slightest hint of any lasting scars except for the sword wound jiu gave him when pushing him down because we're going with that scenario
if jiu hadn't personally seen that period of time where he was wavering on the brink of life and death he might seriously have thought binghe had got off scot-free in his adventures in the demon realm binghe's already put up a barrier and is soaking totally naked in the clear river water
for the first time in this journey, his facial expression relaxes a little bit there's another description of binghe's ethereal beauty in the light of the moon (it doesn't actually call him that) and jiu suddenly realizes that powerless little child who'd once followed behind him has already grown into a powerful, fierce, fully mature adult
binghe then opens his eyes and suddenly grabs jiu's back legs and drags the fox toward him before jiu can react he feels binghe pushing his legs open!! jiu immediately lets out an awoo and starts struggling like crazy traitorous disciple!! binghe tells him to stop fussing
then it switches to binghe's point of view he's looking down at the little fox's big round black eyes it says since falling into the abyss, no matter how hard he tries he can't stop remembering the cold and indifferent look on jiu's face when he tossed him into the abyss
there hasn't been a single moment where he was able to put aside his pain and questions and hate to think about something less heavy but maybe he's been moved by the fox's chilly, reserved haughtiness and embarrassed resentfulness, because for a moment he actually wants to tease it and see how it reacts when it's angry
countless thorny blades, spinning whirlpools of wind, lava-encased ceaselessly-exploding boulders--they're having fun with descriptions
when is he gonna find fox shizun
lava, large rocks, sharp objects, dead/living creatures
a red fox!
staring at him in fear
he's guessing it's somebody's pet fox that fell in with him
oh the giant spike-tailed monster corpse that fell from the sky earlier almost hit fox-chan
and that's why he bumped into binghe just now
the lesser of two evils(?)
he uses his broken sword to cut open his palm! and then yells at the fox to leave him alone!! the fox is shocked!!! judging by its reaction he's guessing it got the message
but then the fox gets angry and starts yapping at him
i'm glad the author mentions this
oh the fox yaps, seems to realize its yapping sounds ridiculous, shuts up, slaps a dirty paw on binghe's leg, then runs away
there's a gigantic killer monster in those woods
gonna die
for sure
but what's the difference! between him and some weak spirit pet! in this abyss where literally everything is dangerous!
mope mope crawling in my skin etc
he's 17
goodbye fox....
and then it says "sorry, it's true that i'm not that kind of loving and forgiving shizun who gives his all to his disciples, but who let you be so unlucky as to run into me huh, just accept your own bad luck there"
oh wait he's a fox
and now god has stripped him of even the qualifications to live the rest of his life in human form
it's just a bunch of brainless beasts, there's nothing to be afraid of!
he can totally find some way to kill them all and escape!
this isn't actually written with exclamation marks, that's all me
hm
well
maybe this is tougher than i thought
(where's the exit)
it says despite all his hot air earlier he knows perfectly well that he is a weak little creature not even a foot long without an ounce of spiritual energy and would die on the spot if he ran into any monsters
but to his surprise, whatever he stepped on does not immediately jump up and rip him to shreds and devour him
it's binghe
it says it's very difficult to describe how he feels right now about this kid he's spent so many years calling a little beast
he doesn't like binghe! and thinks it's very unfair that he didn't also get turned into a small animal!
but binghe is also a human being, and somebody he knows at that
i almost wrote human bing
best choice would be to stick close
he hopes, just a little, that what she said was true
after all, in his current form who's to say an unkind binghe might just skin and eat him
did he die.....
truly a protag halo
this took over two shichen because he's a fox
using your mouth for everything sure is tough
it says binghe's got a lot more than just the one stab wound but y'know what, he doesn't care
what doesn't kill you won't make foxes worry
jiu took a moment to admire his own heroic deed
he feels very proud of himself
it says by the time binghe woke up on the third day jiu had already gotten used to this fuzzy-tailed body (the author really likes reminding you how fluffy soft he is)
a master of hiding in the woods
although if he was still a sword-wielding cultivator he wouldn't need to hide to begin with
there's always gotta be a downside, huh jiu
glass half empty
apparently even with his fluffy fox body the bone-chilling cold and terrifying demonic energy coming at him from every direction were too much so he gave up on day one and started sleeping on binghe
he's got that hot-blooded youthful energy, and demonic spiritual energy that's currently working actively to heal him, which means he's basically a living heater
show some gratitude!!
jiu follows behind him thinking he was right all along, binghe is a self-centered shameless little brat
absolutely nothing like yingying said
he manages to toss a rock at binghe but gets no reaction
and then binghe kneels!
