The Dragon-Proud Protagonist Rejects Being a Substitute

A seemingly flawless, dazzlingly accomplished gong who is actually possessive to the extreme, gloomy, and resentful x

A seemingly cold and heartless shou who is actually wholly devoted to his beloved and plays the role of a wife

A staunch supporter of handsome gongs and beautiful shous. One-on-one in body and heart, no switching or breaking up.

You Ling, gong x Su Wei, shou

100,000 words already written. Read with confidence, everyone!

Blurb:

You Ling is unquestionably the greatest genius in the cultivation world. He has the most heaven-defying cultivation speed, the most powerful sword, a handsome and dashing appearance, and the most, most, most beautiful Dao companion. He's practically a living overpowered protagonist.

And yet he respects his sect above, loves the people below, and is as polished and virtuous as moonlight. No one can find fault with him.

You ask why his Dao companion is his junior brother?

Don't worry about it. Isn't a junior brother just another kind of carefully selected child bride chosen by the master?

You Ling believes he has mastered his swordsmanship and shares a harmonious relationship with his Dao companion. His life has gone far too smoothly. With a wife like this, what more could a husband ask for? He wouldn't trade it even for immediate ascension to immortality.

Then the next moment, he dies.

The junior brother he had cherished and protected stabs him to death in bed with his own life-bound sword.

Reborn, You Ling is furious.

Why does even an overpowered protagonist have to go down the groveling-after-his-wife route? But that's all right. After all, spouses can be both the closest and the most distant of people.

But why is there a boy who looks exactly like him at his junior brother's side?

I'd rather have a childbearing trope than a substitute trope!

.

Su Wei is unquestionably the greatest beauty in the cultivation world. He has the most peerlessly elegant looks, the most admirers, simple and pure relationships within his sect, and the most, most, most stingy senior brother.

Thirty years ago, You Ling died in his bed. The world called him a vicious husband-killer and mourned the fall of a generation's prodigy.

Thirty years later, You Ling returns from the dead. The world worries for him once more, but no one dares interfere in this feud between fellow disciples.

"You owe me a life, so repay all my kindness with your body. I want you to spend the rest of your life shedding tears for me."

The former senior brother eventually walks the path of a corrupted avenger, standing with his hands behind his back as he dominates the heavens.

He locks Su Wei to the bed and holds him captive in his arms, gripping his neck as he growls:

"I ought to hate you, because you hate me so much."

He wants Su Wei to obediently be his junior brother and his wife. He wants Su Wei never to betray him again.

Su Wei only lowers his eyes and says nothing.

Between him and You Ling, it has never been a question of hating or not hating. All he has ever wanted is for them to owe each other nothing.

.

No one would ever guess that the sword which took the life of the greatest genius in the world was thrust into him by his own hand.

Su Wei came dragging himself in, drenched in blood. Afraid of hurting him again, You Ling didn't resist at all when he was shoved onto the bed. Then the Cangjian Sword lay across his neck, and Su Wei could only weep and say:

"Senior Brother, I'm in so much pain, so much that I feel like I'm about to die. Please help me, all right?"

You Ling was the one restrained on the bed, yet Su Wei was the one who shed tears.

He still couldn't bring himself to strike. The sharp blade trembled on the verge of falling. First to fall were the unspoken entanglements and misunderstandings, the tangled love and hate, all turning into tears that wouldn't stop. Hot droplets landed on You Ling's lapel.

"Dear junior brother, why are you crying?"

You Ling couldn't stand to see Su Wei suffer like this. He had a vague feeling that neither of them would make it out of this encounter unscathed.

So You Ling sighed and gently held the back of the young man's neck, stroking it tenderly with his thumb as if soothing a fragile treasure.

"Didn't your senior brother tell you that he'd give you anything you wanted, A Wei?"

"If your senior brother died, would that stop you from suffering so much?"

His junior brother was softhearted, but he wasn't.

As he said this, You Ling firmly clasped Su Wei's hands, which were weak from crying, and slowly guided the sword point into his own chest. The agony would have broken anyone, but he tilted his head up and tenderly kissed the tears still damp on Su Wei's face, swallowing every broken sob.

At last, the blade pierced his chest.

You Ling thought: My junior brother's tears really are more powerful than a sword.

Things that might not be for you:

1. The gong's perspective is the main one early on, then the story switches to both perspectives later. The perspective shifts are only for the needs of the narrative.

2. The shou has a bit of an everyone-loves-him quality and some self-destructive tendencies.

3. Internet memes are mixed in.

Tips:

1. No physical abuse. Even during the years when they utterly hated each other, the gong and shou never hurt each other.

2. There are strong feelings between them from beginning to end. It's melodramatic, but the couple never breaks up.

Theme: Cultivate well and strive to improve every day