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Descension (BL Xianxia Romance): Book 3: The Withered Core
“In a world where cores define one’s destiny… can a withered heart truly be reborn?”
After the tragic end of an entire retinue, Luo Fan never imagined he’d find himself cradling the broken body of Ruan Yanjun—the very devil he had sworn never to trust again.
Hunted by enemies and burdened with unanswered questions, Luo Fan flees to a remote island where survival depends on secrecy… and on a man who no longer remembers who he is.
When Ruan Yanjun awakens with the mind of a seventeen-year-old and calls him gege, Luo Fan finds himself torn between deep-seated resentment and the unbearable tenderness this new, innocent version stirs in him. Gone is the ruthless Sect Leader who ruled the continent with an iron will—what remains is a fragile soul, clinging to the only person who stayed.
As days turn into weeks, and gentle care blossoms into an unlikely intimacy, Luo Fan begins to question everything he thought he knew about power, forgiveness, and fate.
But shadows stir beyond the sea. And when the truth resurfaces—when memory and power return—can love survive the weight of who Ruan Yanjun once was?
***A tender tale of memory, power, and the love that refuses to die.
After the tragic end of an entire retinue, Luo Fan never imagined he’d find himself cradling the broken body of Ruan Yanjun—the very devil he had sworn never to trust again.
Hunted by enemies and burdened with unanswered questions, Luo Fan flees to a remote island where survival depends on secrecy… and on a man who no longer remembers who he is.
When Ruan Yanjun awakens with the mind of a seventeen-year-old and calls him gege, Luo Fan finds himself torn between deep-seated resentment and the unbearable tenderness this new, innocent version stirs in him. Gone is the ruthless Sect Leader who ruled the continent with an iron will—what remains is a fragile soul, clinging to the only person who stayed.
As days turn into weeks, and gentle care blossoms into an unlikely intimacy, Luo Fan begins to question everything he thought he knew about power, forgiveness, and fate.
But shadows stir beyond the sea. And when the truth resurfaces—when memory and power return—can love survive the weight of who Ruan Yanjun once was?
***A tender tale of memory, power, and the love that refuses to die.
- GenresFantasy
743 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 28, 2025
40 people are currently reading
12 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 1, 2026
I'm absolutely no fan of amnesia plots, already hated Yan Wushi's personality shifts in Thousand autumns, and didn't enjoy them here either.
BUT I'm happy our dear sect leader Ruan is finally back - more or less at least. And I'm partially in agreement with priest Luo, partially miffed about the state of their relationship (?). THAT ENDING 😭
BUT I'm happy our dear sect leader Ruan is finally back - more or less at least. And I'm partially in agreement with priest Luo, partially miffed about the state of their relationship (?). THAT ENDING 😭
May 31, 2025
well that was frustrating
So I am a fan of cultivation novels. I find them entertaining and even if formulaic, they are fun. I also love Wuxia, toss in a danmei plot and I’m hooked. This third installment finally had some character development from our MC the oblivious and frustratingly naive dual core cultivator Fan who desperately wants to be “good” and spends endless internal monologues telling himself how Bad his counterpart Lord Ruan is. He finally stops being quite so stubborn, but also, clings to the idea that everyone is good inside (except Ruan) and even the most vile of cultivators deserve a chance to redeem themselves (except Ruan). And that is sort of my biggest complaint. The series spends a Lot of time explaining why MM is bad. And I get it, it’s a plot device but by book 3 I’m over it. I wanted our delulu Fan to drop the stick from the lady who betrayed him in book 1 and focus on cultivating and ranking up. Resist Ruan for all the logical reasons (can’t trust him, he betrayed Fan.) but drop the “this love is perverse”.
I have no clue why Jingjing’s son has been introduced here as anything other than a baby Vader. The puny bible verse slinging light cultivator was off putting. I almost DNF there because what in the musical theater logic was that?
It Still was a better book than 1&2 though and I will be reading book 4. The action makes sense, the martial arts isn’t described in exhaustive detail, but just enough to help the plot along. Fights don’t take chapters to conclude. It a good entertaining series. Glad I found it.
So I am a fan of cultivation novels. I find them entertaining and even if formulaic, they are fun. I also love Wuxia, toss in a danmei plot and I’m hooked. This third installment finally had some character development from our MC the oblivious and frustratingly naive dual core cultivator Fan who desperately wants to be “good” and spends endless internal monologues telling himself how Bad his counterpart Lord Ruan is. He finally stops being quite so stubborn, but also, clings to the idea that everyone is good inside (except Ruan) and even the most vile of cultivators deserve a chance to redeem themselves (except Ruan). And that is sort of my biggest complaint. The series spends a Lot of time explaining why MM is bad. And I get it, it’s a plot device but by book 3 I’m over it. I wanted our delulu Fan to drop the stick from the lady who betrayed him in book 1 and focus on cultivating and ranking up. Resist Ruan for all the logical reasons (can’t trust him, he betrayed Fan.) but drop the “this love is perverse”.
I have no clue why Jingjing’s son has been introduced here as anything other than a baby Vader. The puny bible verse slinging light cultivator was off putting. I almost DNF there because what in the musical theater logic was that?
It Still was a better book than 1&2 though and I will be reading book 4. The action makes sense, the martial arts isn’t described in exhaustive detail, but just enough to help the plot along. Fights don’t take chapters to conclude. It a good entertaining series. Glad I found it.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews