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“Jiu-ge—Jiu-ge, slow down,” Shen Yuan gasps, panting as he hurries after his shixiong. Shen Jiu tosses a scowl over his shoulder and continues onward, though his pace slows down slightly. Having finally caught up, Shen Yuan breathes heavily and grabs onto Shen Jiu’s sleeve. “Don’t walk so fast, Shixiong,” he groans, his brown eyes turning amber in the sunlight. Like this, Shen Yuan’s pleading face is practically impossible to refuse. Shen Jiu bites the inside of his cheek until his teeth nearly break skin. Then, he’s sighing.
“If A-Yuan wasn’t such a slowpoke, this one’s pace would seem perfectly adequate,” Shen Jiu grumbles. Shen Yuan gives a laugh of delight and continues to cling onto Shen Jiu’s sleeve. It’s a habit he picked up as a young disciple that he has yet to get rid of. The words, Aren’t you too old for this? are on the tip of Shen Jiu’s tongue, yet he cannot bring himself to say them. He tries not to think about what that means.
They’re on an off-peak mission. As the Prides of Qing Jing (a stupid name that Shen Jiu continues to protest to this day), they are often recruited for missions involving complex relations requiring the utmost diplomacy. Being Cang Qiong’s master strategists, Shen Jiu and his fellow peak lord, Shen Yuan, work together to navigate difficult scenarios.
Though Shen Jiu would never admit it out loud, Shen Yuan is a grounding presence by his side every time they meet with clients. While Shen Jiu is someone who prefers the intellectual challenge of pursuing a case right to the end, Shen Yuan excels at the interpersonal aspect of their missions. Together, they make a formidable team.
For the most part.
It would be easier to work efficiently if Shen Jiu wasn’t so distracted by his shidi. Shen Yuan has been by his side for over ten years, and yet Shen Jiu has only grown more attached to his clumsy shidi. “A-Yuan,” Shen Jiu frowns, guiding Shen Yuan away from a puddle by the side of the road. “You need to be more aware of your surroundings. What if you stepped into that puddle, hmm? Your robes would have been ruined! What kind of Peak Lord—”
“Jiu-ge,” Shen Yuan says reproachfully. “This one knows! We’re just walking—can’t this one let loose a little?”
“We are in public,” Shen Jiu reminds him, pinching Shen Yuan’s waist. His shidi yelps and shoots him a betrayed look, rubbing his side as he hobbles down the road. Shen Jiu’s eyes are drawn to Shen Yuan’s waist.
Today, his shidi is wearing a light-green robe with a white belt and jade green tassels. The belt does nothing to hide how small his waist is, and it’s driving Shen Jiu crazy. He’s felt Shen Yuan’s waist before—his shidi routinely asks Shen Jiu to help him put on his robes, or adjust his guan, or tie his belt. If Shen Jiu didn’t know any better, he’d think that Shen Yuan was doing it on purpose.
This, Shen Jiu knows, is not the case. Shen Yuan is entirely oblivious of the intense and embarrassing effect he has on his shixiong. Most of the time, Shen Yuan’s tight clothes and fondness for skinship result in Shen Jiu rushing to the washroom so that he can furiously palm himself to completion.
Other times, masturbation isn’t enough. Shen Jiu needs—needs more . But he can’t. Shen Yuan is not an object, and Shen Jiu would rather die than force his shidi into something he doesn’t want. It’s pointless to ask Shen Yuan about becoming cultivation partners; the last time someone asked that question, a look so mutinous it could burn surfaced on his shidi’s face.
Shen Jiu allows himself the small comfort of placing a possessive hand on the curve of Shen Yuan’s hip. He tugs him away from yet another puddle, fingers lingering on that pleasant warmth, before he reluctantly removes his hand. Their footsteps echo down the stone path, Shen Yuan’s gait light and capricious while Shen Jiu’s is closer to a solemn march.
The mission they’ve been assigned is to track down a wayward succubus and bring them to justice. This succubus has been particularly difficult to catch on account of its special powers; it can manipulate objects, enabling them to trap cultivators and bring them back to their lair. The street they’re currently walking down is a mere stone’s throw from the last location where a victim was kidnapped.
