29

Five years later (Onari age:16; ~one year before canon)

Yu Wu and Onari inhaled and exhaled with one breath. Every single unique, individual aspect of themselves was synced with their partner. Yu Wu moaned into Onari's mouth. They were sitting in a lotus position, with Yu Wu's legs interlocked behind Onari's back.

Without breaking the kiss, Yu Wu rolled her hips atop Onari's member. The sweet sounds of Dual Cultivation filled the room. A maelstrom of energy swirled around the pair's connected bodies and souls. The potent Qi was constantly sucked into their bond, refined by their Dual Cultivation, and used as fuel for their four meridians.

Yu Wu broke the kiss so she could whisper something against Onari's lips, "Harder, my darling Dao Companion. We're so close…"

Onari replied with a vaguely affirmative grunt. His hands gripped Yu Wu's hips. His cock bottomed out in her with each thrust. The hands of their souls interlocked as they grew ever closer to a breakthrough.

Ecstasy and euphoria raced through Onari and Yu Wu as the pair strove for nirvana. Yu Wu felt every inch of Onari as he plunged into her depths. With each outstroke, a bit of her vital Yin Qi was stolen. With each instroke, the missing bit of Yin was replaced by Onari's vigorous Yang Qi.

In addition to the pleasures of cultivation that flooded their souls, the pleasures of the flesh wracked their bodies relentlessly. Any mortal would have had their mind turned to paste by the extreme sensations. For Onari and Yu Wu however, this was just another wonderful day of Dual Cultivation.

Warm, velvet walls threatened to consume Onari completely. A thick, steel-like rod pierced Yu Wu to her very core. Over and over again, the couple's pleasure grew and waned.

A constant torrent of energy filled their bodies as this cycle continued. Onari's core would be filled until it almost burst. Yu Wu's core would then suck up the excess, and be filled in the same way. They went back and forth this way, pushing their cultivations higher each time.

Onari put everything he had into bringing Yu Wu pleasure. Each small orgasmic gasp that he managed to snatch from her lips was music for his ears and food for his soul. Yu Wu did the same. Each groan and twitch from him made her heart flutter and her insides clench.

At the place where one's body met one's soul, eight stars shined brightly against the dark backdrop of the world. Each one represented one of Onari or Yu Wu's meridians, with the eight stars split evenly between the couple. They pulsated with each mini-cycle of Dual Cultivation.

Eventually, the bonded pair's pleasure and cultivation began to reach a crescendo. Physical pleasure blurred into a stream of continuous orgasms. Yu Wu's inner walls clenched and squeezed around Onari's shaft. Onari's cock pulsed, leaking a steady rush of precum into the depths of her core.

"So close…" Yu Wu gasped. "Yes!... Yes!... Yes!... Yes!"

Thunder boomed as they both roared out their orgasms at the same time. A surge of seed flooded Yu Wu's womb, and a splash of feminine juices drenched Onari's crotch. The Qi stars within them flashed, painting their souls white with metaphysical light.

The heavens seemed to descend upon the couple, coaxing and caressing them as they ascended together. The door to the Fourth Stage was broken wide open by their combined efforts. But before they could take the final step into the next realm, tribulation struck.

The pair found themselves floating naked in a black space. They were connected by a red string, the only source of color in the darkness. A familiar figure stepped out of the black surrounding them. Onari gripped Yu Wu's hand as she growled at the image of her father.

"Hmm," the fake Da Shuizhi hummed. "Yu Wu… girl… Why do you still cling to this boy's false promise of loyalty? No one is truly loyal. Everyone is out for themselves in this cruel world. This fact is doubly true for cultivators. He will betray you. Just like I did. Just like your mother did."

"What would a demon like you know about loyalty?" Yu Wu spat.

"I know it's a lie told by weak and insecure people to comfort themselves…"

"Ha! Something like you will never understand the connection this young mistress has with her beloved! Eat shit and die, you overripe cunt-pickling son of a donkey!"

