Chapter Text
Lan Wangji knelt behind the bushes, his white robes fanning in a circle around him on the grass floor. Cicadas shrilled in the heat of the summer, and Lan Wangji could feel the strain in his recently healed back from crouching in the shrubbery for so long. But it was of no matter, in face of what seemed more and more possible.
Lan Wangji scanned the tall walls that stood a few mi away from him. After making sure there were no traps, he made his way steadily to it. Flying on bichen, he flew just high enough to peek over the walls.
There were people walking below. No, Lan Wangji corrected himself. Not people. Their skins were a sickly white, the green of their veins prominent. They ambled slowly and aimlessly in circles, occasionally bumping into each other before changing directions to shuffle forward once more.
Lan Wangji cast his eyes further. There were rows upon rows of huts, all tiled in black ceramic. And in the centre of this mysterious walled area, there stood a metal fence, creating a space inside it as big as a courtyard.
Lan Wangji inhaled sharply. The harsh sunlight made it easy to see the talismans pasted all over it. They looked just like the ones Wei Ying used to draw, back when he lived in Burial Mounds with the Wens. The memory choked him and Lan Wangji breathed heavily, willing the ache that flared in his chest away. And just as quickly as the ache had risen, so did hope.
He decided to inspect the fenced area further. Tools were scattered haphazardly, ranging from metal cages, nails and guillotines. The budding hope crumpled in Lan Wangji's chest. Wei Ying had never treated his corpses this unkindly. It could only be someone else who had gone far enough to imitate how Wei Ying had raised his corpses, albeit not to the same level he had done so.
He should have known it could not be as he wished. And yet.
He descended to the soft grass below. He would have to find out who was behind this. No doubt that it was a figure rich and powerful enough to be able to build such a property in the middle of a wild forest. And more than likely enough, someone influential in the cultivation world that Lan Wangji might even have contact with before. And if this place was left alone, who knew what the corpses would be used for once whoever it was succeeded in creating sentient corpses. He would have to report this to xiongzhang quickly, and carefully.
He turned around, planning to travel to another section of the towering walls in hopes to gather more evidence that could lead him to the owner of this property.
He never expected to bump into Jiang Wanyin of all people.
Lan Wangji's hand tightened on the hilt of his sword, before loosening his grip just as quickly. He had heard of the ruthless tactics Jiang Wanyin had subjected anyone who attempted to follow in Yiling Laozu's footsteps to. He would be the last person to ever attempt raising corpses.
"Hanguang-jun," Jiang Wanyin began. Unlike Lan Wangji, his hand remained firm on sandu's hilt. He flicked his eyes between Lan Wangji and the high walls behind him. The surprise at seeing Lan Wangji bled away quickly into suspicion and animosity. "What are you doing here?"
Lan Wangji was more than inclined to ignore him. Anger and grief blossomed in his chest at the sight of him. This was the first time Lan Wangji had seen Jiang Wanyin after the events of the Nightless City four years ago, and one year after he had come out of his seclusion. As much as he could not forget Wei Ying's death, he could not forget what had transpired just before that: how Jiang Wanyin had thrust his sword towards Wei Ying as he hung from Lan Wanji's bleeding arm, Wei Ying's eyes resigned and the bottomless abyss below his feet. And as much as Lan Wangji wanted to ignore Jiang Wanyin, he wanted to ask if he had found anything of Wei Ying's after he fell, or was there nothing left of him beside the untruthful rumors and stories of the evil Yiling Laozu told throughout the cities and villages that Lan Wangji could not escape from hearing.
And among all of these conflicting thoughts, Lan Wangji was certain that Jiang Wanyin being here at the same time could not be a mere coincidence.
A bead of sweat slid down the side of Jiang Wanyin's face and down his gritted jaw before it fell soundlessly to the ground. The midday sun continued to beat down on both of them mercilessly, their shadows contorted on the dry yellow grass underneath their feet. The cicadas continued to screech, unknowing and uncaring of the history these two individuals had.
"An anonymous letter," Lan Wangji finally said, plainly and curtly. Jiang Wanyin stilled.
His reaction proved Lan Wangji's suspicion. Could this be a trap? An ambush? But it made no sense. The sender could not have predicted that both of them would come, and without their own men. To ambush the sect leader of one of the four major sects and the second in line to another of the major sects, both whose abilities far exceed the common cultivator, meant certain failure.