“Jiu-ge,” Shen Yuan says slowly. “This one has been thinking… what if we—”
Shen Yuan never gets to finish his sentence.
With a cry of alarm, Shen Yuan trips over seemingly nothing and disappears. “A-Yuan? A-Yuan?! Answer me!” Shen Jiu shouts, rushing forward. As soon as he steps foot on the section of ground where his shidi disappeared, Shen Jiu finds himself falling. He tries to grab onto something—anything—without luck.
Just as Shen Jiu thinks he’s about to fall to his death, he hits something soft. “Jiu-ge!” Shen Yuan gasps, crawling over to him. Shen Jiu scrambles over to his shidi, grabbing his face and checking him over for injury. Once he’s deemed Shen Yuan injury free, Shen Jiu slaps his shidi’s thigh.
“Idiot!” Shen Jiu hisses. “What were you thinking, skipping ahead like that? Imbecile!”
Before Shen Jiu or Shen Yuan can get another word out, someone interrupts them. “Imbecile indeed! Mighty cultivators, you’ve fallen so low,” a voice purrs. Shen Jiu sits up, his eyebrows forming a ‘v’ shape as he whirls around. No one but me is allowed to insult A-Yuan!
“Show yourself!” he demands, standing up. Shen Yuan follows suit, stumbling to his feet and clinging onto Shen Jiu’s sleeve as they examine their surroundings. The lighting is dim, but it’s bright enough to make out the padded ground and deep pit they’ve fallen into.
“Jiu-ge,” Shen Yuan swallows, shuffling closer to Shen Jiu. They huddle together, Shen Jiu placing a protective hand on Shen Yuan’s hip.
“Shut up,” Shen Jiu mutters, but even he can hear the shakiness in his voice. Their captor continues to speak, an irritatingly smug quality tingeing their tone.
“This one wonders how two upright cultivators from Cang Qiong Mountain Sect will cope with… this!”
All at once, a burst of coloured powder spills from the walls surrounding them. “Don’t breathe it in!” Shen Jiu cries out, but it’s already too late. Their captor has managed to catch them off guard, leaving both Shen Jiu and Shen Yuan vulnerable.
A maniacal cackle emanates from above them. Shen Jiu shudders. Whatever that gas was… it’s doing something to me, Shen Jiu thinks, frowning as Shen Yuan starts to cough. When Shen Yuan’s jerky movements and sickening retching subsides, their ears are met with the sound of something grinding.
“Hear that?” the voice purrs—almost as if it read Shen Jiu’s mind. “The walls are closing in on you, dear cultivators! Soon, you’ll be cultivator-soup… unless you give in to your instincts.”
Give in to our instincts? What does that mean? Shen Jiu thinks, his mind working rapidly as he tries to piece together their captor’s clues.
Fortunately, the voice seems to tire of waiting, as it gives the answer to Shen Jiu almost immediately. “That powder you breathed in? It was an aphrodisiac. Soon, you’ll be out of your minds with the need to fuck each other stupid! Unless you do just that, you can kiss your lives goodbye!”
Shen Jiu pauses. On the one hand, that isn’t a problem at all on his end. On the other hand… Shen Jiu would rather die than force Shen Yuan into something he’s not comfortable with. However, before he can even open his mouth to cuss out their captor, Shen Yuan steps forward. “You freak!” he shrieks, stomping his foot on the ground.
When Shen Jiu looks down, he finds that the floor is covered in a layer of pillows and soft fabrics. That was what broke our fall, he realises. Shen Yuan continues his tirade. “You—you thief!” Thief? Shen Jiu thinks, confused. “This one has been trying to fuck Jiu-ge for so long now, and you’re telling me that this is going to be our first time? This one yearns for your socks to forever be mismatched!”
Shen Jiu blinks rapidly. “A-Yuan—”
“—This one isn’t finished! You scoundrel! This one was planning to invite Jiu-ge back to his room and give him a p-pleasurable experience in the comfort of our home, yet you’ve ruined that!”
“Wha—” says their captor.
“No!” Shen Yuan interrupts, shaking his fist at the ceiling. “This one purchased special underclothes and everything! Now my plan is all ruined—thanks to you, you disgusting beast! Ugh!” In a fit of rage, Shen Yuan shoots a bolt of qi towards the ceiling. With one last blood-curdling scream, their captor goes silent.
“Did… did A-Yuan kill it?” Shen Jiu whispers.
Shen Yuan whirls around. “Jiu-gege, I’m horny!”
What the fuck, Shen Jiu chokes, scarcely able to believe his ears. Normally, Shen Yuan is the picture of modesty; Shen Jiu didn’t even know his fellow Qing Jing Peak Lord could swear, let alone talk about sex without blushing. Granted, he did stutter, but… Shen Jiu turns so that he can look at the other Qing Jing Peak Lord properly.
“A-Yuan,” Shen Jiu starts, then pauses. “Did you… mean it?” he asks softly.
It is unusual for Shen Yuan to not be flustered in a situation such as the one they are currently in, but his fellow peak lord just grits his teeth. “This one will make love to Jiu-ge anywhere, but he’s still mad that our first time won’t be in the Bamboo House.”
“Since when?” Shen Jiu murmurs, looking away. “Since when did A-Yuan have feelings for this one?” Muffled footsteps sound as Shen Yuan approaches him. Carefully, a slender hand makes its way onto Shen Jiu’s shoulder, and Shen Yuan draws him into a hug.
“A-Jiu,” Shen Yuan whispers. “This one has always loved you. It is Jiu-ge that has been blind to this one’s attempts at wooing.” Wooing? Attempts? Shen Jiu can barely think straight. His heart is pounding against his ribcage—any harder and Shen Jiu fears that it’ll burst out. Quickly, as if Shen Yuan is a dream that is about to fade, Shen Jiu grasps his hands and pulls back from their hug.
“A-Yuan, are you comfortable doing—d-doing what the demon told us to do?” Shen Jiu says, unable to keep himself from flushing. Shen Yuan nods emphatically, his cheeks pinkening as he matches Shen Jiu’s blush.
“This one would gladly have Jiu-ge any time, anywhere,” Shen Yuan whispers, pushing himself up on the tips of his toes. Before he can move any closer, Shen Jiu is already pressing their lips together. They go down in a tangle of limbs, Shen Jiu’s knee nestled between Shen Yuan’s legs as he licks at the seam of his A-Yuan’s lips.
Shen Yuan parts his lips easily, giving a breathy moan when Shen Jiu curls their tongues together. He pushes his saliva into Shen Yuan’s mouth, gaining a perverse sort of delight at the thought of a part of himself being inside his A-Yuan. A small, even more perverse voice inside his head mutters Soon, even more of you will be inside of him.
That’s not necessarily true, Shen Jiu thinks, frowning. Upon hearing Shen Yuan give a high-pitched whine, Shen Jiu makes a soothing noise. “Shh,” he coos. “This one isn’t going anywhere.” After a moment of hesitation, Shen Jiu takes a deep breath. “A-Yuan… what do you want to do?”
Before Shen Yuan can reply, Shen Jiu quickly holds up a hand. “This one is aware that A-Yuan wants to have s-sex! I mean… which position does A-Yuan… want to be in?”
It’s mortifying, to be so unsure of himself and stumble over his words to such an obvious degree. Shen Jiu is helpless to stop the blush that flames on his cheeks as Shen Yuan cuddles up to him. They’re still lying on the ground, side by side now instead of Shen Jiu hovering over Shen Yuan’s vulnerable form.
“Either—both,” Shen Yuan breathes. His pupils have dilated to such an extent that his irises are but a thin band surrounding pools of jet black. “This one wants Jiu-ge in whatever way Jiu-ge will have him.”
The last thread of self-restraint holding Shen Jiu back finally snaps.
With a carnal moan, Shen Jiu latches onto Shen Yuan’s neck and sucks . The aphrodisiac must be in effect because Shen Jiu can barely think, he’s so horny. The most delicious whimper emanates from Shen Yuan’s plump lips. Like some kind of force of nature, Shen Jiu feeds his tongue into Shen Yuan’s mouth and coils it possessively around his partner’s tongue.
Their saliva mingles as they kiss, the viscous liquid dripping down both of their chins in a lewd, frothy mixture. Shen Jiu moves his hands from groping Shen Yuan’s chest further down to his hips. He rubs his thumbs over the seductive curves of his shidi’s hip bones, careful to trace his partner’s abdomen until Shen Yuan is thrusting upward in frustration.