oh it's jiu's fan
the little beast sure has good vision, thinks jiu, who spent three days here without finding the thing
after struggling to survive for three whole days in this horrendously terrifying place he has to admit that maybe dropping the little beast down here by himself might have been a little too cruel
binghe says "he wants me to die" and jiu's like
:0
:<
also hate
he has no idea what kind of person binghe is and never bothered to find out
but binghe had always been pretty well-behaved around him, y'know, and he'd even noticed an irritating amount of respect and admiration
why did admiration annoy him? don't ask
it says he knows binghe has a million reasons to hate him, and personally if someone threw him into this hell more terrifying than asura he'd absolutely hate them enough to rip them to pieces
just a little
except now things are uh
binghe's grip is practically about to break that fan in half
the name of this fic is "i have a little fox" which sounds a little cuter in chinese for no particular reason other than i think it does
in the start of this
his fluffy white feet are bleeding from the sharp rocks in this unforgiving landscape
jiu is running! to the monster roar-filled forest!
it says the discomfort he feels from running so hard over the rocky ground is nothing compared to his Anger and Embarrassment
he is cursing out binghe in his head
lots of curses
all the curses!!!
binghe had almost died a good few times during that, it says
and then after he woke up jiu had even dropped his pride enough to follow the kid around
maybe he wasn't meant to be a good person
that's what this is telling him
but if he shows benevolence and kind-heartedness then all he gets is verbal abuse
being good sucks
so jiu as he's running is thinking to himself he should've just stabbed that little beast to death
it says he's focusing on nothing but cursing and hating and rejecting that little bit of grievance he refuses to admit he feels
the dictionary says "to feel wronged" and yeah it's like, when your feelings are hurt?
his feelings are hurt
yes
his sense of direction has been impacted by the black sky, his body completely lacking any spiritual energy, and the complicated feelings exploding in his chest
but also even if he had a sense of direction it wouldn't be any use here
i hope binghe feels bad for chasing off that fox
when crawling on the ground, this bug is about as tall as a human
there is green acid dripping from its open mouth
the description of the fox, meanwhile, is a cute and fragile stuffed doll
there's a lot more centipedes
he's accidentally run into a nest
there's a "heh" in the narration
it says he's killed a lot of demons and ghosts and the like in his time, but none have terrified or disgusted him so much as the creatures in the abyss
if he had xiuya with him right now! he'd kill every last one of these disgusting things!
"heaven just hates him that much"
then the centipede lifts up its two barbed front legs and rubs them together, like a starving gourmand or innocent child looking forward to the delicious meal set out before them
the only sharp things he's got on him now are his claws and teeth, and his fuzzy soft paws probably wouldn't be able to pierce the thing's hide anyway
oh no it bit him
oh no it's a blood-sucking centipede
surely a bug that big can't get in here!
he hasn't eaten anything in three days and is exhausted it says
judging by the sounds outside he's guessing the whole nest has learned of his presence by now
he's managed to make it through all sorts of pain and suffering and humiliation in his life, he's gotta make it through this too!!
it's darker in here than it was outside and he has no idea where he's going...
he can hear the echoes of all sorts of sounds he can't for the life of him discern, all of which are stressing him out
but he's too tired....and too desperate for that tiny bit of light reminiscent of the human world
three days ago already feels like a lifetime to him
that part about hating light could possibly have a double meaning? since it translates to "1. bright; well-lit, 2. bright; promising, 3. open-hearted; guileless"
so he grits his teeth and makes the leap out
only to discover this is a cliff
and the light was from lava down below
jiu turns around again
this entire mountain is apparently vampire centipede territory
they all lift their front legs in unison and rub them together, as if it's some sort of signal, or a song sung before the sacrifice
he has nowhere to run
but now it's jiu's turn to get backed into a corner
steps back
and falls
a great start
jiu looks up to see a handsome teen with a red mark on his forehead
wow he released a burst of demonic energy and it sliced all the bugs in half
there's a huge white full moon hanging behind him
jiu's heart skips a beat-
binghe's so powerful....even at a time like this, he still can't help envying binghe's natural-born strength
suddenly his feelings are hurt again
he doesn't want binghe to save him
so jiu curls up aaaaaand bites binghe's hand
jiu bites down hard! he can totally rip off a piece of meat if he tries!!
binghe does not let go
binghe lifts jiu up by the tail and stuffs the whole fox in his shirt
there's too many!
binghe's sword is broken so he can't fight with that either
pressed up against binghe's chest, all jiu can hear is the steady thrum of his heartbeat
why is this fic so cute
it's a small cave with only the one exit so they're safe for the moment
jiu is huddled in binghe's lap and shaking all over
is this from the centipede poison
now that he's no longer in immediate life-threatening danger, rather than feeling grateful for having been saved, he's starting to feel like all the horrible things that have happened to him these past few days should all be blamed on binghe
binghe's burning up
he looks up and sees that binghe's leaning against the wall with his eyes shut tight and he can't tell if he's sleeping or fainted
jiu is very sure this isn't a good sign
festered?
one of those
it's bad
and the place jiu bit earlier just happened to have been on that injury
so binghe's bleeding pretty badly here!
jiu slides his gaze over to see what little he can manage of binghe's back--he's leaning with his side against the wall
and his back is covered all over in different-sized....syringe-like things, which i remember they used to describe something from the centipedes earlier
binghe is mumbling in his sleep!
he said shizun
author's note: the map and monsters for the abyss are taken from elder scrolls online
it's been ten days!
and binghe has been awake for a total of ten shichen overall
he's burning up!
flatly, excitedly, gently, relentlessly, expectantly, hopelessly, admiringly, hatefully, beseechingly...
shizun...shizun...shizun...
he's annoying
or annoyed?
he's annoyed
shut up
so he'd squeezed out!
he's guessing the lack of monsters and bugs and things is because this is a very rocky cliff area
there's just a few stray grasses growing here
there's a nice description of how the cold moonlight shining on the vegetation makes the grasses look like metal blades dancing in the wind
and starts shaking it with his paws!
to try to fill the bottle with dew because that's all the water available around here
binghe's still out cold and he's afraid to go too far from him so every day when the temperature has just begun to rise he'll run out and shake all the nearby large plants
oh his mouth is sore
from carrying stuff in his mouth so often
so for going back he uses that to carry the full bottle on his back
there's a line that's like "how great, this venerable one has already gotten completely used to this little beast's body"
once again he blames everything on binghe
i like that he calls binghe a little beast but he also calls himself a little beast
they're both little beasts
together
and the fan is jiu's of course
who could believe that there'd be such a fool in this world brave enough to participate in the immortal alliance conference empty-handed and totally alone?
when they arrive they're totally covered in spiritual tools, their pouches full of medicines and spell seals
of course that idiot came from huanhua
but binghe only brought himself
you sure are that, binghe!
must be real confident!
the little fox stops and tries biting a new plant, which the writer describes as long and thin and sawtooth-shaped
not easy!
luckily jiu read his fill of scriptures as a disciple and then got access to cangqiong mountain's 1 library after becoming peak lord
so his knowledge of herbs and plants and medicines could rival mumu
but at the very least it has a tiny bit of healing properties
so i guess this is like newbie level healing herbs in a video game
thanks airplane
he picks a few and heads back
ew they described it
he kinda half-spaces out for a good long while before finally sucking in a deep breath, doing a cute little stomp with his feet, quickly cleans his claws on his fur, and then starts carving the rotting flesh off binghe's arm
tastes terrible
those herbs taste Absolutely Disgusting
they're giving him goosebumps
gross
oh his fur all stuck up
poof
oops?
you saw nothing
his dark eyes staring steadfastly forwards are like a tenacious lone wolf waiting in the shadows for its prey, but also like a dispirited traveler with nowhere to go and no home to return to
coughing it up
the noise he's making is like a falling-apart bellows on its last legs
and then he collapses!
things are looking great in this fic
don't ruin it!!!
oh jiu only just now realized why binghe's injuries are so bad
it's not that he couldn't avoid all the attacks and dangers that came at him, it's that he didn't even bother to dodge
and now, having just woken up, unable even to stand properly, the first thing he did was try to throw himself out there to die
wipes the blood off his mouth with the back of his hand
"i didn't ask you to save me"
he is described as having flecks of blood on his teeth which, in the pale light of the setting moon, make him look like a monster who's just finished eating a child
there's another saying here that translates to "take an honest man's heart for a donkey's liver and lungs"
totally just stomping on jiu's goodwill here
if it weren't for the fact he can't talk he'd be cursing him out so bad right now
jiu is like !?
he quietly backs away, thinking you little brat, you better not actually be thinking of taking advantage of this fox's difficulties to cook and eat me
"taking advantage of a person's difficulties" is an idiom
they both stare at each other
if he wasn't around, this little fox would die
whenever people said his name, there was a little voice reminding him that he was something that had been abandoned
the only person who'd ever chosen not to abandon him was his adopted mother, who washed other people's clothes for a living
aside from the occasional girls who approached for his good looks, there wasn't a single person who'd ever accepted or even taken notice of him
jiu, whose opinion he cared so much about, didn't even seem to see him
this was the first time he'd ever been rescued by another living creature, so he turned back and pulled that fox out just as it was falling into another abyss
he'd dreamed that jiu was feeding him water and pulling the barbs out of his back and spreading medicinal herbs on his injuries
but there was no jiu
binghe kneels down on the ground, holding that folding fan, a fluffy red fox in his arms, and buries his face in its fur
jiu freezes up
binghe's crying again....