Not only that, the sects were still recovering from the Wen's tyranny and the massacre that occurred during the Nightless City. The recent death of Nie-zongzhu had only served to destabilise the cultivation world further. The sender would gain nothing from this ill-conceived trap. Which begs the question, what then, would he gain?
Lan Wangji continued, rehearsing the content of the letter from memory. "The forest outside of Lanling City, shenshi. You will find what you have been seeking for there."
Jiang Wanyin said nothing. His hand on his sword tightened.
Lan Wangji stepped forward, close enough to Jiang Wanyin that Jiang Wanyin could see the steady determination in his eyes and himself reflected in them. "If the letter proves true, and you aim to kill him again," Lan Wangji said steely to Jiang Wanyin's flinch, "I will not hesitate to stop you."
Stop him, Lan Wangji had said, but Jiang Wanyin heard the threat behind his politely veiled words. Lan Wangji would not hesitate to kill him should he attempt to kill Wei Wuxian. The thought made Jiang Wanyin nauseous. And subsequently, fury flared in his veins and burned that nauseousness away.
Jiang Wanyin's chest heaved heavily. He began to unsheathe his sword. "Lan Wangji," he spat out. "You dare-"
Suddenly, a clash sounded, loud and clear from behind the walls. Both of them looked at each other, before mounting on their swords to the top of the wall nearest to them.
The source of the sound became clear immediately. Two corpses were fighting with swords in the middle of the fenced courtyard. Their movements were slow and sluggish, nothing like Wen Ning was before he was destroyed with the rest of his family.
Lan Wangji heard Jiang Wanyin suck in a deep breath beside him. "Corpses?" he said to himself. He looked to the multiple huts built, the tall walls, and came to the same conclusion as Lan Wangji. Whoever who was reanimating corpses was someone powerful and influential in the cultivation world.
Someone chuckled below. A slender man in gold robes embroidered with silk peonies sat at the far end of the courtyard as he watched the fight, a black cap on his head moving along with his movement as he turned to speak to a man beside him.
The man dressed poorly in comparison to him. Drabbed fully in black robes, he had none of the elegance the other man had as he slouched in his chair, one foot resting upon his other knee.
"Lianfang-zun and Xue Yang?!" Jiang Wanyin exclaimed.
Lan Wangji shot a warning look at him. Jiang Wanyin continued in a lower voice, "Lianfang-zun must be crazy to do this!"
Jiang Wanyin should have seen this coming. No wonder Jin Guangshan had insisted Xue Yang's innocence in the Yueyang Chang massacre and made him a venerated guest in his court for seemingly no reason at all. To think Jin Guangyao had taken care of Jin Ling these past few years, and behind everyone's backs, raise the very same monstrosities that had resulted in his parents' death. Those hands that held Jin Ling, held these corpses.
Jiang Wanyin's hands tightened where they were placed on the edge of the walls. And who's fault was it? The ability to raise corpses was created and mastered by Wei Wuxian, and these corpses left nothing but death in their wake. In the end, everything always led to Wei Wuxian.
Jiang Wanyin snarled. But before he could leap over the wall towards them, Lan Wangji had grabbed hold of his arm.
Jiang Wanyin snapped his head towards him, but Lan Wangji was not deterred by the fury in his eyes.
"Wait," Lan Wangji simply said. It will do no good if they flee, the words go unsaid.
Grudgingly, Jiang Wanyin knew he was right. He settled back down behind the dusty cement wall.
They watched on as Jin Guangyao and Xue Yang chattered, relaxed and at ease as they sat in their wooden chairs in front of the corpses' fight. Eyes dull and empty, the corpses continued hacking at each other at the commands of the two men.
All of a sudden, Xue Yang raised one arm into the air and snapped his finger in the direction of the black shack nearest to the courtyard.
Someone emerged, with a tray of tea in his hands.
Lan Wangji could not breathe.
Wei Ying shambled towards them, placing the tray on the wooden table between the two men.
By then, neither Lan Wangji nor Jiang Wanyin could stop themselves from flipping over the wall into the courtyard, swords unsheathed.
