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alias_sqbrGuide and links
Content Notes for the book in general: consent issues, sexualisation of children, gore, mixed treatment of cross-dressing, suicide, child harm, incest subtext, emotional abuse, ANGST
SORRY TURNS OUT I'M NOT DONE
I was reccing HOB to a friend and in the process looked at the first chapter to get the link... and now I'm 17 chapters into a reread whoops.
So here are some thoughts! These are mostly written for myself, with a lot of quotes I liked (the first 24 chapters are on a site which allows me to cut and paste, woo) and notes on things I may find useful for fic. (if you're curious I am 4K into a Shi Qing Xuan/He Xuan fixit fic that better suits my personal tastes than the examples I found on AO3)
I don't know if I'll reread the whole thing, but I did spend most of the first two books MASSIVELY confused about EVERYTHING. Certainly at the moment I'm noticing SO MUCH I missed the first time. Eventually I might just start skipping about for anything I need for fic.
This will be both very confusing and massively spoilery for anyone who isn't familiar with the plot.
Below: Thoughts on Chapters 1-16, spoilers for everything.
During the festive heavenly parade, the martial artist would adorn a golden mask, don splendid garments and wield a sword in one hand. He would perform the role of the first military deity in a millennium to have subdued demonic beasts——Martial God Heavenly Emperor Jun Wu.
OH GOD THE IRONY.
“Saving people isn’t something bad. How could the Heavens fault me because I did the right thing?”
……And if by chance the Heavens do decide to blame you?
“Then the Heavens would be the ones who are wrong. Why should the people who are right apologize to the ones who are wrong?”
Oh, honey.
To achieve immortality through one’s efforts and insights was truly hard. It required innate talent, high cultivation, and the right opportunity...
Even if they came across a chance from Heaven, if they didn’t overcome the heavenly tribulation, they would either die or become a waste
Hmm! We don't get a lot of details on what heavenly tribulations are like. And it sounds like Shi Wu Du just...totally faked Shi Qing Xuan's.
Heaven’s Godly Officials could not meddle according to their wishes. Unless it was a result of demons and ghouls overstepping or violating their boundaries, what happened must be allowed to happen.
This is an interesting contrast to The Mandate of Heaven. Which, as I argued in a rambly comment, doesn't seem to be an unambiguous thing in this setting.
Jun Wu: You cannot save everybody.
Xie Lian: I can.
;_;
Xian Le means Heavenly Happiness
Ling Wen: Congratulations for placing first on the list of ‘Heaven’s Officials most anticipated to be demoted and banished to the mortal realm.
Xie Lian: Woo, first place :D
This is the first thing anyone says to him when he ascends to Heaven for the third time.
First description of Mu Qing:
The voice was soft and the tone was gentle. However if one listened to it closely, they would realize that the voice sounded extremely cold, and the speaker’s tone appeared very indifferent as well. Thus, it made that gentleness seem as if it harboured some evil intentions.
Xie Lian hasn't spoken to him for 600+ years, and never heard him use that tone before, so doesn't recognise his voice :(
Mu Qing came from a poor background, and his father was a sinner who had been beheaded...he was mostly in charge of sweeping the floor for His Highness the Crown Prince, or delivering tea and water to him. But Xie Lian saw he was assiduous, and thus he asked the Taoist Ministers to make an exception
And thus he tries SUPER HARD to be Proper all the time.
Huang Ji Temple was the Xian Le country’s Imperial Taoist Temple
I am going to NOTE DOWN THE NAMES OF THINGS THIS TIME.
First introduction of Feng Xin: shouting "Who the f*ck dismantled my golden palace?! Come out!". Xie Lian's third ascension was so energetic it broke a bunch of stuff.
[Feng Xin] was Xie Lian’s Imperial bodyguard ever since the other had been fourteen years old
Huuuh. So he's probably older by a few years?
ZhenJun is a title. Zhen means ‘genuine’ while Jun means Lord. Later, one character will also have the title ZhenJun while another will just be called Jun
AHHHH OK THEN. I think the translator is talking about Ling Wen and Jing Wen. Looks like YuanJun is a similar title.
Ling Wen was the Heavenly Official in charge of managing Heaven’s personnel. When mortals wished to get a step ahead in their careers, they would worship her
Hee, she smiles or "uses a bright tone" while manipulating people or subtly putting them down.
Mount Yu Ju: Where the brides go missing.
Feng Xin/Nan Feng and Mu Qing/Fu Yao respectively:
Both people were teenage boys who looked around eighteen or nineteen years old. The one on the left was taller, with facial expressions that looked quite defined and brightly handsome. Within his gaze was an arrogant and obstinate light. The right side had very light skin. He looked delicate and pretty, yet also refined. However, his expression looked somewhat overly cold and apathetic, an appearance that made it seem as if he wasn’t too happy.
Time to reread this actually knowing who these guys are!
[An official who wanted the god's help] furiously made an alliance with his government official friends, and then crazily performed a ritual. This official even followed an expert’s advice and opened the granary to help the poor. After making an uproar, he finally managed to startle a Heavenly Official. Otherwise, it would have been almost impossible for those tiny, mortal voices to reach a Heavenly Official’s ear.