end of 3
too caught up in his own self-absorbed miseries to pay attention
binghe's disciple clothes have patches on them, his shoes have been worn through, there's bits of blood on the toes
when ming fan gives the order he looks over at jiu, who's standing by the riverside and showing no intention of stepping in
jiu hates it
he and his toadies are making fun of binghe while he cooks this fresh-caught fish, saying all he's good for is serving people and he sucks at cultivation and should quit before he shames his parents
though they go quiet when they smell the fish cooking....
binghe places an absolutely delicious-looking fish before him, and after a moment of silence jiu tells him to take it away with a voice of disgust
after binghe hugged his fox and had a good cry he finally regained the will to live and stopped trying to get himself killed
but his first attempt was a failure
maybe because of the lack of seasonings, or maybe because his injuries made it difficult to control his strength, but it came out half-burned, half-raw
gross
aw it says jiu's disciple is a very smart and highly talented individual
his second attempt was absolutely perfect
jiu can't help wagging his fluffy tail
the author really can't help adding these fluffy descriptors whenever they can
the meat gets held out in front of him and he immediately takes a huge unguarded bite
and then spits it out
and swears
even the most rotten food he ever managed to beg as a child on the streets was a delicacy compared to this
but binghe then eats the rest without a single change in expression
jiu wonders if something's wrong with his sense of taste
foxjiu gags some more, as if trying to throw up all his stomach juices, then turns around with his tail all puffed out to bother binghe in revenge(?)
but binghe has already curled up by the wall and fallen asleep
the little fox stands next to him for a while, and ultimately does not scratch him awake
after thinking for a moment, he turns around and kicks that now-cold piece of meat off to a corner, like he's venting
an honest man does not accept handouts
the next day jiu is so weak from hunger that he barely has the energy to open his eyes
he looks dazedly out at the blurry cave entrance and thinks, if i die i die, maybe i'll get reborn back at qingjing peak
he looks down to see that it's a hotcake
the sad thing is, it's the Last hotcake
he thinks to himself, once he eats this cake, he and binghe won't get another chance to taste food from the human world for a very long time
this cake has been sitting for a while and is now as hard as a rock
he breaks that bite apart with his sharp back teeth, swallows it into his empty stomach, and feels tears pricking at his eyes
he eats a little over half the cake before he's full, and he no longer feels wobbly on his feet
there's still a small half left
jiu stares at it for a little while, then picks it up, hops over to binghe's side, and tilts his head toward him
for you
i should stop here but the next scene starts with jiu being held upside down by his tail and feeling queasy because he'd just forced himself to swallow bug meat today and baring his teeth at binghe
who ignores him
cute
this is routine by now
and then he lifts his soft fuzzy head to try to read binghe's face
binghe's recovered enough by this point that they've started traveling
yeah he's a very small fox
like vulpix
"this venerable one doesn't speak because i'm unable to but what, did you lose your ability to speak and turn into a mute as well?"
i find it funny how this writer has jiu mentally refer to himself as this venerable one and there was another fic writer who had him call himself using the same kind of word gangsters and ruffians use
sort of feel
don't look down on me
it's him!
the guy!
a not-so-little beast
what a weirdo
then suddenly he's pulled out and dropped from his shirt taxi
it says all those years keeping up the act of a cool and elegant gentleman has given him a serious case of mysophobia--is that the right word
anyway he can't stand being dirty
every day he was stuck with this all-encompassing stench, constantly repeating to himself that the dirty one is the fox, not me
trying to dissociate i see
binghe also jumps in
he's naked!
jiu backs away a few steps
there's no sun down here
the layers upon layers of seriously deep injuries are already mostly healed, demons sure have it good
there isn't the slightest hint of any lasting scars except for the sword wound jiu gave him when pushing him down because we're going with that scenario
binghe's already put up a barrier and is soaking totally naked in the clear river water
there's another description of binghe's ethereal beauty in the light of the moon (it doesn't actually call him that) and jiu suddenly realizes
that powerless little child who'd once followed behind him has already grown into a powerful, fierce, fully mature adult
suddenly grabs jiu's back legs and drags the fox toward him
before jiu can react he feels binghe pushing his legs open!! jiu immediately lets out an awoo and starts struggling like crazy
traitorous disciple!!
binghe tells him to stop fussing
starts sending him spiritual energy
and now it's healed!
he's looking down at the little fox's big round black eyes
it says since falling into the abyss, no matter how hard he tries he can't stop remembering the cold and indifferent look on jiu's face when he tossed him into the abyss
but maybe he's been moved by the fox's chilly, reserved haughtiness and embarrassed resentfulness, because for a moment he actually wants to tease it and see how it reacts when it's angry