yanyanwrites

For accidentally poisoning his own master, Luo Fan loses his grandmaster cultivation and is banished from his sect.

He ends up in Xianru, an empire dominated by the largest dark sect in the continent, the Eternal Damnation Sect, led by the notorious bearer of the Ancient Demonic Core, the devil who called himself Ruan Yanjun.

Blind and suffering from an unknown illness, he sets out in the secular world for the first time. All he wants now is to lead an ordinary life as an ordinary man.

But Ruan Yanjun is not about to let that happen. After searching for the banished priest for months, he finally finds Luo Fan in the care of a woman. The once revered grandmaster and Divine Mage is now broken, blind, and dying.

However, he still sees hope. He is willing to do everything to nurture him back to his former self and sit him on a throne, whether he likes it or not.

It’s not out of kindness, of course. He is not called the Devil of the South for no reason.

Descension (BL Xianxia Fantasy Romance)

I just took a quiet sip from a cup of tea when Huang Wen burst into my chamber, his face pale and his breaths shallow, as though he had run all the way from the other side of the estate. His anxiety was palpable before he even spoke a word.

"Master," he began, his voice trembling, "we have bad news."

Despite the urgency in his tone, I remained calm and lowered the delicate cup on the table. "What is it?"

"Priest Luo," he said. "He's gone missing. It's been a week and they still cannot find him."

I froze, gripping the edge of my desk tighter than I intended. The wood groaned under the pressure of my fingers. "What do you mean, missing?" I asked, my tone colder than I meant it to be, masking the worry that had already begun clawing at my chest.

Huang Wen lowered his head. "The elder priest said Luo Fan was ill the day before he disappeared, too weak to even leave his bed. But when they checked his room the next morning, he was gone. No word, no sign of where he might have gone."

Luo Fan, ill and disappearing without a trace?

It was unlike him. He was stubborn and defiant, yes, but even he would have informed someone if he intended to leave.

My mind raced, sorting through the possibilities. He wouldn't just leave without reason—unless...

"Search the surrounding areas," I commanded, pushing myself up from the chair despite the sharp pain in my chest from the White Vulture. "Send every available disciple. Check the mountains, the forests, and any caves or hidden retreats where he might have gone to meditate."

Huang Wen nodded and rushed off, leaving me alone with the dark storm brewing in my thoughts.

The first possibility was seclusion. Knowing Luo Fan's determination to regain control over his cores, he might have sought a hidden place to meditate. But that would have required preparation, and Luo Fan, foolish as he could be, was methodical. He would have told someone, at the very least.

The second, more troubling possibility chilled my blood.

Could he have been taken?

Emperor Gao's men or the marquis' lackeys—those vultures wouldn't hesitate to strike if they had learned of his whereabouts.

My fists clenched at the thought of him falling into their hands again. Yet, here I was, confined to my chambers, unable to act.

I sat back down, the weight of helplessness pressing heavily on me. My core thrummed weakly within, a painful reminder of my incapacitation. At any moment, it could spiral out of control, plunging me into agony for days. If that happened beyond the safety of the estate, my enemies would not hesitate to strike, and with my fall, the Eternal Damnation Sect's grip over Xianru and Wun Empires would crumble.

Why did this have to happen now? Why did the world conspire to test both of us when we were already at our lowest?

Reaching for a brush and parchment, I began to write. Every stroke of ink felt like an admission of failure, but I had no choice. The message was addressed to my First Disciple stationed in Wun, one I trusted implicitly. I detailed the situation and gave instructions to dispatch men to Silang Empire immediately, to investigate whether Emperor Gao or the marquis' men had captured Luo Fan.

The act of writing felt hollow. If I weren't crippled by this accursed core, I would be there myself, tearing apart anyone who dared harm my A-Fan. My fingers tightened around the brush until the wood splintered slightly.

His name echoed in my mind like a mantra, a promise, and a curse.

He had always been a storm in my life, disrupting the calculated control I kept over myself and the world around me. Yet, the thought of him suffering, captured, or worse…

No. By all means, I must find him.

Ancient Training Ground (Part 2)