Shen Yuan is, of course, a sweetheart of a cat that is totally, entirely, wasted on that acerbic Peak Lord who named him.
That is, of course, until a demon attack on the sect includes the use of True Heart Vial Rose and shows exactly what Shen Yuan is thinking.
Which happens to be rampant and increasingly creative expletives as he hisses, batting fiercely at the downed demon.
"Fuck your mother!" the cat yeowls, scratching at the demon's eyes. "You dogshit, peh! Curse your family! Your ancestors and descendants should feel shame having you in their bloodline!"
He quickly changes gears as he runs over to Shen Qingqiu, rubbing against his legs. "Jiu-ge, Jiu-ge~ That thing is filthy! Hurry and salt this wretched corpse lest it spreads some sort of miasma!"
Shen Qingqiu is, of course, more than a little pleased to do exactly that.
Shen Yuan, it seems, is utterly unaware of the fact his thoughts are understood. It doesn't help that he doesn't actually understand much of human speech (yet), so even if he's understood, he can't do the same for them. And that means he's very honest about whatever he thinks at all times.
"Is this supposed to be a gift? It's crude. It's bloody. It's exactly the kind of thing that dogfight Bai Zhan Peak would consider a prized possession. Its liver should be impeccable for qi restoration, and its bones, once in a fine powder, can help heal meridians. It's a good gift. Jiu-ge should take it." It's that commentary over the large corpse sitting outside the bamboo house that A) helps Shen Qingqiu realize it's not a threat and B) realize who it came from.
Also, apparently the cat has some sort of instinctual knowledge of beasts like itself. How curious.
"Going out of their way to misunderstand. Hmmh. Don't mind them, Jiu-ge. They aren't worth the effort. A waste of space and breath, they are."
The Peak Lord can't help a little laugh as he agrees, watching the cultivators accosting him turned red in the face at being dismissed by a cat.
"Aiyah, what am I going to do with you..." He purrs softly as he helps Shen Qingqiu calm from another, increasingly infrequent qi deviation. "You can't keep getting hurt like this. If you can't stop, I guess this Yuan will have to watch over you for as long as I live."
If Shen Qingqiu starts looking into how to help a cat become a spiritual beast after that, well, that's no one else's business.
"Jiu-ge cultivated demonically first. Of course cultivating the spiritual way only will cause an imbalance! Qi is qi, none is good or evil on principle, just like people and demons. Jiu-ge should keep using demonic cultivation to balance his energies! Fuck Wu Yanzi, there's tons of demonic cultivators better than even those from 'righteous' sects!"
If Shen Qingqiu begins improving in leaps and bounds, well, that's also his own business.
By the time Luo Binghe arrives, Shen Qingqiu is much more settled in himself and doesn't bother spiting Liu Qingge by taking a promising, fluffy-looking child on the day to pick new disciples. Though, Shen Yuan starts trailing over to Bai Zhan to go stare at the child, and in turn, Shen Qingqiu and Liu Qingge end up spending more time around each other...gross.
"Aaa Jiu-ge, don't be so shy. You clearly brought that Thousand Silver Teardrop Tea to help Qingge-ge through his bottleneck. Why act like this, ah? You're so hopeless. I suppose this cat will have to keep you company forever. Haaah."
Well, there are times he mildly wished A'Yuan would shut up. But his thoughts do end up getting the other peak lords to relax more around him.
Liu Qingge, having heard the cat's thoughts time after time, starts talking to Shen Qingqiu and treating him better. Repulsive. Do it more.
finally wrote an sts2 fic! a little oneshot about culture and the ironclad, among other things
-----
What It Means to Be Preoni
Summary:
On the start of another journey up the Spire, the Slayers arrive at a peaceful rest spot in the Underdocks with a perfect pool for the team to wash up at.
While the Silent and Necrobinder go and wash up and the Defect goes off to hunt, the Ironclad and Regent are left alone to their devices.
The Regent, curious as to the split, asks the Ironclad a few questions.
The knife halted, half-chopped carrot forgotten as the words rang in Steve’s already-ringing ears. He swallowed thickly and turned around, leaning against the counter.
“Come again, Buck?”
Bucky stood across the kitchen, arms crossed, looking angry and confused and–
Stop staring, Rogers, he’s talking.
“–think I can’t tell when you’re lying, asshole. Known you since we were fuckin’ kids, looked out for your skinny ass my whole life, I know when you’re fuckin’ lying.” Bucky swayed slightly and dragged a hand down his face, defensive position loosening just slightly as Steve blanched.
“Listen, Buck, it’s nothing. Doc said I’m fine, okay? Fine. Get that one through your thick fuckin’ skull.” He turned back to the counter, knife resuming an easy (read: tense) rhythm against the cutting board. Bucky cleared his throat and pulled what sounded like a sheet of paper out of his pocket.
Shit. He went to goddamn Dr. Albans’ office. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.
“Steve–” Bucky’s voice broke, and Steve cringed as he heard what was undeniably the sound of tears on paper.