Interesting!
most Heavenly Officials didn’t really care if ugly Godly statues of themselves were made. However, whenever Xuan Zhen [Mu Qing] saw someone make an ugly Godly statue of himself, he would stealthily break it to make the artist remodel it. Sometimes, he would even create a vague dream to express his dissatisfaction to the artist.
Omg Mu Qing you tosser. And so of course "Fu Yao" (aka Mu Qing in disguise) makes a bunch of snide remarks when they visit a shrine with an ugly statue of Feng Xin.
The temple is full of women, when usually the only martial god to get many female worshippers was Xie Lian because he was good looking and associated with flowers.
Haha omg there was a typo, changing his temple's names to "Tremendous Masculinity", so to his horror he became known as (in the words of the amused Mu Qing) "A lady’s friend, the most effective when praying for a son. The secret booster for the virility of men, Nan Yang, deliverer of children."
Feng Xin: Go sweep a floor >:(
Mu Qing: D:<
And then they get into a fistfight about which "General" betrayed Xie Lian the worst. It's really cute knowing this is actually Xie Lian's two bffs secretly wanting to help him but being too embarrassed to admit it. They both clearly know who the other is from the start, did they agree to do this together or decide independently?
And yes, they both have THREE NAMES EACH in this section (personal name, god name, and fake name), PLUS Feng Xin has his old god name and the typoed version.
First example of someone lending Xie Lian spiritual power: he and Feng Xin clapping their hands together.
Meanwhile Mu Qing starts meditating, afaict just so he can pop into Xie Lian's report to Ling Wen as himself, denying any knowledge or involvement with "his subordinate" helping Xie Lian.
Ghosts from the ‘Fierce’ rank had the capability to kill single targets. ‘Severe’ ranked monsters could wipe out a household, while ‘Wrath’ ranked ghosts could massacre a whole city. And the most terrifying of them all was the ‘Devastation’ rank. Whenever one was born, it could destroy a country and cause suffering to the people, turning the whole mortal realm into a mess.
I think "Devastation" here is what later gets translated as "Supreme"?
Mu Qing complains a lot about how inefficient Ling Wen's office is, words he eats by the end of the book.
Physical description of Xie Lian: a young boy with a gentle and handsome looking face. I guess he does look 17! THAT'S WEIRD MXTX. (I'm not sure if Mu Qing and Feng Xin usually look as young as they do in their disguises)
There were indeed Heavenly Officials in Heaven who, because of their particular needs, were proficient in spells that transformed their bodies. However, Xie Lian was afraid that with the time left, it was already too late for him to learn a new spell. At the other end, Nan Feng returned to the temple with a green face. After he finished cursing, he had cooled down a considerable amount, a habit that was almost exactly the same as the General he served under.
Time for Xie Lian to dress as a bride to lure out a bride murdering ghost!
The woman this dress was originally intended for had been quite petite. When Xie Lian wore it, although the waist area was unexpectedly quite fitting, raising his sleeves or lifting his feet were actions that felt extremely restrictive.
Carrot shaped Xie Lian confirmed. I think he and Hua Cheng are both described as slim at various points, though, I guess he has that typical broad shouldered bishonen physique.
(Also it's so sad reading about Little Ying, this nice but plain girl who Xie Lian repeatedly saves from bullying only for her to die at the end of this section :( )
Xie Lian hears a child (Cuo Cuo) singing in a voice only he can hear "New bride, new bride, new bride on the red marriage sedan……Eyes brimming with tears, passing the mountain’s mound, under the veil do not……hold the rising smile……ghost bride……hahahaha"
So he can speak but just chooses not to?
pronounced as Ruoxie, but the author has made a note that we should refer to it as Ruoye. This is the name of the silk. It means, ruo = as if, like, xie = demonic, evil.
First unambiguous appearance of RuoYe is Xie Lian sending it out to strangle a bunch of monsters to death (The first actual appearance was Xie Lian making a bully fall and smash his nose)
Also I checked and this is different to the "Xie" in Xie Lian. Google translate gives me "Thanks" as the overall meaning of this name, and "Thank pity" for the individual characters, obviously that's not entirely reliable but sounds about right.
On that slender and pale-white hand, it looked as if it was a colourful and bright knot of fate.
First appearance of Hua Cheng! Why does he have a red knot already?
His vambraces: Maple leaves, butterflies, and sinister, ferocious beasts were also engraved on them. They looked quite mysterious, unlike something from the Central Plains. Rather, it looked as if they were an antique from a minor exotic tribe.
He's also wearing a thin white shirt under his red top.
In general Hua Cheng's outfit seems very unusual for the setting, especially since as it turns out he has exactly the same cultural background as Xie Lian, Mu Qing and Feng Xin.
This person’s pace was a bit careless, mixed with a light and brisk bounce in his steps. It made him appear like a lively teenager. However, he walked as if he had a goal or destination firmly in mind, making it so that it seemed like no one could stop him. Whoever dared to block his path would only be crushed into dust.