"You dare!?!" the Heart Demon shouted.

The illusion of Da Shuizhi started to grow and twist in on itself. Arms became legs which became tentacles. Mouths and eyes opened up in places they shouldn't have been. The demon grew until it towered over Onari and Yu Wu.

When the demon swiped at them with a gnarled limb, the red string between the pair shot out. The string twisted and wove around the demon, burning everywhere it touched. The Heart Demon let out a shrill shriek as the string tied it up and began to cut into its illusionary flesh.

The red string of fate cut deep, slicing the essence of the demon apart piece by piece. Soon, nothing was left but a large, beating heart. The string wrapped around the heart, cocooning it and compressing. When the string fell away, only a small, heart-shaped gem was left in the Heart Demon's place.

Yu Wu reached out toward the gem with a hand. Almost obediently, the gem flew into her grasp. She cradled it in her palm, bringing it to her chest. With a flash of light, the gem sunk into her soul.

There was only a single moment of respite before Onari's tribulation started. A scene he saw in his nightmares began to form in front of them. It was the same bar that he had died in.

His murderer stood on top of a table, smirking down at Onari. Onari's body from his previous life was sprawled out by the cultivator's foot. There was a gaping hole where his heart should have been.

"Well?" the Heart Demon taunted. "Don't you want to come test your new 'strength' against an old enemy?"

Yu Wu stopped Onari before he could take a step forward, "It's not worth it. You know you're stronger than he was. It's trying to bait you into a fight when you should really be confronting your feelings."

Onari stopped to take a calming breath. He knew she was right. His trauma wasn't that he had died. It was how he had died: weak and right in front of his little brother. With new eyes, Onari took a second look at the scene.

When he looked again, he saw his brother off to one side. His brother's face was twisted in grief and agony. He was being held by two more cultivators, and made to watch as Onari had died. Onari took another breath, squeezing Yu Wu's hand in gratitude.

He walked toward the witnesses of his previous death. His brother and the two cultivators holding him were frozen in time. Onari casually punched through the heads of both cultivators. They poofed out of existence in a cloud of bloody mist.

As if by magic, Onari's brother suddenly started to move. He stumbled, looking around confused, before his eyes settled on Onari. The tortured expression on his face never changed as he stood on shaky legs, reaching out for Onari.

"L-Liu Jian…" he whispered.

Onari shook his head sadly, "I go by Onari now… It's… It's good to see you, Little Brother Chen."

Chen's hands fell on Onari's shoulders as he struggled to keep himself from collapsing under the weight of his emotions, "I… I failed you. I made it my duty to protect you from the cruelty of this world, and I failed…"

Onari sighed, "We all fail, little brother. Failure is part of what makes us alive."

Onari hesitated, "... I know you'll never hear this, but this is something I always wished I was able to tell you. I got a second chance, Little Brother Chen… Liu Jian may be dead, but he lives on as Onari. I'm no longer crippled too. It's everything we've ever wanted for me. And… I think you'd be proud to call the new me 'Elder Brother'..."

As if to demonstrate the truth to his words, Onari's hand speared behind him blindly. There was a choking gasp as Onari recreated the reversed scene of his murder. The Heart Demon in the shape of his murderer had been trying to sneak up on the siblings. All it got for its trouble was a look of shock on its face and a gaping hole through the heart that resembled the one on Onari's previous body.

"So… I guess if I could say anything to you, it would be to keep living," Onari continued. "Because your elder brother still lives on, and he's gonna reach for the heavens. He doesn't want you to kick it until you become a heavenly emperor. Because maybe then… we'll meet again when we both get there…"

The Heart Demon's scene began to fade to black. Onari gave his little brother one last smile as they both disappeared from each other's perception. And in a distant reality, on a far off world, time resumed for Chen…

He preceded to viciously slaughter his brother's murderers with a brand new resolve in his heart. He would reach the pinnacle of this world and the next. He would meet his brother again. And he would proudly call him Elder Brother once more. For all things are possible through cultivation…