“You’re fucking dying, Steve. You get one more cold, one more flu, one more goddamn infection and that’s it. Your organs? They are this close to failing. Your lungs are full of shit, Steve,” Bucky wheeled around suddenly, slamming his hand into the doorframe and causing the entire tenement building to rattle. Steve was impossibly tense, listening to Bucky’s ragged breathing as he tried to reel himself back in.
“They’re not–they’re not supposed to do that, Steve. They’re supposed to be full of air, Stevie, not fucking fluid.” Bucky slid to the floor, thumping his head back against the wall and heaving a shaky breath.
“Listen, Buck, I’m sorry for not telling you. Really, I am. But I couldn’t put that on you, I couldn’t let you think that I’m some fragile half-dead invalid because I’m not, you still need to work and provide for your Ma and Becca and what about rent and,” Steve paused, realizing he was rambling and that he somehow couldn’t breathe correctly. Bucky forced a bitter laugh, masking the sound of Steve’s wheezing. He stood up and stretched and goddamn, was he beautiful or what.
Enough, Rogers.
Shit, but he’s stunning.
“C’mere, punk,” Bucky said, flopping down on the threadbare green couch and rubbing a hand over his already-stubbly jaw. Steve wobbled over and–was it just him, or was the room swaying? He settled himself on the cushion next to Bucky, close but not too close because it was too goddamn hot in the room. He swiveled his head towards the other man, realizing for the first time that he had been speaking.
“Could you–” Steve struggled against the words, tongue feeling too big for his mouth and lungs feeling too small. Bucky’s brow furrowed, hand reaching towards Steve as he fought to stay upright.
“Buck–I don’t. I don’t feel so good, Bucky.” There wasn’t enough air in the room and Bucky was so close and he looked so worried.
Don’t worry, pal. I’m just fine.
The last thing Steve heard was Bucky’s scream as he pitched forward, body thudding against the floor and into darkness.
“Acute organ failure–”
“–temperature 106 degrees, still climbing–”
“Stevie, c’mon, please–”
Silence.
A churchyard,
a wooden cross,
a man in black.
He sits heavily next to the grave, setting a small daisy on top before looking up at the sky.
“It’s too sunny, Stevie. Hasn’t rained a drop since you left, isn’t that funny? Anyways, everyone misses you a whole lot.” Here he breaks, burying his face in his hands. “I’m sorry, Stevie, so sorry I couldn’t take better care of you, that I had to work so much, that I drank so much. I’m sorry for all of it. I couldn’t say this when it counted, but I love you. So goddamn much, and I can’t even say it to your face.”
The man stands up, brushing dirt off his pants before jamming his hands into his pockets.
“Until tomorrow, Stevie.”
The sun beats down, merciless against the scorched earth.
I read this post by @/diushek and I have been inspired.
EDIT: IT'S THIS POST BY @deikshen, their username changed!
Their post and mine aren't really all that related save for parts of the premise, but still, I'm thankful for the inspiration so I'd like them to get attention.
--
Shen Yuan as a spider demon(?).
In his last life, since he had a lot of free time, he, of course, dove headfirst into webnovels. But, he also grew up fixing his little sister's toys and had found out that he enjoys sewing. He was rather sickly, so it wasn't like he had much else to do.
So, he learned how to fix dolls, then design clothes for dolls. Then, he designed and made a dress for his meimei to wear for a school play, and he's spiraled out of control since.
He especially went wild while reading PIDW. Airplane was so neglectful while describing clothes, so of course, he had to design what he thought they would look like!! And, if it just so happened people would spend money to buy his outfits for their professional make and relative historical accuracy, sure!
Then PIDW ends terribly, Shen Yuan writes his last hate post, and he essentially dies from rage (his already weak heart couldn't beat properly in the end).
And the next time he's aware of himself, he's sitting neatly in the center of a well-woven web.
He can't see very well, but he can feel vibrations all over the place. He'd thought to put on his glasses, but couldn't seem to...put them on. Somehow, he knew they weren't around.
He also knows that he's quite terribly hungry.
So, he doesn't think twice when he feels a vibration in his web and he crawls over to a struggling creature. He can feel the qi coming from it, whatever it is. But that doesn't matter for now. It's just food.
And he's hungry.
So he injected his prey and began to slurp up the remains.
This continues for an indeterminate amount of time. Making webs, catching and consuming prey, moving to new areas when he decided the area was getting too crowded or was unsuitable. The more plants he finds, the more he appreciates the environment, and he tends to stick around them longer until he must move.
A little ticking clock in the back of his head seems to tell him he should be dead. That his life was extending beyond its usual limits.
However, that wasn't really something he cared too much about. Instead, if he wasn't trying to sate his deep, nearly endless hunger, there wasn't much else he cared to do. Not even the thought of reproducing enticed him.
Though, a part of him was bored. If he had something to read, that would be nice, but he had nothing. So, he'd just have to mull over a story he remembers from somewhere, a hateful little thing that, despite all its faults and failures, drags back into his mind once more.
At least playing around with plants helped a bit, moving the seeds and testing the soil with thin limbs and senses beyond anything a human has.