Hua Cheng's internal monologue: OMG I AM HOLDING HANDS WITH XIE LIAN :D :D ANYONE WHO MESSES WITH HIM IS DEAD MEAT >:D
Ok so I've been trying to figure out the chain of events from Hua Cheng's POV after becoming a Supreme. And afaict he spent 800 years trying to find Xie Lian and failing. But then Xie Lian became a god again, and He Xuan passed on that Ling Wen had been looking for godly volunteers to help Xie Lian out on this missing brides job. So Hua Cheng watched from the sidelines until Xie Lian was (a) alone and (b) in danger, at which point he showed up to kill the monsters attacking Xie Lian and look cool doing it.
Meanwhile, Xie Lian's inner monologue, despite thinking Hua Cheng seems very gentle and protective: Xie Lian intended to take the initiative and attack first. They could have a nice chat after the other person was unable to move.
Mu Qing and Feng Xin being DEEPLY UNCOMFORTABLE with how hot of a girl Xie Lian makes is much funnier now I know who they are. In another world they'd make a good triad.
Mu Qing keeps going "The logical choice is to leave!" and when noone else agrees just...leaves by himself, then quietly comes back later with backup. No wonder Xie Lian recognised him.
Ahh, so Xuan Ji originally agreed to a short term fling with Pei Ming. Ling Wen says "How shall I describe General Pei...If he's not cheating on you, you're doing well"
Little Ying sacrifices herself to save Xie Lian, but is just an ordinary girl, so Xuan Ji kills her without even losing her stride :(
She was the only person who ever treated Lang Ying with any kindness, and he's heartbroken. As Little Ying is dying, aware that her death achieved nothing, she says her life has been unlucky. Xie Lian lies and tells her she was very helpful, then promises he'll take care of Lang Ying. But not long after this Jun Wu convinces Lang Ying to share his body, and he is consumed :(
OH. And Lang Ying's face is covered in burns because Xie Lian set him on fire when he was a child D:
I still don't get how the face plague just stopped. Unless it generally stopped with the fall of XianLe (a logical time for resentful YongAn spirits to calm down), except for the three faces on the original Lang Ying, which on his death transferred to the young Lang Ying. And then when Jun Wu gave up on the whole face plague plan a few days later, after Xie Lian's second ascension and Hua Cheng taking all the angry spirits into himself, the faces on Lang Ying became dormant.
I guess that makes sense?
Pei Ming: a countenance overflowing with arrogance, an invasive and powerful type of handsomeness.
Pei Su: a tall and handsome young general. It was clear he wasn’t an ordinary person. His countenance looked peaceful like a cold jade. Void of any killing intent, and full of undisturbed calmness. He talks in a flat voice.
General Pei was the main god of the temple, so his god statues faced the temple doors. Little General Pei’s god statues were positioned behind his.
Yeah, you like being generous to people you can feel superior to, don't you Pei Ming?
she voluntarily abolished her martial arts and broke her own two legs. In this way, she did the equivalent of breaking both her wings and tying herself to General Pei. Despite all this, General Pei didn’t abandon her. He took her in and looked after her, yet, he still wouldn’t take her as his wife. Because General Xuan Ji’s long-cherished wish could not be fulfilled, she killed herself in hate
...but Xuan Ji is definitely the bad guy here. Also she offered him military secrets unmprompted, he said no, and so she's all BUT I BETRAYED MY COUNTRY FOR YOU LOVE ME. Xie Lian, meanwhile, decides he isn't going to say who is in the right or wrong, he just feels bad for the people who died. Fair.
Ahaha and only after meeting and talking to the straight faced Pei Su does an embarrassed Xie Lian realise he was still dressed like a bride.
A bridge in heaven: The stone bridge crossed over a running river. The river water was extremely clear, for you could make out the movement of clouds below. Past the running water and clouds, you could even make out the rolling mountains and large stretches of square-shaped towns from the world below.
*tries not to get too invested in the question of what's holding up the water*
So apparently Xuan Ji is known to work for Green Goblin, and he's the one who made her powerful enough to become a serial killer. And I guess Jun Wu ordered or at least encouraged the bride killing thing to make Pei Ming look bad?
Four Famous Tales were highly praised anecdote stories of the time before the four Heavenly Officials from the Heavenly Court ascended— The Young Lord Who Poured Wine, The Crown Prince Who Pleased God, The General Who Broke His Sword, and The Princess Who Slit Her Throat
The last three are Xie Lian, Pei Ming, and Rain Master, but I'm not sure who the first is.
The name Hua Cheng definitely had to be fake, and his appearance must also be fake as well. This was because the him in the rumors was sometimes a temperamental and disagreeable teenager, sometimes a gentle, kind and elegant beautiful man, or sometimes a gorgeous female ghost with a poisonous heart. There was no end to what was said about him. About his actual appearance, the only definite thing was that he was clad entirely in red and would often appear with a rain of blood and foul winds as silver butterflies chased his lapel and sleeves.
As for his birth, there were even more versions of it. Some said he was a deformed child born without a right eye who had been bullied and humiliated from childhood and thus hated the world. Some said he was a young soldier who had died fighting for his ancient kingdom, and his soul had not been resigned to such a fate. There was also one that said he became a sentimental fool due to the pain of his beloved passing away; yet another which said he was a monster.