Immediately, Jin Guangyao had snatched Wei Ying in front of him, his dagger just inches away from his throat. Xue Yang had also risen, his sword pointed at both of them.
Lan Wangji and Jiang Cheng halted immediately in their charge towards them.
Wei Ying stood unmoving. His skin pale, eyes empty, he did not resist as the blade pressed close to his throat. So different from the last time Lan Wangji had seen him, eyes bloodshot and nothing but resignation at his own death.
"Wei Ying," Lan Wangji said, his voice unsteady.
Wei Ying did not react.
The sun continued to beat down on all four of them. Where the towering walls deterred any rare gust of wind from passing through, it was harder to breathe in the hot and stagnant air. Only the corpses remained unaffected as they continued to shuffle aimlessly around them.
Jin Guangyao smiled, bright and unnerving. "Interesting. I predicted Laner-gongzi would stop in his advance, but I did not think Jiang-zongzhu would do the same as well." He roved his eyes towards Jiang Wanyin, as if an object to be scrutinized under his magnifying glass. "Laner-gongzi would prevent you from coming up to me, thus resulting in a fight among yourselves, that was what I had thought at least. But it seems I have predicted wrongly."
His eyes bore into Jiang Wanyin. "Did you not kill Wei Wuxian that day at Nightless City? Or rather, do you actually not want Wei Wuxian dead?"
Jiang Wanyin's feet were like lead. Something began to bubble its way to the surface before he pressed it down viciously. Yet somehow, he had the feeling that Jin Guangyao knew what it was.
Jin Wanyin stepped forward towards him, his lips twisted in a snarl.
The blade tightened against Wei Wuxian's throat. "You should think twice before doing that."
Lan Wangji's hand shot out, ready to stop Jiang Wanyin. If Jiang Wanyin had wanted Wei Ying dead before, he would do so again now.
"You're fucking crazy Jin Guangyao," Jiang Wanyin said, even as his feet had stopped moving.
Jin Guangyao's smile did not falter.
Jiang Wanyin looked to the only other person that could reverse the situation."Wei Wuxian!" he shouted at him. "Snap out of it!"
Jin Guangyao chuckled lowly. "Jiang-zongzhu, Jiang-zongzhu," he shook his head. "That's a bad habit of yours. Refusing to see the truth, perhaps even thinking if you don't see it, it isn't true hm?" Jin Guangyao moved closer to Wei Wuxian. Lan Wangji stiffened.
"Have you wondered why you could not find his body at the bottom of the cliff? That's because I got there first. He was already dead, bones all shattered, body distorted." Jin Guangyao clicked his tongue, his face scrunching up in disgust. Lan Wangji's hand on his sword shook.
"You can imagine how gruesome it was. But fortunately," he tilted his head in thought, "or unfortunately, his soul was still there. And then Xue-gongzi here had his fun experimenting on him for my father. Of course, as you can see, he didn't do a very good job."
"Hey!" Xue Yang exclaimed, before shrugging his shoulders as he brushed off the insult. "It ain't easy to raise corpses. But he does make a good servant."
Jiang Wanyin was about to speak again before Jin Guangyao interrupted. "Now, I am going to leave. If any of you make a single move," his blade flashed, "I'll kill him."
"You won't," Jiang Wanyin said. "Pathetic, using a corpse as a hostage. Only a prostitute's son would do such a thing."
The smile on Jin Guangyao's face faltered for a moment before it returned even brighter. "Xue-gongzi," he ordered, "you know what to do."
"You're leaving?" Xue Yang pouted.
Of course Jin Guangyao was. Jin Guangshan would not hesitate to throw all the blame on him once the news got out. A prostitute's son, as Jiang Wanyin said, who would be surprised to hear the news? His reputation, his hard work and effort the past few years, all gone down the drain in the blink of an eye.
Jin Guangyao clammed it all down. Calm down, he told himself. If you leave now, you might have a chance of returning in the future once everything has faded into obscurity with time. After all, that old useless man has not long to live anymore.
And so, all Jin Guangyao did was direct his smile at Xue Yang. "If fate wills it, we will meet again."
Hensheng below him, Jin Guangyao flew to the sky with Wei Wuxian in tow.