Some time later, he finds a little cavern with strong qi. He decides that would be nice to stay in since the plants around it are plentiful and full of energy, and he makes it his home. He connects the various webs he makes to his home web, able to feel the pull and location of each web to hunt, capture, and take it back to a much safer, more secure place.
He finds his mind becoming a bit clearer the longer he stays there. Eventually, he even finds that his eyesight is getting better as well. Although he was perfectly fine feeling through vibrations, the colors around him are quite interesting as well.
Eventually, one day, he feels something pull on one of his webs. As usual, he goes out to wrap it up. But, as he approaches his prey, it calls out to him.
"Wait! Wait! Please spare me!!"
Shen Yuan pauses. If he tries to focus his vision a bit...the form of this prey looks a bit human, doesn't it? Huh. When did humans get so small? He could've sworn they were bigger before.
"Please, I just... I just wanted the fruit!!"
The fruit...ah. Yes, he'd included a few nearby trees in his web at some point. Hadn't they just been little branches? Hm. Time sure does fly.
Shen Yuan focuses his blurry vision on the being in his web. Indeed, it seems to be human. A man, if he recalls...yes. A grown human male.
Humans... He thinks of them neutrally. Humans are not exclusively good or evil, but some tend to act more one way or another. In the end, they're just another animal trying to survive and live well.
However, that shouldn't come at the expense of stealing his fruit! He eats those because they're tasty! He brought the seeds with him when he moved from his last place and he planted them himself. They're his plants...his trees! No one else had the right to take from it.
Apparently, he lets some of this thought out, a whithery, faint hiss singing from between his fangs.
"Thieeeef..."
"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to! Please, let me go, and I won't come here ever again!"
Hmmh. Not likely. If a human came this far, then it was possible there was some sort of issue with their own food. Couldn't the humans tell that he owned this area? Well...he did hide his webs well so prey could fall into his traps.
Even so, he doesn't think there's a village or anything close to this place, so this human was likely desperate enough to come out and pursue the fruit from his trees to eat. What was more likely was that the human would wail about his presence and bring trouble back with him.
So, he had a few options.
1. Release the human foolishly and wait for them to encroach on his domain.
2. Eat the human, then wait to see if anyone would come looking for him. This would possibly lead to more problems.
3. Let the human take a fruit, to make them indebted to him...but he can't just do that out of kindness. Humans could try to take advantage of him, or maybe hunt him anyway.
4...
Equivalent exchange. Bartering. If he sets this up as something where he and the humans mutually benefit while keeping the humans indebted to him, perhaps they would be less likely to see him negatively. They would also maintain a healthy fear of him.
Goodness, he was coming up with such good ideas just from encountering a single human. Perhaps associating with them a little wouldn't be so bad.
"...Free you. Fruit...but. Paaaay..."
The man trembled in his web. It was getting rather difficult to resist eating him. Such squirming enticed his senses.
"P-Pay? Pay how??"
"...Stoooory."
The man stumbles and mutters, but eventually, he starts telling a story from his village. It's just some sort of child's tale.
Even so, it's not boring.
"Hmm... Poor quality..."
The man starts pleading again as he approaches, but his pleas quiet as he, instead of wrapping him up, starts untangling the human.
"The main character...no personalityyy. Milquetoast. The princess. Even more flat. No motivation. Cookie-cutter character. The bear. Foolish. No protective instiiiinct. Elementary. 2/10."
He ends his critique while placing a webbed bag of fruit in the man's hands.
"Begone."
The human obeys.
And just as Shen Yuan expected, that same web triggers just a few days later.
This time, it's a human female. She's not as tangled in the web as the man was, having stopped fighting as much early on.
She has two heartbeats, but is terribly thin. The human male had been quite thin as well. Why?
"Lord Spider, this lowly woman is sorry... Please, may this one...tell you a story?"
"Hmm..."
Shen Yuan settles down, curling his limbs close, and waits.
She tells a story that's better than the one the male told him. Her heart skips and jumps at points, especially when the main character—a woman this time—experiences hardship. This is quite clearly a story close to her heart.
It's full off happiness and grief. A marriage collapsing from the death of her lover, and a family who refused to support her for being barren. She fights and fights and fights, and carves a place for herself. Just when she thinks she's found happiness, a tragedy strikes. A famine. And she, having exhausted everything she had, dies.
"Hmm... Interesting. Bold protagonist. Hardyyyy. Faces a dogfight world. Should ask for heeeelp. Husband. Tragic. Death too soooon. Loved the main character. Left her behind. Family. Cruuuuel. Mindless. Women are not jusssst for breeding.
"Hmm. 7/10. Too sad, realistic still."
He adds some grasses with wisps of qi coming from it to her bundle.
"What is this?" she asks.
"For the baaaaaby."
She seems to startle at that, though he's not sure why.
"...Thanking Lord Spider."
She leaves before he has to tell her to go.
...
After that, humans become a regular enough visitor that he leaves a string with leaves on the end for them to call for him. Surely, they're stuck getting caught in his webs. More importantly, he's tired of having to rearrange them every time. They really leave his webs a tangled mess.
As the season warms further, they come with more stories. Many are quite terrible and not worth his time. He gives them fruit regardless, because at least they have staved off his boredom.
