[Douluo Dalu] The Reflection of Fate

The day the Clear Sky Hammer reappeared on the continent, an assassination that had yet to take place had already set the Spirit Hall, the Upper Three Sects, and the Heaven Dou Imperial Family recalculating their moves.

The stakes of the escort, the choice of who would strike, and the gains and losses for the sects and the imperial court were all being weighed anew in secret.

And at the center of the game, Tang San met that person for the first time.

-

At the time, one was prey, and the other was an executioner sent on orders.

By all rights, there should have been only one possible ending between them.

But that assassination never reached its inevitable conclusion.

Later, they met again in Spirit City.

That night, the long streets were silent, and the stars made no sound.

No one knew who had first strayed from their original place.

-

"Sometimes I imagine what might have happened if we'd met under different circumstances," Tang San said.

Qian Chongye only replied, "I don't make pointless assumptions."

But later, Qian Chongye thought about that moment again and again.

He remembered Tang San's eyes at the time:

like a great fire had finally burned itself out, leaving only a heap of cold ash.

Even he couldn't understand why.

-

Tang San, too, had often wondered:

Why does the bright moon hang high in the sky, yet never shine on me?

Why does the moon shine on me, only to offer me a false glance?

But eventually, he stopped asking.

If the moon wouldn't shine on me, then I'd drag him down to the mortal world and lock him in my arms, so that forever and ever, he could look only at me.

Content warnings:

1. Pairing: Tang San × Qian Chongye. No switching. Also known as How to Reach a Happy Ending with Your Archenemy.

2. Dark themes, extensive canon divergence, and many canon pairings dismantled. This is my own take on a love steeped in bitter hatred. If you can't stomach angst, proceed with caution.

3. The Seven Devils' lineup remains unchanged, but there are many original additions. The main plot features political maneuvering across the continent, ensemble war scenes, and multiple perspectives. Xiao Wu will not be vilified, and Bibi Dong will not be absolved. They and Qian Renxue each have their own storylines that affect the main plot. Qian Xunji and Qian Daoliu will be thoroughly vilified.

4. Important: The bottom genuinely has a mental illness. I'll explain his thought process clearly. The top is relatively mentally stable early on, but starts to fall into darkness and spiral in the middle, becoming moody and emotionally volatile later on. The story contains plenty of mutual harm, but the leads will always be bound by a strong, unbreakable mutual attraction, and will find their own way to each other.

5. Despite all the warnings above, this is actually a pure love story dressed in dark themes. It has a bittersweet happy ending: the main couple will live happily ever after together, and most other characters with substantial roles will also get reasonably good endings.

Theme: When love can't be expressed in the usual way, how can you love each other the right way?