Hua Cheng & Luo Binghe parallels thread. Disclaimer: these two are independent and very different characters! I’m not erasing their individuality, but rather, highlighting their similarities because as someone who stans both, I’m tired of them being pitted against each other.

1. Childhood upbringing
Both LBH and HC grew up in abject poverty. The difference is that LBH had positive memories with his adoptive mother, the washerwoman, whereas we don't know anything about HC's mother and family, other than that he was probably the youngest son.

After the death of their mothers, LBH and HC were thrust into incredibly abusive and horrifying situations, barely scraping by to survive. HC was seen as a scourge by humanity because of the star he was born under, and was discriminated against as a result.

Meanwhile, LBH was chosen as Shen Qingqiu's disciple, and before Shen Yuan transmigrated into Shen Jiu's body, he was being abused by Shen Jiu and deliberately isolated, bullied, and maligned by Shen Jiu's other disciples.

These early childhood experiences would give rise to both their anger at humanity and their strength later on in their lives.

2. Enter the savior

For both LBH and HC, their life took upon a new meaning once they met their "saviors". For LBH, it would be his Shizun, Shen Yuan!Shen Qingqiu. His beloved Shizun, who raised him well... until he threw him into the abyss, of course.

For HC, it was taizi dianxia Xie Lian, who saved him when HC attempted suicide. Xie Lian later saved him on other occasions, including from his own cousin Qi Rong, and spoke for him against everyone else's advice.

Shen Qingqiu and Xie Lian were both older men, who occupied a higher status in their society (SQQ as a shizun, XL as the crown prince of Xian Le and a heavenly official).

Both of them become separated from their saviors as a result of some calamitous event––for Binghe, it was because SQQ himself threw him down the abyss. For HC, it was because he died young during the civil war against Yong'an.

3. Brief reunion, followed by further separation

LBH spent 3 years in the Demon Abyss, separated from his Shizun. HC spent a number of years separated from XL after he died and became a ghost flame. They briefly reunited, under difficult circumstances.

In fact, when they both reunited with their beloveds, both SQQ and XL were in challenging situations. SQQ's reputation was slowly being dragged through the mud, culminating in him being chained in HHP's water prison, accused of crimes he didn't commit.

XL had descended heaven for the first time, as a result of Xian Le falling, his temples and statues being desecrated. He began truly living in poverty and desperation, having to resort to stealing, begging, and various odd jobs.

Both LBH and HC witnessed their saviors at their lowest points. LBH saw SQQ self-destruct to save him, resulting in SQQ being "dead" for 5 years, while LBH mourned and waited for him. Meanwhile, HC was forced to see his savior being butchered and brutalized by the thousand swords

of a mob incited by Bai Wu Xiang. In his rage, he evolved from his ghost fire state and became Wu Ming. After this event, with Xie Lian nearly becoming a calamity, Wu Ming sacrificed himself for Xie Lian once again, and at this point, their 800 year separation began.

4. Death and Rebirth

LBH's descent into the abyss can be seen as a form of death and rebirth. He comes out of the abyss with his heavenly demon blood awakened, his powers fully realized, his status as the demon realm's emperor cemented.

HC has a corporal death as a human, but even as a ghost he undergoes forms of death and rebirth, most notably when he enters Mt. Tonglu, and spends 10 years participating in the slaughterfest and emerging as the Calamity-Class Ghost King, Xue Yu Tan Hua.

It was only by going through these taxing, horrifying, and excruciating experiences that LBH and HC gained their power, strength, and status in the demonic/ghost realms. Hence the "death" of their old selves, and their "rebirth" into their new selves.

4. Reversal of a power imbalance

The previous power imbalance (due to age, class, and status) that existed between LBH/SQQ and HC/XL becomes reversed, once LBH and HC gain power, wealth, and status.

This actually serves to equalize their relationship and put them on the same level.

5. Detractors

In the novel, LBH and HC are maligned as villainous people. LBH is seen as a monster, as someone who will taint, hurt and corrupt SQQ. CQMS and other cultivators feel the need to "protect" SQQ from LBH.

Similarly, HC is seen as a terrifying ghost king, and heavenly officials typically avoid him because of his notorious past. Xie Lian is told to avoid HC in a similar vein and heavenly officials even try to keep HC away from him.

Interestingly enough, fans who hate LBH call him a "manipulative abusier", sounding very similar to his novel detractors, while fans who hate HC call him an "obsessive stalker", once again sounding very similar to his novel detractors.

6. "I don't want the world, I want you"

LBH and HC are both powerful, wealthy demonic monarchs. However, what's most important to them is their beloveds, not power or the world or money. Therefore, the way they behave toward SQQ and XL is vastly different from how they

behave toward other people. LBH is devoted, open, warm, and allowed to be childish in front of SQQ, but around everyone else, he is introverted, suspicious, and sullen. Around XL, HC is indulging, tender, doting, and also similarly more childish, but around everyone else,

he is apathetic, dismissive, and domineering. And, of course, both LBH and HC are protective and possessive of their beloveds.

7. Perfect husbands

Both LBH and HC are incredibly intelligent men who, in addition to being very physically strong and talented at cultivation, are also cunning and knowledgeable.

They are also talented at different skills, such as HC with art and sculpting, and LBH with cooking. They both take good care of their beloveds, happily doing household chores and domestic labor for them.

8. The subversion of the hero/villain dichotomy

I've talked about this more in another meta (which I'll link here), but this boils down to: LBH and HC are "villains" according to the rest of the world, but heroes in the stories of SQQ and XL.

And even though they have some traditionally villainous and amoral traits, they in fact stick to their own moral codes and convictions, which is more than can be said for most of the cultivators in SVSSS and heavenly officials in TGCF.

Link to the meta about the hero/villain dichotomy: https://twitter.com/xiaolanzhous/status/1283685003256385536?s=20