“Jiu-ge!” Shen Yuan complains, sounding for all the world like a petulant little brother. Losing the last remaining threads of his patience, Shen Yuan starts to untie the knotted sash at his waist. While Shen Jiu prefers to wear darker greens, Shen Yuan has always stuck to light green and white garments. He’s a vision of beauty, the pink on his cheeks contrasting against the mint green robes he’s wearing today.
The walls continue to move, reminding Shen Jiu that they only have so long to… do the deed. Making a split second decision, Shen Jiu pushes down on Shen Yuan’s shoulder. His shidi goes down easily, a look of mild surprise on his face as he makes himself comfortable atop the blankets and pillows beneath them. Once settled beside his martial brother, Shen Jiu places a hand on Shen Yuan’s knee.
“You must tell me immediately if anything hurts, got it? This one will be furious if A-Yuan keeps quiet,” Shen Jiu scowls, flushing when Shen Yuan leans over to kiss his cheek.
“This one will say so, Jiu-ge—now hurry up!” Shen Jiu is helpless but to obey.
There are few people that Shen Jiu trusts. There are even fewer people that he’s willing to open up to. ‘Vulnerable’ and ‘Shen Jiu’ do not belong in the same sentence. Of course, like everything when it comes to Shen Yuan, that sentiment does not apply. They know each other’s pasts, each other’s habits—and now, each other’s bodies.
This is hardly the first time Shen Jiu has laid eyes upon Shen Yuan’s naked form. The bathhouse was a common haunt for most Qing Jing disciples; in the past, the Peak Lord always stressed the importance of a clear mind and body. Part of that, he emphasised, was to bathe oneself regularly. This tended to net the Qing Jing disciples no shortage of taunts and jeering from the Bai Zhan disciples, who rarely found themselves in the same room as a washcloth let alone a bath.
Shen Jiu is accustomed to his shidi’s milky skin, fair complexion and selection of moles that dot his back and chest. He isn’t, however, ready for the smattering of moles that line the inside of Shen Yuan’s thigh. The skin there is soft and supple, the kind of skin the noblewomen in the town a couple of li away would kill for.
“Like jade,” Shen Jiu finds himself saying. As expected, Shen Yuan flushes pink, the blush descending down his neck and tingeing his chest. Before his unruly shidi can say anything to deny Shen Jiu’s statement, he grabs the flesh of one of Shen Yuan’s asscheeks and squeezes.
A high-pitched yelp leaps from Shen Yuan’s lips. Amused, Shen Jiu gives him a kiss as an apology then pushes Shen Yuan’s knees further apart. The walls slowly closing in on them remind Shen Jiu that he only has so long to prepare his shidi before their situation becomes dangerous.
Mind made up, Shen Jiu lowers himself onto his elbows and examines Shen Yuan’s hole. “Wait!” Startled by his shidi’s outcry, Shen Jiu quickly retreats.
“A-Yuan? What is it?” Shen Jiu asks, a hint of concern seeping into his voice. Shen Yuan shakes his head and quickly reaches into his sleeve. When he pulls his hand out, he’s holding a small pot.
“Unguent,” Shen Yuan whispers. “To ease the way.”
If Shen Jiu doesn’t get his dick inside his shidi within the next incense time, his body will seize from the lack of blood in his brain. Shen Jiu tackles Shen Yuan to the ground, their lips slamming together as he fumbles desperately to get the lid of the pot off. Unguent… just how long has he been carrying this around? Even the thought of Shen Yuan wanting to have sex makes Shen Jiu feel a little crazy.
When Shen Yuan slurps at his mouth, saliva running down his chin, Shen Jiu groans carnally. Each wet sound that emanates from the joining of their lips just serves to send the fire inside his belly flickering higher. Slender fingers tug at Shen Jiu’s robes, the fabric slipping from his shoulders after several moments spent struggling.
“Fuck,” Shen Yuan curses, giving Shen Jiu pause. He rarely hears his martial brother curse… something about it is rather hot. Turned on, Shen Jiu sucks the soft flesh of Shen Yuan’s neck into his mouth.
