Chapter Text
Wei Ying wake up with a groan.
His body felt heavy, sluggish, which was weird.
He should be dead. If not dead then in great pain he barely able to move. That's what you get when your body was torn apart by hundreds of Fierce Corpses. That's right. He should be in small pieces it would take people forever to put him back, if only they are dedicated, that is, not being in a whole body.
One that is currently bleeding from orifice, body aching like Xuanwu of Slaughter had just jumping up and down on him, and then stuffed into a too tight coffin that pressing on him from all sides. Stuffy. Gah. His back... ergh, he sounds like an old man in his twilight age...
Tangy bile rose from the back of his throat. It felt fucking terrible and he didn't try to fight it. He puked black blood. It was so black it practically oozing resentment.
Horrified, he punched himself in the stomach and puke again. Repeat until he no longer pukes out black blood.
“What,” he coughed, “the fuck?”
Okay. Yeah, he probably should not do that. BUT, he has an inkling that the black blood or whatever curse it originated from won't kill him. Nope. It would give him a fate worse than death. It would corrupt his mind and twisted his thoughts, feelings, and actions until he was practically Heart Demon in human form like he wasn’t one already. Not the kind of thing you want to use in a suicide attempt to get close with. As the Demonic Cultivator, he damn has fine instinct when it comes to this kind of thing. Like attracts like.
Where did it come from—oho. What is this?
He raised the thing he holds.
It was an ornamental item made out of metal. Looks like a shard of a whole thing. It was practically dyed black from dried cursed blood and resentment.
“What the fuck you’re supposed to be?” He grunted. “Such ugly thing.”
Just looking at it irked him. It was similar to Stygian Tiger Amulet in nature but waaaaaaaay too crude and ugly. The edge was rough and cracked, which cause the resentful energy it held to oozes out like the ground of Burial Mounds before he forcibly tame it. So nothing unlike polished and refined Stygian Tiger Seal that was a beautiful piece of art, dark art it might be, and could hold hundred years worth of energy without nothing spilled and wasted unless he draw it out.
As the creator of Stygian Tiger Amulet and somewhat an artist himself, this crude thing offends him on a personal level just by existing.
Not to mention it's functional. Sure, it's way weaker, but the fact it's functional even if only a shard of a whole item makes it dangerous. Anyone got their grubby paws on it and bam! Demonic Cultivation! Unlike Stygian Tiger Amulet that needs both halves whole and intact to be of use. If possess only half of it, it's useless except as bait for resentful creatures. Same if a half piece is shattered.
Why do you think he shattered his own creation? He had been called many names including madman even though most of them are lies, but he liked to think he put a precaution measure in his creation. He is clumsy and has spotty memory and might be insane but he still knows safety procedures for volatile items. There's no way he let such a powerful item fell to just anyone, let alone Jin Guanshan and his ilk.
His train of thought briefly pauses as a shudder went down his spine.
Yeah, this thing in his hand has to be gone. Lest another war brew and this time, it would lead to an apocalypse. Nope. No sire. No such thing will occur if he has any say in it. Why else he wants to die so badly?
Mind made up, he holds the thing in both hands as he poured his spiritual energy into it. It was not like when sharing one owns energy. This time he didn't bother to be gentle or careful. Quite the opposite, he shoved as much energy as he could into this thing, violently and crudely. It was akin to stirring a pot of soup in one direction and the next moment he stirs to the opposite direction, in this case, the soup is the Qi gathered inside this thing.
If it’s done to a human, no doubt they will experience severe Qi Deviation. Assuming they didn’t die first, that is.
The thing in his hand cracked.
It screamed.
Resentment energy poured out. Tendrils grabbing his hands and climb up like some kind of curse. Trying to claw its way into his meridian. His eyes narrowed as he pushed them away. The energy shrieked in indignation and anger. It poured more and more, now looking like blood flowing out from very severe wounds that were pressed in a certain way to maximized damage.
Ghostly voice whispers in his ears. Tempting him powers beyond imagination as well respect and wealth that will come along with it all kind of revenge he could enact to hypocrites called Righteous Cultivators for what they did to Wen Qing and Wen Ning and the others Wen Remnants oh how he could make A-Yuan safe from anything and everything if only he stops fighting and start worshipping the resentful-filled metal. Promising that he will stand at the top of the world and making everyone else become insignificant ants.
He rolled his eyes.
Nice try buddy, but you got nothing on Stygian Tiger Amulet, leave alone Burial Mounds. And you know what? If he can tame them to an extent while not in the best shape or sane mind, then, you. Are. NOTHING!