The oddest version, it was said that—and it really was just a rumor. But it was said that Hua Cheng was actually a Heavenly Official who had ascended. However, after he had ascended, he jumped down himself and degraded to a ghost.
...well everything else is broadly true so I guess he's a woman too! Actually, do we ever see Hua Cheng naked or topless? *ponders trans man Hua Cheng* Hmm, he probably got examined by doctors as a small child. Trans feminine Hua Cheng would certainly be...something.
Hua Cheng vs the 33 officials: As a new, unknown ghost he challenged the martial gods to fight, and the literature gods to debate, saying that if he lost he'd give up his ashes, and if they lost they'd give up their divinity. He trounced them all, and then they refused to hold up their end of the bargain, and then he burned their temples.
Also: He challenged 35 officials, and the only two who said no...were Mu Qing and Feng Xin. So they didn't lose their temples, but he still picked fights with them during the Ghost Festival.
Oh, interesting, this translation calls the center of Mount TongLu "Gu City" rather than "The Kiln", but I assume they're talking about the same thing.
Xie Lian is generally described as a Taoist. Which led me to...Taoist sexual practices *cough*
First full appearance of Hua Cheng! A nicely dressed teenage boy who Xie Lian "belatedly realises" is languidly lying in the back of the same ox cart as him. Hua Cheng sneeringly describes Shi Wu Du as a "water tyrant" who flips the boats of any merchants who don't pray to him for safe passage along a waterway. Given his own history I imagine he'd have a pretty dark opinion of what Shi Wu Du did to He Xuan.
He saw that this teenager was around sixteen or seventeen years old. The red of his clothes surpassed the maples, and his skin was white like snow. Those pair of eyes were shining like stars, containing a smile as he glances askance at him. The teenager was exceptionally handsome; however, his expression ineffably contained a hint of wildness. His black hair was loosely tied up, and was even tied slightly askew. It looked exceedingly casual, like he did whatever he wished.
It took me a while to put it together, but Xie Lian has the misfortune of combining very little time spent actually being a god with being very old and out of touch, no wonder he has trouble fitting in in heaven.
Since 'the boy' seems remarkably well informed, Xie Lian asks him what Hua Cheng looks like. The boy stands up, sits close and says "How do you think he ought to look?", and Xie Lian has to look away because he is "the kind of handsome that brought about a faint sense of being attacked, much like an unsheathed sharp sword."
'The boy' also says Hua Cheng must have been a bad person before he died, and lost his eye when he "went mad and cut it out". I guess he considers sacrificing himself for random strangers going mad...
"In my family, I’m ranked third. Everyone calls me San Lang" Translator: This can be roughly translated to ‘third son’ if used by family members, but it can also be used as an endearment between lovers.
I wonder if he really did have two older siblings.
“There was quarrelling at home, and I got driven out. I walked for some time but there was nowhere to go. Today, I got so hungry I nearly fainted at the end of the main street, and only then did I randomly find a place to lie down.”
Ok the first bit might be true but Hua Cheng you did NOT get weak with hunger "today".
...oh but it IS the festival of hungry ghosts. Maybe he was making a joke. The translator says this puts the scene in August or September.
Also Xie Lian happens to bump into him and he pulls away as if burned haha. He's only Mr Smooth when he's in control.
At one point Xie Lian needs to find a way to escape some ghosts, so shakes some fortune telling sticks and says "Heavenly Officials bestow your blessings on me! Lead me onto the right path!", which is referred to in the last line/chapter title of the book. He gets two bad answers, but Hua Cheng shakes and gets two good ones.
Haha and then the ghosts suddenly take fright and run away, Xie Lian turns and just sees a smiling Hua Cheng who says "You must have scared them off ^_^"
Aha, Xie Lian asks to read Hua Cheng's palm, and gives a very bright fortune...which is entirely made up, because he has no idea how to read palms. He was just checking if Hua Cheng lacked fingerprints (which would prove he's a ghost) I love that Xie Lian is friendly and nice to Hua Cheng on the surface but is still aware that Something's Up and is on guard underneath.
Teen!Hua Cheng is still much taller than Xie Lian (who's 178cm tall, hardly tiny), I missed that before.
Xie Lian apologises for the dilapodated state of his temple and Hua Cheng says "This is quite alright". Xie Lian, who's always the one reassuring people that things are ok, is touched, aw.
Xie Lian: You've heard of the Crown Prince Xie Lian? What do you think of him?
Hua Cheng, looking away: I think, Jun Wu must have really disliked him.
He also gets VERY INTENSE whenever he sees Xie Lian's cursed shackles in a way which reads to me as being super angry at Jun Wu.
Content Notes for the book in general: consent issues, sexualisation of children, gore, mixed treatment of cross-dressing, suicide, child harm, incest subtext, emotional abuse, ANGST
SORRY TURNS OUT I'M NOT DONE
I was reccing HOB to a friend and in the process looked at the first chapter to get the link... and now I'm 17 chapters into a reread whoops.