They've decided on calling him Lulin Zhizhu (绿林之主 - lǜlín zhī zhǔ - Lord of the Green Forest). Or, simply, Zhizhu.
Apparently, his webs were keeping the villagers safe? The food he'd been catching had a taste for human flesh (not that he didn't, but still), so by eating, he had been helping them without intending to. That apparently made him more reverent to them, and they put more effort into their stories based on how he rated them.
Fan Zhenzhen (范蓁蓁 - Fàn Zhēnzhēn), the second human who told him a story, quickly became one of his favorites. She told the best stories, real ones, that brought back emotions he felt had been taken over by instinct for a long while. He wouldn't say he treated her better, but he did make sure to cultivate more of the grass for the child growing within her.
The humans steadily grew stronger and meatier...perhaps tastier, but he'd lose his stories if he ate them. Eventually, whatever blight affected their village abated a bit, and they could once again start growing their own food.
Instead of abandoning him, they brought him some of the food as an offering.
"Hmm...famine," he murmured, his way of speech having improved from socializing. "The sickness. Still in the fields."
"Sickness?" a farmer asked.
"Yes. The plants, victim to illness. They will not grow well." He leaves for a moment to get something. It seems they learned his habits, as they're still waiting when he returns. He drops another plant he cultivated within the realm of his webs. "Crush these. Spread them. The fields and the water."
The farmer and his offspring bow low to the ground. "Thanking Zhizhu for his wisdom!"
The offerings they bring after that show markable improvement, and the name they gave him sticks even harder.
Of course, they continue to tell him stories, as that's the most important thing they can give him. He becomes quite settled with hearing them speak and starts to absentmindedly weave little things related to the stories they tell him.
At this, Fan Zhenzhen approaches with another idea, her stomach rounding out with child.
"Zhizhu, this lowly one apologizes for being impertent. As the days grow colder, this feeble woman fears the chill of winter more than the hunger of famine. For her next story, may she instead receive some of your silk?"
"Silk...for clothes."
"Yes, if this lowly one may ask of Zhizhu."
"Hmm... Tell the story."
So she does. As with the others, it too delves into the life of the main character, who is now a powerful figure in her village for her ability to weave. Her weaving helped the villagers trust the nearby forest god, who was frightening but gracious, wild yet magnanimous. She talks about how the character was once sold by her family to be a maid elsewhere, and how she's learned to survive and come up to her current position.
As she does, Shen Yuan eyes her. The vibrations from her voice gives him a good view of her body and shape. He unconsciously, mindlessly, weaves a coat for her.
It's thin. Surely not enough to stave off winter's chill. So, when she finishes and he gives his rating, he gives her both the thread she requested and the thin coat.
It is, according to her, magnificently beautiful. In turn, Shen Yuan can't help but feel a little puff of pride in his abdomen.
Cale, through some failure of magical shenanigans, becoming half cat. Like, cat ears and tail, but not actually a cat beastkin.
It was supposed to turn him completely into an animal and reduce him into nothing but a mindless creature, but bro is so full of ancient powers and stuff, that wasn't gonna work. It wasn't fully ineffective though, so now he's a catboy (catman?) for a bit.
At first, they don't really notice much of a difference between his usual self and his current part cat self. He looks as haughty as ever, with the fluff of fur where his human ears were leading up to the large red ones on his head that looked, frankly, quite majestic alongside his long-furred tail. His ears and tail twitch and shift outside his control, showing his emotions much more than his expression ever would, but otherwise, there's not much more to say than that.
Except, they start actually looking at what his cat parts are saying.
For one, even when he is lounging lazily, his ears are almost always pointed in their direction. He's very often paying attention to them or at least using their voices as background ambience.
His tail swishes calmly whenever he's listening to them. Especially the children. It shows that he's not just attentive, but very content, even enjoying himself.
He doesn't suddenly get more fastidious about himself getting wet or dirty or anything, but he does start brushing up against people.
It appears to be an utterly unconscious move on his part when he first does it, pushing against Choi Han for a moment before moving past him. On and Hong immediately stiffen, eyes wide, and Ron also raises a brow, though the others don't catch on yet.
On briefly tests her theory, walking up to him and leaning against him in her human form while he's talking to Rosalyn. Without batting an eye, a long red tail brushes around her and he rubs her head, easily leaving his scent on her just as easily as she's left hers on him.
Then, as though to punctuate their discussion, he leaves his conversation with Rosalyn off with a parting flick of his tail around her leg and a light brush past her as he walks in the opposite direction. Not enough to shove but enough to put his weight lightly against her. It would've been odd had Rosalyn not had the context On so kindly and silently provided, leaving the witch feeling very much chuffed instead.
(This was also a surprise to Alberu, who ended up with Cale deciding that his head looked like a great place to put his own. Which is exactly what he did when looking at a paper the prince was about to show him, the redhead basically draping himself all over his back.
"Dongsaeng."
"Yes, your highness?"
"Pray tell, what are you doing?"
"Reading."
"Does that require you to use your beloved hyung as furniture?"