Powerful Spiritual Energy flowed in large quantity through his body, entering the Metal, and stirring up the building storm inside it. The cracks spread. Covering the entire surface. It began shaking. His hands began to shake too.
Knowing what would happen, he poured as much energy as he could before opening the window and punting the thing as far as he could.
Explosion occurred. The impact was so strong it nearly knocks him flat on his ass. He can hear its dying scream before fading away. Sign that the accursed thing was gone for good.
Hopefully, there's no one below the area where it exploded. The resentment had built up for quite some time the area it explodes would be saturated with it. Ugh, people are soooo going to blame him again, right? Except, this time they have every reason for it. It was his fault. Won't take long till someone found him and drag him to face manslaughter execution sham of a trial “justice”.
Speak of that, did they manage to save him at the last minute and the Jins pull some string, saying he was too dangerous and they will kill him for what he did to Shijie’s husband and A-Ling’s father the peacock, only to secretly heals him so he can create another Stygian Tiger Amulet for them?
Bitch, please.
He rather jumps into Volcano.
Maybe someone will notice it and then they will kill him. Or no. Maybe they punish him first. The Stuffy Gusu folks definitely will do that. He means, Lan Zhan demands him to go back to Gusu for punishment even after seeing the kind of folks who lived in Burial Mounds but didn't he looks sad and mourning?. And let’s not get started on Old Man Qiren, yes? It was as if he was already devil incarnate in his eyes no matter what he did. Jiang Cheng won’t be of help. His Shidi truly hated him right? After all, he let Lotus Pier Burn, abandon him to built it up by himself, and killed Shijie. The Nie? Huaisang might hear him out, but his brute of big brother is Lan Xichen and Jin Guangyao's sworn brother and his temper are unreasonably short like he’s one to talk.
He peered out of the window. There's no guard. Wow. How lax. He can jump out and sneak away and no one noticed until someone thought to check upon him. Maybe by that time he already picks A-Yuan and then runs away. Laying low for few years until they escaped to a territory that was not guarded by Cultivation Clan. The lands beyond the borders. Maybe he could try that island nation beyond the sea. The language barrier will be a problem but if it could keep A-Yuan safe then so be it.
There’s a sound of footsteps outside his not cell room. He tensed.
Fuck. Looks like he won't get out without some fighting. Weapon... weapon... eh, fuck it. Let's just jump out of the window, kay? Broken legs is a small price to pay—
“Sect Leader!”
The door burst open and he froze.
The cultivators who enter... they are...
They are Wens.
There's no mistaking it. The white robe with red flame and red sun crest. That was Qishan Wen's clothes. Wen Qing still had hers unlike others and she mostly stored it away so it won’t get torn apart and she wore it to her death.
But... but...
But he thought... he thought the Wens are gone. The Jins gathered other survivors and torture them to death in Qiongqi Path where Wen Ning die and return as Fierce Corpse, where Shijie’s husband died saving him. He thought the ones who survived the ordeal and were taken to Burial Mound under his protection were the last of the Wen. They said it themselves!
So why...
Why there are more Wens here? Why don’t they come to pick their family?! Why they run away like cowards not like he can blame them it was them against the world! If they build up a sanctuary for themselves and now pick the remnants...
A-Yuan.
That's right. If they're here then they were the ones who saved him from imminent death and destruction of the soul. They should know about the others. About A-Yuan.
A-Yuan, where is he? Is he safe?
“Sect Leader, calm down!”
Calm down? His kid might still be in danger, crying for his Xian-Gege, until he confirms otherwise with his own eyes and you want him to calm down?! Bring him A-Yuan first! And who did you call Sect Leader? I am not your Sect Leader! Where are we anyway?!
“Gah! Sect Leader, how are you injured?”
“Did someone attack Sect Leader?!”
“What's with that black blood?”
“Did it connect to the explosion?”
“What else?!”
“Healers! We need healers!”
Hands grabbed him, pushing him out from the room to meet the "healers" could it be Wen Qing was saved as well and now was waiting to scold him. On the way, when they turn in a corner, there was a mirror and his eyes accidentally landed on his reflection.
The man who looks back was not him. Not Wei Ying.
That man who looked back from the mirror... he knows of him. He had seen him once. During Archery Conference in Qishan Wen. It was only one meeting and yet he committed the face and the name into memory.
The name? Wen Ruohan.
Why... why was Wen Ruohan stare back at him? He should... he should be dead. Lianfeng-zun killed him. Chifeng-zun and Zewu-jun confirms it.
What happened?