So here are some thoughts! These are mostly written for myself, with a lot of quotes I liked (the first 24 chapters are on a site which allows me to cut and paste, woo) and notes on things I may find useful for fic. (if you're curious I am 4K into a Shi Qing Xuan/He Xuan fixit fic that better suits my personal tastes than the examples I found on AO3)
I don't know if I'll reread the whole thing, but I did spend most of the first two books MASSIVELY confused about EVERYTHING. Certainly at the moment I'm noticing SO MUCH I missed the first time. Eventually I might just start skipping about for anything I need for fic.
This will be both very confusing and massively spoilery for anyone who isn't familiar with the plot.
Below: Thoughts on Chapters 1-16, spoilers for everything.
During the festive heavenly parade, the martial artist would adorn a golden mask, don splendid garments and wield a sword in one hand. He would perform the role of the first military deity in a millennium to have subdued demonic beasts——Martial God Heavenly Emperor Jun Wu.
OH GOD THE IRONY.
“Saving people isn’t something bad. How could the Heavens fault me because I did the right thing?”
……And if by chance the Heavens do decide to blame you?
“Then the Heavens would be the ones who are wrong. Why should the people who are right apologize to the ones who are wrong?”
Oh, honey.
To achieve immortality through one’s efforts and insights was truly hard. It required innate talent, high cultivation, and the right opportunity...
Even if they came across a chance from Heaven, if they didn’t overcome the heavenly tribulation, they would either die or become a waste
Hmm! We don't get a lot of details on what heavenly tribulations are like. And it sounds like Shi Wu Du just...totally faked Shi Qing Xuan's.
Heaven’s Godly Officials could not meddle according to their wishes. Unless it was a result of demons and ghouls overstepping or violating their boundaries, what happened must be allowed to happen.
This is an interesting contrast to The Mandate of Heaven. Which, as I argued in a rambly comment, doesn't seem to be an unambiguous thing in this setting.
Jun Wu: You cannot save everybody.
Xie Lian: I can.
;_;
Xian Le means Heavenly Happiness
Ling Wen: Congratulations for placing first on the list of ‘Heaven’s Officials most anticipated to be demoted and banished to the mortal realm.
Xie Lian: Woo, first place :D
This is the first thing anyone says to him when he ascends to Heaven for the third time.
First description of Mu Qing:
The voice was soft and the tone was gentle. However if one listened to it closely, they would realize that the voice sounded extremely cold, and the speaker’s tone appeared very indifferent as well. Thus, it made that gentleness seem as if it harboured some evil intentions.
Xie Lian hasn't spoken to him for 600+ years, and never heard him use that tone before, so doesn't recognise his voice :(
Mu Qing came from a poor background, and his father was a sinner who had been beheaded...he was mostly in charge of sweeping the floor for His Highness the Crown Prince, or delivering tea and water to him. But Xie Lian saw he was assiduous, and thus he asked the Taoist Ministers to make an exception
And thus he tries SUPER HARD to be Proper all the time.
Huang Ji Temple was the Xian Le country’s Imperial Taoist Temple
I am going to NOTE DOWN THE NAMES OF THINGS THIS TIME.
First introduction of Feng Xin: shouting "Who the f*ck dismantled my golden palace?! Come out!". Xie Lian's third ascension was so energetic it broke a bunch of stuff.
[Feng Xin] was Xie Lian’s Imperial bodyguard ever since the other had been fourteen years old
Huuuh. So he's probably older by a few years?
ZhenJun is a title. Zhen means ‘genuine’ while Jun means Lord. Later, one character will also have the title ZhenJun while another will just be called Jun
AHHHH OK THEN. I think the translator is talking about Ling Wen and Jing Wen. Looks like YuanJun is a similar title.
Ling Wen was the Heavenly Official in charge of managing Heaven’s personnel. When mortals wished to get a step ahead in their careers, they would worship her
Hee, she smiles or "uses a bright tone" while manipulating people or subtly putting them down.
Mount Yu Ju: Where the brides go missing.
Feng Xin/Nan Feng and Mu Qing/Fu Yao respectively:
Both people were teenage boys who looked around eighteen or nineteen years old. The one on the left was taller, with facial expressions that looked quite defined and brightly handsome. Within his gaze was an arrogant and obstinate light. The right side had very light skin. He looked delicate and pretty, yet also refined. However, his expression looked somewhat overly cold and apathetic, an appearance that made it seem as if he wasn’t too happy.
Time to reread this actually knowing who these guys are!
[An official who wanted the god's help] furiously made an alliance with his government official friends, and then crazily performed a ritual. This official even followed an expert’s advice and opened the granary to help the poor. After making an uproar, he finally managed to startle a Heavenly Official. Otherwise, it would have been almost impossible for those tiny, mortal voices to reach a Heavenly Official’s ear.
Interesting!
most Heavenly Officials didn’t really care if ugly Godly statues of themselves were made. However, whenever Xuan Zhen [Mu Qing] saw someone make an ugly Godly statue of himself, he would stealthily break it to make the artist remodel it. Sometimes, he would even create a vague dream to express his dissatisfaction to the artist.
Omg Mu Qing you tosser. And so of course "Fu Yao" (aka Mu Qing in disguise) makes a bunch of snide remarks when they visit a shrine with an ugly statue of Feng Xin.
The temple is full of women, when usually the only martial god to get many female worshippers was Xie Lian because he was good looking and associated with flowers.
Haha omg there was a typo, changing his temple's names to "Tremendous Masculinity", so to his horror he became known as (in the words of the amused Mu Qing) "A lady’s friend, the most effective when praying for a son. The secret booster for the virility of men, Nan Yang, deliverer of children."
Feng Xin: Go sweep a floor >:(
Mu Qing: D:<
And then they get into a fistfight about which "General" betrayed Xie Lian the worst. It's really cute knowing this is actually Xie Lian's two bffs secretly wanting to help him but being too embarrassed to admit it. They both clearly know who the other is from the start, did they agree to do this together or decide independently?
And yes, they both have THREE NAMES EACH in this section (personal name, god name, and fake name), PLUS Feng Xin has his old god name and the typoed version.
First example of someone lending Xie Lian spiritual power: he and Feng Xin clapping their hands together.
Meanwhile Mu Qing starts meditating, afaict just so he can pop into Xie Lian's report to Ling Wen as himself, denying any knowledge or involvement with "his subordinate" helping Xie Lian.
Ghosts from the ‘Fierce’ rank had the capability to kill single targets. ‘Severe’ ranked monsters could wipe out a household, while ‘Wrath’ ranked ghosts could massacre a whole city. And the most terrifying of them all was the ‘Devastation’ rank. Whenever one was born, it could destroy a country and cause suffering to the people, turning the whole mortal realm into a mess.
I think "Devastation" here is what later gets translated as "Supreme"?
Mu Qing complains a lot about how inefficient Ling Wen's office is, words he eats by the end of the book.
Physical description of Xie Lian: a young boy with a gentle and handsome looking face. I guess he does look 17! THAT'S WEIRD MXTX. (I'm not sure if Mu Qing and Feng Xin usually look as young as they do in their disguises)
There were indeed Heavenly Officials in Heaven who, because of their particular needs, were proficient in spells that transformed their bodies. However, Xie Lian was afraid that with the time left, it was already too late for him to learn a new spell. At the other end, Nan Feng returned to the temple with a green face. After he finished cursing, he had cooled down a considerable amount, a habit that was almost exactly the same as the General he served under.
Time for Xie Lian to dress as a bride to lure out a bride murdering ghost!
The woman this dress was originally intended for had been quite petite. When Xie Lian wore it, although the waist area was unexpectedly quite fitting, raising his sleeves or lifting his feet were actions that felt extremely restrictive.
Carrot shaped Xie Lian confirmed. I think he and Hua Cheng are both described as slim at various points, though, I guess he has that typical broad shouldered bishonen physique.
(Also it's so sad reading about Little Ying, this nice but plain girl who Xie Lian repeatedly saves from bullying only for her to die at the end of this section :( )
Xie Lian hears a child (Cuo Cuo) singing in a voice only he can hear "New bride, new bride, new bride on the red marriage sedan……Eyes brimming with tears, passing the mountain’s mound, under the veil do not……hold the rising smile……ghost bride……hahahaha"
So he can speak but just chooses not to?
pronounced as Ruoxie, but the author has made a note that we should refer to it as Ruoye. This is the name of the silk. It means, ruo = as if, like, xie = demonic, evil.
First unambiguous appearance of RuoYe is Xie Lian sending it out to strangle a bunch of monsters to death (The first actual appearance was Xie Lian making a bully fall and smash his nose)
Also I checked and this is different to the "Xie" in Xie Lian. Google translate gives me "Thanks" as the overall meaning of this name, and "Thank pity" for the individual characters, obviously that's not entirely reliable but sounds about right.
On that slender and pale-white hand, it looked as if it was a colourful and bright knot of fate.
First appearance of Hua Cheng! Why does he have a red knot already?
His vambraces: Maple leaves, butterflies, and sinister, ferocious beasts were also engraved on them. They looked quite mysterious, unlike something from the Central Plains. Rather, it looked as if they were an antique from a minor exotic tribe.
He's also wearing a thin white shirt under his red top.
In general Hua Cheng's outfit seems very unusual for the setting, especially since as it turns out he has exactly the same cultural background as Xie Lian, Mu Qing and Feng Xin.
This person’s pace was a bit careless, mixed with a light and brisk bounce in his steps. It made him appear like a lively teenager. However, he walked as if he had a goal or destination firmly in mind, making it so that it seemed like no one could stop him. Whoever dared to block his path would only be crushed into dust.
Hua Cheng's internal monologue: OMG I AM HOLDING HANDS WITH XIE LIAN :D :D ANYONE WHO MESSES WITH HIM IS DEAD MEAT >:D
Ok so I've been trying to figure out the chain of events from Hua Cheng's POV after becoming a Supreme. And afaict he spent 800 years trying to find Xie Lian and failing. But then Xie Lian became a god again, and He Xuan passed on that Ling Wen had been looking for godly volunteers to help Xie Lian out on this missing brides job. So Hua Cheng watched from the sidelines until Xie Lian was (a) alone and (b) in danger, at which point he showed up to kill the monsters attacking Xie Lian and look cool doing it.