"No, it does not."
Cale didn't move for another five minutes.
Alberu didn't have him move despite his complaint.)
Even Ron gets the treatment.
It's cautious, as the man always is with the assassin. And he's never been particularly touchy with him or Beacrox. And yet, Cale finds himself holding something being handed to him a touch too long, his wrist able to rub against the Molans in a way that seems to calm him, judging by the little satisfied narrowing of his eyes when he does it. Cautious and tentative, but still wanting to do it. The Molan patriarch and his son notice it. Neither say anything. But, if Ron adds a little honey into the lemon tea the next time he makes it, well, that's neither here nor there, is it?
...
Also, Cale purrs easily. It doesn't take much for him to feel happy or pleased.
He's embarrassed by it, but Cale grows to just deal with his overactive motor.
One trigger is Beacrox's food. He likes tasty food, after all. Just a whiff of its scent has him purring in anticipation of the taste, especially if it's meat (cats being obligate carnivores has indeed increased his meat intake).
Another is when the kids are talking to or around him. Watching them having fun, enjoying life. Sometimes, they'll just be yappin, and all of a sudden—prrrrrr. They'll look over and see Cale covering his face with his hand.
Since this is now the third post of Spider Shen Yuan, I'll make a masterpost for it. It'll be linked at the end.
Also, fun fact I just found out, but the word for spider in Chinese is 蜘蛛 (Zhī zhū), and, as you know, Shen Yuan's title (given to him) is Lulin Zhizhu (绿林之主 - lǜlín zhī zhǔ - Lord of the Green Forest).
And, like, I know they're two different words because zhū and zhǔ aren't the same. But also, I chose to use Zhīzhǔ because it's close to Shizun (师尊 - Shī zūn), both of which mean master, though Shizun is teacher-master and Zhizhu is lord-master, the latter of which, when using a different word, is also Zhizhu (spider).
FUCK I'm good. Coincidences are on my side on this one.
...Also, if they were to mispronounce his title, he could also be Pearl/Bead of the Green Forest (綠林之珠 - Lùlín Zhīzhū), which I think is cute.
---
The demoness does not take kindly to one of her guards being killed.
In retaliation, she demands that the demon guards use their full power to capture and imprison him.
However, Shen Yuan has not been living and growing for...who knows how many years...without preparing for eventually finding himself in a battle with more intelligent beings than the typical monster.
Using his legs as toothpicks, he stabs each little morsel she sends his way, setting some aside as his little minion spiders wrapped them up to eat later and eating others immediately.
His carapace is quite strong, and his eyes, though lidless, aren't mere weak points some game character could mash until he was destroyed. He has near 360 degree vision with almost blind spots unless he just really isn't paying attention. And since he's paying attention, he makes sure that, even if they haven't hit him yet, he sprays webs to disable the more spiritually-inclined demons staying further back.
When a stronger one approaches, he scuttles out of range, large but extremely mobile. After all, he's covered his entire neck of the woods in his webs, whether visible or nearly imperceivable to the naked human (or demon) eye.
He started as an orb weaver, but over the years, he's adapted to different styles of webs. It's a requirement of the strong to adapt to their surroundings, after all.
Eventually, most of the guards are reduced to little web-covered bags, wriggling futilely to escape, and the demoness, with a few remaining soldiers, cowers as her continued orders start to sputter out.
With a few calculated maneuvers, he causes the presence of the humans to slip from their minds, eventually concealing them in a corner with protective webs. So, even if it occurred to any of them to attempt to use human hostages, they were now out of sight. And taking their eyes off the very real threat in front of them was incredibly unwise, anyway.
Webs thicken. Bodies hang in strong, thick, grey sacks. Little spiders with even smaller legs team together, following under a single spider's orders.
Shen Yuan strategically spins something between a funnel and a sheet web, trapping the remaining demons within. Fire-retardant as his webs are, even trying to burn them proves futile.
The demoness, her guard captain, and the last three demon guards watch in visible terror, squirming deliciously. He's used quite a bit of silk, so he's feeling hungry. Watching them twitch tickles a little part in his brain that says he should bundle them up, nice and tight...
Would he eat them now? Or, perhaps, he should save them for later. Little morsels, qi and blood thrumming through their veins, physical and spiritual.
He lowers himself into the funnel he made, his limbs stretching out, reaching for them.
Surely, they will be—
"...T...There once was a demon..."
Shen Yuan stops suddenly, his legs twitching.
The guard general clears his throat.
"There once was a demon, long ago, who fell in love with a human. A cultivator."
Oh. A story.
Yes.
Yes, Shen Yuan likes stories.
Clearing the hungering fog from his mind, he pulls back, limbs curling in as he watches intently. Listening.
The demon general tells the story of the ill-fated demon and their love for a cultivator. By all intents and purposes, it seemed it was destined to be one-sided.
However, when the cultivator discovers the demon, it turns out she recognizes him. The demon in the story had once saved the human cultivator, and, desiring power, she pursued cultivation so she could stand side-by-side with the demon one day.
They spent many centuries together. But then, the cultivator was made into a god. Drawn up to the celestial realm, the cultivator left the demon behind, and the demon cried out in anguish.