Before Lan Wangji and Jiang Wanyin could chase after him, Xue Yang let out a whistle. The corpses that had been walking aimlessly around them the entire time begun to make their way toward them while more emerged from the black huts.
Xue Yang smirked. And in the very next moment, he pounced towards Lan Wangji.
Lan Wangji blocked his strike smoothly, parrying it away. Xue Yang fell back, a cloud of dust billowing behind him. Xue Yang smile grew wider. He flew towards Lan Wangji once more.
Jiang Wanyin swung zidian, hitting each flood of corpses backwards. Badly animated in comparison to Wei Wuxian's corpses, they fell to the ground easily.
Beside him, Xue Yang stabbed another vicious blow towards Lan Wangji. Lan Wangji dodged it and struck Xue Yang, almost all at the same time. Xue Yang's eyes widened as he spotted the attack, but it was too late to avoid such a quick blow. Blood splattered on the dirt ground as a deep cut found its way onto his dominant forearm.
He stumbled back, grabbing at it. He looked up and laughed. "No doubt you are Hanguang-jun~" he said half mockingly and half in admiration. Lan Wangji's face remained blank.
Xue Yang's eyes darted around him as he observed the battleground. Jiang Wanyin held back the corpses easily, and it was clear he stood no chance against Lan Wangji. If it was any other time, he would not be so quick to retreat. But he had other matters he planned to attend to in the future, grudges he held, revenge schemes to be carried out: Xiao Xingchen, Song Lan.
And so, he fled too.
Soon enough, with the combined force of Jiang-zongzhu and one of Gusu's shuangbi, the corpses were dealt with quickly.
Jiang Wanyin flicked the blood off his sword and cursed. Jin Guangyao and Xue Yang were long gone by then, how were the both of them going to figure out where they have escaped to? And Wei Wuxian, who he had thought had been dead for the past four years, had spent those years as a corpse and a slave to Jin Guangyao and Xue Yang. Jiang Wanyin did not know what he could do. Hell, he did not even know how to feel. Rescue Wei Wuxian first, he told himself, and figure out the rest later.
"I know where they are," someone said. Jiang Wanyin lifted his head.
"I know where they are," Lan Wangji repeated. "I placed a tracking talisman on Jin Guangyao."
Jiang Wanyin's eyes widened. More than the shock of Lan Wangji knowing where Wei Wuxian was, was the shock that came from the realization that Lan Wangji wanted, or at the very least, was not against Jiang Wanyin's involvement in his attempt to rescue Wei Wuxian.
Lan Wangji could have easily flown off alone without Jiang Wanyin, but the fact he had told him this meant he was certain Jiang Wanyin wanted to rescue Wei Wuxian as well. Which meant somehow along the way, something had changed Lan Wangji's mind and believed that Jiang Wanyin would not kill Wei Wuxian.
Annoyance, and also humiliation, flared up in him at being seen through and by Lan Wangji of all people. He had the sudden urge to prove him wrong, to say "all I wanted all these years was to kill him if I ever saw him again" and anticipate the reaction those words would have on Lan Wangji. But the words died in his throat. He could not deny he wanted to rescue Wei Wuxian, even if he hated himself just as much for wanting to do so.
He tossed his turmoil to the back of his mind. He was putting the cart before the horse. Rescue Wei Wuxian first, he reminded himself once more, and decide whatever the hell you want to do with him once you have him. Be it kill him or-
Lan Wangji's words forced him out of his thoughts. "They are heading towards the pier, at the west of the forest."
"Jin Guangyao is going to escape," Jiang Wanyin realized.
Lan Wangji nodded. "The river there leads to dongying."
Jiang Cheng froze. He began to get onto his sword frantically, "we have to stop them before Wei Wuxian gets taken to-"
"Call your disciples first," Lan Wanji interrupted him. "Tell them to meet you there."
Right, Jiang Wanyin thought. He could not stifle his displeasure at being told the obvious thing to do and by Lan Wangji of all people, but he was right.
"And you?" he asked. "Are you going to tell Lan-zongzhu?"
Lan Wangji shook his head. "Not yet."
Jiang Wanyin nodded. Everyone knew of the close relationship between Lianfang-zun and Lan-zongzhu. After sending a message talisman back to Yunmeng, Jiang Wanyin nodded to Lan Wangji. "Let's go."