Worshipping the Scrap Immortal and Ghost King with Candles

A few weeks ago I ordered two candles from CerberusTreasure on Etsy, a little shop filled with anime inspired items.  That includes a number of candles based on characters, ranging from Jinshi in Apothecary Diaries to Sir Pentious from Hazbin Hotel to Calcifer from Howl’s Moving Castle.  This also includes some MXTX danmei favorites, such as Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji, Shen Qingqiu and Luo Binghe, as well as the two I bought: Xie Lian (currently out of stock) and Hua Cheng.

I found these candles by happenstance when looking for some other danmei merchandise and I was immediately charmed.  Sometimes I struggle with wanting all the merch without the space to display it, but I always have room for candles.  And it’s clear that the maker puts a lot of thought into crafting the scents of these candles.  For Hua Cheng, it’s Autumn Leaves, Black Currant Absinthe, and Fireside.  For Xie Lian, it’s Fresh Linen, Honeysuckle Jasmine, and Nag Champa.

I admittedly waffled between the MDZS ones and the TGCF ones, but I’d recently re-read TGCF and decided to go with these.  The candles are lovely in real life, with pretty decorations embedded in the wax.  The Xie Lian one has beautiful flower blossoms.  While you can order the candles individually, it did feel a little like worshipping a Scrap Immortal without the accompanying Red-Robed Ghost King.  I neither wanted to invite bad luck nor leave one without the other, so I ordered the Hua Cheng candle too.  This one is decorated with cute silver butterflies, though the candle color is more of a bright pink than red.

The candles smell very much as described, with fresh linen being the most prominent scent for the Xie Lian candle and the black currant note the strongest for Hua Cheng.  I do wish Hua Cheng’s had been a touch less fruit-forward, with the autumn leaves and fireside notes more prominent, but that’s a personal scent preference rather than a critique for the candle-maker.

I am burning these together, and the combination is nice without being too overpowering.  They’re a fun way to remember one of my favorite stories.

Please note: I have no affiliation with the maker of these candles, nor do I benefit in any material way from this review.