Hatred stewed in the demon's heart over the cultivator's broken promise, and he shot up toward the heavens, ripping into the celestial realm, even as the spiritual qi poisoned him. He ripped and tore through heavenly beings and gods alike, finally coming face-to-face with the goddess that abandoned him.
However, the demon, who still loved the goddess despite it all, could not bring himself to kill her. So, he jumped down from the celestial realm, returning to the demon realm.
Having spent so much time killing gods and spiritual creatures, he was forever altered by the experience. Spiritual qi polluted his body, but he adapted to it, having spent so much time with the cultivator and learning her ways. Determined to not die from qi poisoning, he circulated the spiritual qi and demonic qi, meshing them until it became his own.
Thus, he became the first Heavenly Demon. A demon not even the gods could deny.
That phrase...ah.
Ah, yes. He's heard that term before. From the story he couldn't forget.
Something about this story, about the origin of heavenly demons, didn't sound quite right. A little nigging at the back of his mind. But now wasn't the time to ponder on that too much.
"Hmm... A very interesting story. Of promises broken and power gained. From where did you hear such a tale?"
"My...mother. Used to tell this one of the story," the general stiltedly replies.
"Is it accurate?"
"As far as he knows."
"Very good. This spider very much liked it."
He crawls up higher and begins tearing into the makeshift funnel. Other smaller spiders also begin to tear it apart, unraveling it enough in one spot that something of a door split open in the thick weaving.
"He shall let this group of demons go as thanks for the quality and depth of the story."
But, as the guard captain begins to bow, the little demon princess speaks up, her voice shaking.
"Wait! You! You said you'd make a dress for Li-er!"
Shen Yuan tilts his body, much like one would tilt their head.
"The miss seems to misunderstand. This spider has decided to show her and the remainder of her entourage grace for the quality of the story told to him. However, the story was not only told by the guard captain, but it served as repayment. The story was an expense owed, not one given in return for something else."
He lowers himself closer to the ground, hanging lazily by a single gleaming thread, what little wounds he had already closed and scarred over. The other spiders move around, once again revealing the sky, which has grown naturally dark. The moonlight shines off his round, focused eyes.
"The miss told a story when she arrived. A hateful little tale. About how I, the one recognized as lord of the forest he helped grow, had committed a slight against a nameless little demoness for bestowing gifts upon those who asked for them appropriately. This little miss threatened me, in my domain, with slavery and servitude, to be treated as little more than a slavering beast good only for the produce of its body."
His fangs flex, and she steps back.
"And so, this spider was slighted. Severely. And in return, this spider began to take. And take. And take some more. To take what was owed to me, with due interest."
The withered body of Shen Yuan's first victim lies crumpled on the ground.
"This spider was merely rectifying your sin."
The guard captain extends an arm in front of the lady, but he keeps his gaze low, not daring to look him directly in the eyes.
"...But this guard was wise. He paid this spider with a marvelous story that appeased this one very much. And so, not only has this one decided to let him live, but he's decided to let the little miss and the rest of her guards live as well. A steal, one could say. Five, for the price of one."
He chuckles, light, airy, and rumbling all the same.
"Tell this lord, guard captain. Has this one not been quite magnanimous?"
The captain swallowed thickly, then he lowered himself to one knee. The remaining guards, the ones not bleeding out or cocooned, swiftly followed suit, smelling deliciously of tears, sweat, fear, and salt.
"The Great Spider has been most gracious to us. We thank him for his mercy."
"See," Shen Yuan says, fangs flexing in a poor mockery of a smile. "He understands well."
The little demon princess looks around her, seeming to finally get out of her head and understand what she was dealing with. Her fingers then clutch into her dress, nearly ripping it with her nails... But she slowly lets go, then tucks her hands into her sleeves as she gives a slight bow.
"...Li-er...understands. Thanking this...the Great Spider...for his guidance."
"Hmmh."
Shen Yuan starts losing interest quite quickly. Ruoxing and Miyun are still hiding behind the web he made for them, and with it being dark, they need to head home soon. It's past time to wrap this up.
"This one is a bit surprised this has all turned out the way it has. No demon has been so disrespectful toward me in quite some time. Though, this one supposes, if he knows not your name or title, he shan't expect you to know his. But worry not, worry not. Tis now water under the bridge.
"Though, it is quite late now... Since you no longer owe this spider your lives, perhaps we can barter on much better terms now."
"What would you ask of us, Great Spider?" the guard captain asks.
"The humans you brought with you. Return them to their village. They've garnered this spider's favor, so he shan't tolerate any harm coming to them. This forest can be quite thick and treacherous at night."
"And...in return?"
"The miss shall have her dress."
See? Isn't he so kind?
Miyun won't have to go back home, being led by spiders she's clearly terrified of judging by how she's kept her eyes quite firmly shut for the last few minutes. Ruoxing can show his superiority by helping her get home, even after being attacked by demons. And the little demon princess can have the dress she wanted! Everyone ends up happy.
"...How long should we wait for the dress, if this lowly one may ask?"
