[A love-starved, unhinged, possessive heretical mage x a deceptively innocent, stubborn god with a surprising side] (switch)
(This preview is for reference only. The actual story may take a different direction once it begins.)
Blurb:
Legend says that people eaten by tigers become "chang," spirits who lure others into the tiger's jaws. That's where the saying "acting as the tiger's accomplice" comes from.
Long ago, heretical sorcerers learned to refine these "chang spirits" into magical artifacts. As long as a chang spirit willingly signed a contract with a mage, it could serve at the mage's side, sleeping and eating with them to improve its cultivation.
Later, mages began using this method on ordinary demons and spirits too, but still called their contract partners "chang spirits."
*
In an apartment in the old city, thick black curtains sealed the windows, letting in only a few slivers of light. The walls were covered with talismans and spell seals, rustling and moving on their own despite the still air.
Xing Zai lay on the bed, completely pinned down by the spell formation, without even a sliver of room to break free.
Qiao Shulou sat smugly beside the bed. "You say you're a god? Which god are you?"
Xing Zai: "There's an employee badge in that bag."
[Name: Xing Zai]
[Department: Ziwei Court]
[Employee ID: 0045]
"Oh, forty-five. So you're a veteran employee."
"This formation won't hold me for long. Let me go now, and I may still spare your life. If you wait... If you take down the formation now, I'll let bygones be bygones."
Qiao Shulou paid no attention to what the other said. After thinking for two seconds, he stood up, curled his five fingers, and gave them a hard twist outward. Click.
He chuckled. "It's fine. Sealing a god just takes a bit of effort. It's not completely impossible."
*
Three days earlier.
A ritual had brought Qiao Shulou and Xing Zai together by chance.
At first sight, Qiao Shulou had made up his mind: he would make this demon his chang spirit and use him for his own ends.
In public, Qiao Shulou was an outstanding, upstanding young man, and the least useful son in the Qiao family. In private, he was perverse and erratic. Though a genius at drawing talismans, he went against the proper path, strayed further and further, and was eventually cast out by the righteous sects.
By the time Qiao Shulou realized that the creature he'd captured was not a demon, but a high god, it was too late.
But the good news was...
This was a god who had just completed a tribulation and lost his divine bones. He had no powers!
Lighthearted bonus scene:
Xing Zai: "There aren't many cultivators left these days. Over a thousand years ago, you couldn't walk ten steps in the mortal realm without seeing one. Now, the people setting up stalls are all charlatans."
Qiao Shulou: "Who says that? Our sect is incredibly impressive. Don't believe me? Take a look."
Xing Zai watches as Qiao Shulou opens the group chats:
Disaster Relief and Blessings, Group 3: [3 members online]
Disaster Relief and Blessings, Group 2: [You've been removed from the group chat]
Disaster Relief and Blessings, Group 1: [This group has been disbanded by its owner]
Xing Zai: "..."
"It really is... quite impressive."
[Reader's Guide]
1. Switch, one-on-one, not both virgins.
2. All divine titles and magical arts in this book are fictional. Any resemblance is purely coincidental.
3. This is a romance-focused story, not a serious drama. The main characters may not be likable. They're a combative couple who always take the opposite side.
4. Find sweetness amid the angst. This is not a sweet romance.
Theme: None
