The world swam back into focus, the abrupt transition leaving Jian disoriented. He'd gone from the mundane comfort of his apartment to a chamber of impossible luxury. Sunlight, filtered through an unseen source, illuminated walls of polished marble, their pristine white subtly veined with swirls of amethyst. The ceiling, a breathtaking expanse, mimicked the sky, a flawless azure dotted with ethereal, cloud-like formations. The scale of the room dwarfed any space he'd known, making his modest apartment feel like a child's playhouse in comparison.
He was surrounded. Figures draped in robes of deep purple, the color of twilight, and others in robes of white and a lighter shade of purple, the crane emblem on their hems a symbol he didn't recognize. The air itself seemed charged with an unfamiliar energy.
Panic, a cold fist, squeezed his heart. He was adrift in a sea of the unknown. A voice, laced with concern, cut through his disorientation, "Ying! Are you alright? How are you feeling?"
He recognized the speaker as a man with a face that could launch a thousand ships. His features were sculpted with a divine precision, every angle, every plane, contributing to an overall effect of captivating allure. His eyes, the color of the twilight sky, were windows to a soul that seemed both wise and kind. He exuded an aura of calm authority, his very presence commanding respect.
He was in the yaoi novel, he was sure of it.
"Who... who are you? Where am I?" The words were a croak, his voice unfamiliar, tinged with a raw emotion he didn't recognize.
The handsome man, who had called him "dìdì," a term of endearment, sat beside him. "You are in Peoria, dìdì. I am Zì Yao, your shixiong."