"Oh, it should be done by the time you return tonight. This spider wouldn't imagine you all being welcome to rest amongst the humans after such a debacle."
The guard captain doesn't reply, instead looking toward the demon princess. She purses her lips, but eventually, she responds.
"Then, Li-er shall guide the humans home and return. Does the Great Spider need this one's measurements?"
"No. This one has had quite enough time looking at you to acquire them."
Her lip twitch as some indignation returns to her expression. "Should Li-er take this as an expression of lechery?"
"Not at all. Doesn't the young miss also marvel at her food before consuming it?"
As though remembering she was, indeed, almost eaten, she finally shuts right up.
--
The demons do, indeed, return Miyun and Ruoxing home without incident. Perhaps it was because he had his little helpers trail them the entire time, waiting for even a single slip-up or twitch toward taking their anger out on them. Thankfully, they've lost enough lives that day and don't intend to lose any more.
When they return, as promised, Shen Yuan presents the demon princess with a qixiong ruqun, using yellow and other pastels to complement her pink skin (he's been getting into dyes more recently, and he has the fruit to do it). She is immediately enamored by it, but her gaze trails to the webs and the splatters of blood on the ground, and any overt excitement is immediately quenched.
Shen Yuan doesn't feel bad for her, not really. He does feel some sympathy, but lacks any empathy for her situation. If she'd simply come and told a story for her dress, no blood would've had to been spilled, and no lives would've had to be lost.
The dress, which could've simply been paid for with a story, was paid for in blood that wasn't her own. And she would have to face any ire from demons whose family members failed to return due to her own foolishness.
After showing them to the other route, the one that doesn't pass by the village (the one where he's greeted the occasional passing demon), he sends them on their way.
He doesn't expect to see them again, but the little demon princess comes back to commission more clothing, approaching the demon route entrance to his general domain. And this time, she comes with stories.
He comes to learn her name, Xu Meili (许 美丽 - Xǔ Měilì). She's the fourth daughter of some demon general serving a higher lord, but she's basically the equivalent of some human noble, not that Shen Yuan would say that.
Apparently, upon seeing him, they were under the impression he really was just some beast, unaware he was Lulin Zhizhu.
Demons were generally seen as more respectable if they had a more bipedal, humanoid appearance. After all, many weaker demons would cultivate for centuries just to acquire a human form, from huli jing to demonic plants. The fact Shen Yuan still wore a quite monstrous appearance would fool most supposedly decent demons into thinking him a mindless creature.
It also didn't help that, although Lulin Zhizhu was known in little whispers around certain demon communities, for him to be worshiped as a god by humans, they thought he would surely have a human form.
Though, as Xu Meili explained with trepidation, she wasn't using that as an excuse, but merely explaining what she'd thought. That, Shen Yuan could appreciate. As long as she learned her lesson and didn't waste anyone else's lives with her misunderstandings.
Speaking with her, the demon guard general, and other visiting demons helped him immensely. Their stories, while often more bloody and teeming with resentment, were just as pleasing, if not sometimes more so. When he was in a particularly vindictive mood, a demon's story often settled better than something lighter, more forgiving, and human.
He also gained better insight into demon culture... And the fact demons weren't exactly sure how to categorize him. His qi wasn't exactly spiritual, but it wasn't exactly demonic either. In fact, it was that strange mixture of qi that led the demon guard captain to tell the story about heavenly demons.
He was under the impression the spider perhaps was one.
Unsure whether to confirm or deny, Shen Yuan didn't do either. After all, he was pretty sure he wasn't a heavenly demon, but honestly? He didn't know.
So, he'd let the rumor mill roll on that one. Not that he left his forest anyway. Never really saw a reason to get out much when the spiritual and demonic beasts trailing through the forest were plenty enough to fill his stomach. He also had visiting villagers and demons to sate his desire for knowledge. Being a homebody suited him just fine.
--
Han Miyun (韩 蜜韫 - Hán Mìyùn) couldn't quite shake her fear of spiders, so she didn't come back to see him. That being said, it wasn't as though she wasn't grateful. Ruoxing came to visit several times after, seeming even more chummy with Shen Yuan than before, carrying baskets full of mantou and a scroll with a story she wanted to tell him.
When he asked what she wanted of him, Ruoxing said she wanted nothing, and it was simply a gift.
Feeling uncomfortable receiving something without giving in return, he sent Ruoxing back with fruit and qi-infused grass.
This apparently set off a give-a-thon, as Ruoxing swiftly became a willing pack mule between Miyun and Shen Yuan.
"You know, Zhizhu, perhaps you could come out of the forest and visit," Ruoxing hums one day.
Although Shen Yuan's cephalothorax doesn't lend well to expressions, apparently, he had a *look* in his eyes that made the young man fall over laughing.
"You don't have to reject it so strongly! I understand, I understand!"
"This one didn't say anything."
"Forgive me for being impudent, but, Zhizhu, you looked like a cat facing the sea just now."
Listen, it wasn't that Shen Yuan hated the idea of leaving the forest, okay? He simply liked where he was, surrounded by little spider servants that benefited from the fruits of his prior labor and served him in return. He had food, shelter, and visitors. What more could he want?