Meanwhile, Xie Lian's inner monologue, despite thinking Hua Cheng seems very gentle and protective: Xie Lian intended to take the initiative and attack first. They could have a nice chat after the other person was unable to move.
Mu Qing and Feng Xin being DEEPLY UNCOMFORTABLE with how hot of a girl Xie Lian makes is much funnier now I know who they are. In another world they'd make a good triad.
Mu Qing keeps going "The logical choice is to leave!" and when noone else agrees just...leaves by himself, then quietly comes back later with backup. No wonder Xie Lian recognised him.
Ahh, so Xuan Ji originally agreed to a short term fling with Pei Ming. Ling Wen says "How shall I describe General Pei...If he's not cheating on you, you're doing well"
Little Ying sacrifices herself to save Xie Lian, but is just an ordinary girl, so Xuan Ji kills her without even losing her stride :(
She was the only person who ever treated Lang Ying with any kindness, and he's heartbroken. As Little Ying is dying, aware that her death achieved nothing, she says her life has been unlucky. Xie Lian lies and tells her she was very helpful, then promises he'll take care of Lang Ying. But not long after this Jun Wu convinces Lang Ying to share his body, and he is consumed :(
OH. And Lang Ying's face is covered in burns because Xie Lian set him on fire when he was a child D:
I still don't get how the face plague just stopped. Unless it generally stopped with the fall of XianLe (a logical time for resentful YongAn spirits to calm down), except for the three faces on the original Lang Ying, which on his death transferred to the young Lang Ying. And then when Jun Wu gave up on the whole face plague plan a few days later, after Xie Lian's second ascension and Hua Cheng taking all the angry spirits into himself, the faces on Lang Ying became dormant.
I guess that makes sense?
Pei Ming: a countenance overflowing with arrogance, an invasive and powerful type of handsomeness.
Pei Su: a tall and handsome young general. It was clear he wasn’t an ordinary person. His countenance looked peaceful like a cold jade. Void of any killing intent, and full of undisturbed calmness. He talks in a flat voice.
General Pei was the main god of the temple, so his god statues faced the temple doors. Little General Pei’s god statues were positioned behind his.
Yeah, you like being generous to people you can feel superior to, don't you Pei Ming?
she voluntarily abolished her martial arts and broke her own two legs. In this way, she did the equivalent of breaking both her wings and tying herself to General Pei. Despite all this, General Pei didn’t abandon her. He took her in and looked after her, yet, he still wouldn’t take her as his wife. Because General Xuan Ji’s long-cherished wish could not be fulfilled, she killed herself in hate
...but Xuan Ji is definitely the bad guy here. Also she offered him military secrets unmprompted, he said no, and so she's all BUT I BETRAYED MY COUNTRY FOR YOU LOVE ME. Xie Lian, meanwhile, decides he isn't going to say who is in the right or wrong, he just feels bad for the people who died. Fair.
Ahaha and only after meeting and talking to the straight faced Pei Su does an embarrassed Xie Lian realise he was still dressed like a bride.
A bridge in heaven: The stone bridge crossed over a running river. The river water was extremely clear, for you could make out the movement of clouds below. Past the running water and clouds, you could even make out the rolling mountains and large stretches of square-shaped towns from the world below.
*tries not to get too invested in the question of what's holding up the water*
So apparently Xuan Ji is known to work for Green Goblin, and he's the one who made her powerful enough to become a serial killer. And I guess Jun Wu ordered or at least encouraged the bride killing thing to make Pei Ming look bad?
Four Famous Tales were highly praised anecdote stories of the time before the four Heavenly Officials from the Heavenly Court ascended— The Young Lord Who Poured Wine, The Crown Prince Who Pleased God, The General Who Broke His Sword, and The Princess Who Slit Her Throat
The last three are Xie Lian, Pei Ming, and Rain Master, but I'm not sure who the first is.
The name Hua Cheng definitely had to be fake, and his appearance must also be fake as well. This was because the him in the rumors was sometimes a temperamental and disagreeable teenager, sometimes a gentle, kind and elegant beautiful man, or sometimes a gorgeous female ghost with a poisonous heart. There was no end to what was said about him. About his actual appearance, the only definite thing was that he was clad entirely in red and would often appear with a rain of blood and foul winds as silver butterflies chased his lapel and sleeves.
As for his birth, there were even more versions of it. Some said he was a deformed child born without a right eye who had been bullied and humiliated from childhood and thus hated the world. Some said he was a young soldier who had died fighting for his ancient kingdom, and his soul had not been resigned to such a fate. There was also one that said he became a sentimental fool due to the pain of his beloved passing away; yet another which said he was a monster.
The oddest version, it was said that—and it really was just a rumor. But it was said that Hua Cheng was actually a Heavenly Official who had ascended. However, after he had ascended, he jumped down himself and degraded to a ghost.