“Agh—Jiu-ge!” A soft moan spills from Shen Yuan’s lips as Shen Jiu ignores his cries and continues to suck red-purple hickies into his skin. He pulls back to admire his work, the hickey a dark red splotch surrounded by faintly pink skin. Panting, Shen Yuan languishes underneath him. There isn’t anything in the world that can compare to the sight of Shen Yuan in an unkempt state—Shen Jiu is certain of it.
With the unguent pot finally uncapped, Shen Jiu takes a finger and scoops up some of the paste. It’s not too thin; thick enough to hold shape, but slippery enough to do the job. Holding his breath, Shen Jiu reaches down until his fingers brush against the curve of Shen Yuan’s ass. They both inhale audibly at the feeling. Clearly trying to hide it, Shen Yuan trembles.
“You—A-Yuan,” Shen Jiu frowns, pausing. “You must tell me if you are scared.”
“This one is not!” Shen Yuan barks, two spots of red forming on his cheeks. His indignance would be cute if the situation wasn’t so dire.
“You must tell this one if that changes,” Shen Jiu hisses, a bead of sweat slipping down his temple. Shen Jiu fears very few things, but hurting Shen Yuan is one of them. After receiving an impatient nod from Shen Yuan, he presses a finger against the furl of Shen Yuan’s hole.
Contrary to Shen Jiu, who barely has any pubic hair (to his shame), Shen Yuan has a decent amount. Funny… I would not have found this attractive on anyone else, Shen Jiu thinks to himself, his cheeks darkening. Immediately after, he closes his eyes. Stop being a pervert and get on with it!
Getting his finger inside Shen Yuan proves to be somewhat of a challenge. Neither of them have ever had sex before, let alone sex with another man, and Shen Yuan’s body is as tight as a virgin’s. Because he is a virgin, you imbecile, Shen Jiu thinks. He very carefully does not think about what that notion does to his dick.
“Breathe,” Shen Jiu instructs, tensing when he hears how breathless his voice sounds. Look at me—Qing Jing Peak Lord, and yet this man can render me helpless with just a glance, Shen Jiu thinks, feeling equal parts helpless and aroused. Lying flat, Shen Yuan breathes measuredly, his eyelashes fluttering when Shen Jiu sinks his finger deeper.
Somehow, it becomes so quiet that Shen Jiu cannot hear anything save for his own breathing and Shen Yuan’s muffled moans. He’s quivering, his body arching whenever Shen Jiu presses his finger deeper. “Another,” Shen Yuan gasps, his eyelids shuttering closed. When Shen Jiu doesn’t add another finger, Shen Yuan pushes himself up onto his elbows.
“Jiu-ge!” the petulance in his voice sends a bolt of heat shooting through Shen Jiu’s abdomen.
“Brat,” Shen Jiu mutters, but duly adds another finger. If he thinks he can take it, I’ll indulge him. Stupid, Shen Jiu sneers, sliding his forefinger in next to his middle finger. At the rate they’re going, they’ll be crushed alive before they make it to the dick-in-hole stage, but Shen Jiu just isn’t willing to risk hurting Shen Yuan.
“More—Jiu-ge, more—!” Shen Yuan cuts himself off with a desperate cry, his muscles contracting as Shen Jiu starts to move his fingers back and forth. He curls them a little, the pads of his fingers grazing the spongy upper wall of Shen Yuan’s insides. If Shen Yuan’s reaction is anything to go by, it feels good. The peak lord moves his hips, his cock twitching as Shen Jiu squeezes in a third finger.
“You’ve got to relax,” Shen Jiu pants, feeling his muscles start to cramp from how long he’s been keeping up the rhythm of finger-fucking Shen Yuan. He wouldn’t stop for an army. “Shh,” he hushes when Shen Yuan gives a childish whine. “Nearly there. Patience, A-Yuan.”
“Jiu-ge! Put it in!” Shen Yuan stomps his foot petulantly and has the gall to tug at Shen Jiu’s hair. He wants me to put it in? Fine, Shen Jiu thinks savagely. I will.