Traveling to new places...did kinda sound nice But then who would be there to exchange food for storieeessss the spiders could do that. They could. The little ones could possibly take written works and exchange them for other items, like silk, clothes, leather, or whatever else was available.
But still, he could've very well trudge around in his big spider body. That was just begging for every cultivator under the Sun to try to exorcise him or something. He'd have to cultivate a humanoid form. And he...
Did not...really want to?
Mmh.
For some reason, whenever he thinks of a humanoid body... More accurately, of himself within a humanoid body, he thinks of a compressed chest. Of weak limbs. Of heavy breathing, white walls, and monotonous beeping.
He thinks of breaking out in rashes from poor air conditions. Of laying on the floor in a porcelain room, trying to absorb the coolness to combat the heat ravaging his body. Of using some sort of device to support a weakened left leg because his heart wouldn't work right...
Yes. A humanoid body would surely be uncomfortable.
If that meant he had to stay right where he was, so be it.
--
Time passes like that, with demons becoming more frequent visitors on their side and the humans doing what they've always done.
The spiders, although still smaller and with lesser power than he has, seem to be developing more thoughts of their own. Although utterly loyal to him, they also begin acting on their on imperative if he hasn't given them any orders.
One of his older servants, a jumping spider, seemed to take on something of a managerial role. After molting several times, growing larger, and gaining more intelligence, she began collecting stories and making exchanges based on previous examples of his habits.
As it turned out, she had developed a demon core already? Well, it wasn't quite a demon core. She had mostly spiritual qi instead of demonic qi, so she was more suitable for communing with humans.
It seemed that, due to the very instinctual drives they had, coupled with typically being reviled by humans, developing to such an extent was a rarity (of course, that meant Shen Yuan was an outright cryptid).
Through some quiet understanding between them, Shen Yuan ended up naming her. She seemed to accept the name Zhuzi (珠子 - Zhūzǐ - Little Pearl) well enough.
She's rather helpful, especially when someone arrives with a story but he's already occupied with someone else. It doesn't happen often, but with both humans and demons now associating with him more frequently, as infrequently as that can be, having someone else help does wonders.
Fan Zhenzhen visits from time to time, sometimes to tell stories, other times to simply be around him. Sometimes, she'll ask questions about a plant, animal, or some other thing she's seen or heard of.
Of course, Shen Yuan doesn't mind simply sharing knowledge. With all the fantastical creatures in the world, he's quite charmed by them, so talking about them is time well spent. Especially for someone like him, who is simply a spider and doesn't have a job.
As she grows older, she comes to visit a bit less. A little disheartening, yes, but he understands. It makes the times he does see her all the more meaningful.
Fan Ruoxing grows older, and eventually, he marries Han Miyun. He arrives the day before his wedding and gives him a cup of sweetened black tea. It's so small, it's barely anything to him. It tastes fantastic regardless. Shen Yuan sends him off with a wedding gift basket of fresh vegetables, spices, and a poncho shawl to match Miyun's.
On the day-of, Shen Yuan sits in his cave, feeling a bit unsettled.
It's not like he really wants to be down in the village. He likes his quiet, relative solitude. Moreover, what human would want a huge spider at their wedding with their arachnophobic wife? He'd be nothing but a disturbance.
Zhuzi, who ventured out with her smaller, less conspicuous body, watched the wedding from the nearby tree line. He silently gave her more Thrice-Bloomed Yuzu after she relayed the festivities to him.
She did the same thing when Fan Ruoxing's first daughter came into the world.
100 days later, he, Miyun, and Meixiu (美宿 - Měixiù) came to visit, although Miyun was never once able to look up. Even still, after telling him a story, Shen Yuan blesses their child, hoping that her life is as bright and plentiful as the 'beautiful constellations' in the night sky.
He also gives them some of the same yuzu he would give Zhuzi, though he directs them to dilute it. After all, it's very qi-rich and could be a bit much for her developing spiritual veins. Fan Meixiu had the spiritual strength and potential to become a cultivator, after all.
A year and a few months later, and they visit with their second and third children, twins. Qinglian (轻莲 - Qīnglián) and Jiahao (家豪 - Jiāháo) didn't quite have the same spiritual potential, but Shen Yuan wished they would lead meaningful, fruitful lives nevertheless.
With more mouths to feed and more care to give, visits to him become less frequent. Again, quite disappointing, but to be expected.
The same goes for the little demon princess, Xu Meili. Some demon politics and intrigue take up more of her time, and despite being one of nine children, the fourth daughter, eighth out of the nine, she was the one who apparently found the most auspicious husband. This was, according to her, partially due to her many spider silk clothes.
Since she was going quite far away to be with her husband, future correspondence would dwindle. But she does, in that rough tone of hers that she could never quite get rid of, tell him that he would be welcome if he ever decided to step out of his "resplendent hovel".
And so, for the first time in years, Shen Yuan finds himself without his typical visitors.
And he feels alone.
...hmmh.
Maybe cultivating a humanoid body wouldn't be the worst thing to do.