...well everything else is broadly true so I guess he's a woman too! Actually, do we ever see Hua Cheng naked or topless? *ponders trans man Hua Cheng* Hmm, he probably got examined by doctors as a small child. Trans feminine Hua Cheng would certainly be...something.
Hua Cheng vs the 33 officials: As a new, unknown ghost he challenged the martial gods to fight, and the literature gods to debate, saying that if he lost he'd give up his ashes, and if they lost they'd give up their divinity. He trounced them all, and then they refused to hold up their end of the bargain, and then he burned their temples.
Also: He challenged 35 officials, and the only two who said no...were Mu Qing and Feng Xin. So they didn't lose their temples, but he still picked fights with them during the Ghost Festival.
Oh, interesting, this translation calls the center of Mount TongLu "Gu City" rather than "The Kiln", but I assume they're talking about the same thing.
Xie Lian is generally described as a Taoist. Which led me to...Taoist sexual practices *cough*
First full appearance of Hua Cheng! A nicely dressed teenage boy who Xie Lian "belatedly realises" is languidly lying in the back of the same ox cart as him. Hua Cheng sneeringly describes Shi Wu Du as a "water tyrant" who flips the boats of any merchants who don't pray to him for safe passage along a waterway. Given his own history I imagine he'd have a pretty dark opinion of what Shi Wu Du did to He Xuan.
He saw that this teenager was around sixteen or seventeen years old. The red of his clothes surpassed the maples, and his skin was white like snow. Those pair of eyes were shining like stars, containing a smile as he glances askance at him. The teenager was exceptionally handsome; however, his expression ineffably contained a hint of wildness. His black hair was loosely tied up, and was even tied slightly askew. It looked exceedingly casual, like he did whatever he wished.
It took me a while to put it together, but Xie Lian has the misfortune of combining very little time spent actually being a god with being very old and out of touch, no wonder he has trouble fitting in in heaven.
Since 'the boy' seems remarkably well informed, Xie Lian asks him what Hua Cheng looks like. The boy stands up, sits close and says "How do you think he ought to look?", and Xie Lian has to look away because he is "the kind of handsome that brought about a faint sense of being attacked, much like an unsheathed sharp sword."
'The boy' also says Hua Cheng must have been a bad person before he died, and lost his eye when he "went mad and cut it out". I guess he considers sacrificing himself for random strangers going mad...
"In my family, I’m ranked third. Everyone calls me San Lang" Translator: This can be roughly translated to ‘third son’ if used by family members, but it can also be used as an endearment between lovers.
I wonder if he really did have two older siblings.
“There was quarrelling at home, and I got driven out. I walked for some time but there was nowhere to go. Today, I got so hungry I nearly fainted at the end of the main street, and only then did I randomly find a place to lie down.”
Ok the first bit might be true but Hua Cheng you did NOT get weak with hunger "today".
...oh but it IS the festival of hungry ghosts. Maybe he was making a joke. The translator says this puts the scene in August or September.
Also Xie Lian happens to bump into him and he pulls away as if burned haha. He's only Mr Smooth when he's in control.
At one point Xie Lian needs to find a way to escape some ghosts, so shakes some fortune telling sticks and says "Heavenly Officials bestow your blessings on me! Lead me onto the right path!", which is referred to in the last line/chapter title of the book. He gets two bad answers, but Hua Cheng shakes and gets two good ones.
Haha and then the ghosts suddenly take fright and run away, Xie Lian turns and just sees a smiling Hua Cheng who says "You must have scared them off ^_^"
Aha, Xie Lian asks to read Hua Cheng's palm, and gives a very bright fortune...which is entirely made up, because he has no idea how to read palms. He was just checking if Hua Cheng lacked fingerprints (which would prove he's a ghost) I love that Xie Lian is friendly and nice to Hua Cheng on the surface but is still aware that Something's Up and is on guard underneath.
Teen!Hua Cheng is still much taller than Xie Lian (who's 178cm tall, hardly tiny), I missed that before.
Xie Lian apologises for the dilapodated state of his temple and Hua Cheng says "This is quite alright". Xie Lian, who's always the one reassuring people that things are ok, is touched, aw.
Xie Lian: You've heard of the Crown Prince Xie Lian? What do you think of him?
Hua Cheng, looking away: I think, Jun Wu must have really disliked him.
He also gets VERY INTENSE whenever he sees Xie Lian's cursed shackles in a way which reads to me as being super angry at Jun Wu.
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Date: 2019-11-22 02:34 am (UTC)I forgot that Mu Qing is a FUSSY ART CRITIC and this is even funnier to me now having read the entire book than it was the first time around.
(I wonder why Feng Xin and Mu Qing didn't fight Hua Cheng though! Playing it safe is in character for Mu Qing, but not Feng Xin.)
I feel like "The Young Lord Who Poured Wine" is Shi Qing Xuan but I have no evidence to back that up, it just sounds like something they would do....
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Date: 2019-11-23 12:09 pm (UTC)Feng Xin rushes in when he thinks something is important or he's been pissed off, but at that point he had no reason to care about what must have seemed like a random blowhard ghost, it sounds like the gods who took up the wager were both foolhardy and wanted to beat up this little punk to look cool.