The Ailing Platform

Yan Jingxing experienced three things when he first arrived at Penglai.

First, he was tested at the immortal sect and found to have a useless spiritual root, so all he could do was menial work.

Second, his defective constitution led to his fellow disciples ostracizing him time and again, so he had to endure it for the time being.

Third, the source of the first two: he had joined the immortal sect to meet the fairy of Penglai, only to discover that the fairy was a man?!

Xie Huaiyu had three things happen after performing his duties at the sacrificial ceremony.

First, he stepped in and helped a new disciple out of a jam.

Second, that new disciple started clinging to him.

Third, the new disciple privately admitted that he liked Xie Huaiyu's older sister and asked him to arrange an introduction.

The problem was, the "older sister" the new disciple was talking about was Xie Huaiyu himself.

After ten years cultivating the Dao and a hundred years cultivating the heart, Yan Jingxing had learned enough to return home for a visit.

But when he went, his hometown was already gone. When he returned, the immortal sect had been destroyed. Having lost one loved one after another, he let demonic energy take advantage of his weakness and invade his heart.

Trapped by his inner demon in the depths of his spiritual platform, he refused to yield to the bitter end, yet had nowhere left to turn.

Before his will could be worn away, someone broke in, searched the endless abyss, and called his name again and again.

Yan Jingxing looked up and saw who it was.

Amid blood and disaster, a figure in white appeared before him. Xie Huaiyu, alone with his sword, fought a path to survival for him.

Whether we become immortals or our souls perish, I will protect all living beings together with you.

[Devoted, loyal puppy top X affection-starved kitten bottom]

★ 1v1, happy ending. The couple stays together and their positions never switch. They dote on each other, and they are each other's one and only. The top pursues the bottom early on, and the bottom is not a flirtatious tease.

★ The viewpoint serves the story. Readers with strong preferences should proceed with caution. The author is a hardcore fan of older tops and treats everyone equally (extreme edition). If anything in the story displeases you, it's a problem with the author's writing. Aim your criticism at the author, not these two precious babies (I spoil them shamelessly).

★ An imaginary setting || slow-burn plot || lots of original worldbuilding || no nitpicking

★ The top is a mortal who cultivates immortality, while the bottom was born with an immortal's bones. This is not a power fantasy, this is not a power fantasy.

★ Both the top and bottom are hopeless romantics.

★ Spiritual root levels: Single spiritual root (Heavenly Spiritual Root) > double spiritual roots (True Spiritual Roots) > triple spiritual roots (Mixed Spiritual Roots) > five spiritual roots (Useless Spiritual Roots, with a comeback leading to a Chaos Spiritual Root). Based on a search about spiritual roots. (Purely informational, takes up very little space.)

★ This story's cultivation progression follows this pattern: Body Tempering → Qi Condensation → Foundation Establishment → Golden Core → Nascent Soul → Deity Transformation → Void Inquiry → Great Ascension → Tribulation Transcendence → Ascension. Based on a search about cultivation systems. (Likewise, purely informational and not a major part of the story.)

★ The names of the six realms: Penglai Island (Immortal Realm), Peach Origin (Mortal Realm), Great Marsh (Immortal Realm), Yellow Springs (Ghost Realm), Uncertain Abyss (Demon Realm), Azure Heavens (Heavenly Realm), and Qingqiu Kingdom (Youkai Realm). Listed in order of their prominence in the story. The last three barely appear. (Again, purely informational.)

[Thanks to myself for drawing the character cards. My drawing skills are beginning to look human. I want to draw lots more ⪩. .⪨]

Theme: Take the hand of the one you love, and weather any storm together.