Despite his initial confidence, by the time he actually manages to get his dick out, Shen Jiu is sweating a river down his neck and back. What if A-Yuan doesn’t like it? What if I’m really bad? What if—
Shen Jiu scowls. Since when does the Qing Jing Peak Lord whinge like a baby? A-Yuan will say something if he’s displeased; that’s how it’s always been. Repeating that to himself like it’s a mantra, Shen Jiu lines himself up and begins to push.
The sensation is extremely odd. His cock is throbbing with need, the veins on the side protruding from how much blood is coursing through them. When the head pops past the tight ring of muscles that form Shen Yuan’s entrance, Shen Jiu thinks he sees stars. “A-Yuan—fuck,” he hisses, breathing in slowly to collect himself. His momentary composure is shattered instantly by the next words that come out of Shen Yuan’s mouth.
“Fuck me, Jiu-ge.”
His words, so flippant and coy, make the hairs on the back of Shen Jiu’s neck stand on end. A strand of ink black hair falls from Shen Jiu’s shoulder and spools against the curve of Shen Yuan’s hipbone. The sight is so erotic that Shen Jiu has to grip the base of his dick. Alright, fine, he exhales, giving a wry grin. If that’s what A-Yuan wants, then that is what A-Yuan will get.
Shen Yuan’s hips make for the perfect handles. Grabbing them none too gently, Shen Jiu slams his cock inside the other peak lord until his abdomen is flush against Shen Yuan’s ass. When Shen Jiu starts to move, Shen Yuan’s asscheeks jiggle. In a moment of inspiration, Shen Jiu brings his hand up then brings it back down in a light slap.
The effect is catalytic. Shen Yuan’s back arches, his fingers twitching as his cock bounces mid-air. “Ah—Jiu-ge!” His cries are like a drug; Shen Jiu is addicted, and he needs to hear more. Quickly, he adjusts himself, moving one of his hands underneath Shen Yuan’s knee. Before his martial brother can complain, Shen Jiu pushes Shen Yuan’s leg up and slams into his hole once more.
“There,” Shen Jiu spits, his breathing heavy, “isn’t that what you wanted? To be fucked?”
“Ahng—yes, Jiu-ge—fuck!” Shen Yuan cries, his pectorals bouncing each time Shen Jiu fucks into him. He’s clinging to the soft material that’s cushioning them as they fuck, his knuckles white as his eyes roll into the back of his head. Shen Jiu can barely believe that he gets to have his martial brother like this; under him, aroused, begging for it.
“Mine,” Shen Jiu snarls, moving his hand so that he can grip Shen Yuan’s waist. The peak lord’s stomach quivers, his face red as he mumbles his way through a whole host of obscenities. Aroused by how unwound Shen Yuan is becoming, Shen Jiu ups his pace and starts to fuck his shidi for real.
They’re too distracted by each other to notice that the walls have ceased moving. They’re still too distracted to notice when voices approach the hole they’re in, only to give gasps of shock and quickly retreat. Only when cum is dripping from Shen Yuan’s hole and decorating his stomach do they finally become aware of their surroundings again.
“A-Yuan, you—can you stand?” Shen Jiu asks, a pang of guilt hitting him. Too hard, you idiot! Look! he chides himself when Shen Yuan winces.
“This one is fine, Jiu-ge,” Shen Yuan reassures. He smiles—not overly large, like Shang Qinghua, nor placatingly, like Yue Qingyuan, but gently. With love. Shen Jiu flushes when he processes who the smile is being directed at.
He brings his attention back to the present, where Shen Yuan is examining their surroundings. “No sign of any other traps,” Shen Yuan says, moving closer to Shen Jiu. Just as he’s about to ask what his shidi is up to, Shen Yuan looks left and right then swoops in to plant a kiss on Shen Jiu’s cheek.
“Gege,” he grins, linking his arm with Shen Jiu’s. “Shall we go home?” Too stunned to say anything verbally, it is all Shen Jiu can do to nod and follow his fellow peak lord back to Qing Jing. Later, Shen Yuan gives him a series of courting gifts and seals the deal with an extravagant proposal, because “Jiu-ge deserves—you know! All of that!”
He accepts, of course. Shen Yuan has been his one and only since they met each other. I’d be a fool to say no, Shen Jiu thinks, and allows himself to let loose in the embrace of the only person he’s ever felt truly safe being vulnerable around.