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Wei Wuxian staggered to the ground as he coughed up blood, Suibian in one hand, the divine fungal grass in the other. 

“Wei Wuxian! Shit!” Jiang Wanyin ran over to his shixiong, his own legs unsteady, his robes were torn in multiple places. Wei Wuxian waved his hand in dismissal and laid down on the grass, panting heavily. 

“Did you get it?” Jiang Wanyin asked, falling on his knees. 

“Yeah. This right?” Wei Wuxian grinned as best he could and held up the mushroom-like plant. It floated in his palm and had a golden aura around it. 

“Thank the heavens,” Jiang Wanyin exclaimed as he laid down on his back, chest rising and falling unsteadily. 

“Thank me! And can you tell me now why we had to come all the way to Yingzhou and risk our lives to get some freaking mushroom?” Wei Wuxian asked, sitting up and wiping his bloody mouth. 

“It isn’t just some freaking mushroom!” Jiang Wanyin snapped. 

“It’s divine fungal grass and.. I’ll explain it when we get back to Yunmeng. Wei Wuxian.. there’s some things I haven’t told you. Or anyone really. I’ve been keeping these secrets because I was afraid of how people would react and with how the cultivation world was during the time you were dead.. I had to keep it a secret. There was a reason I looked for your body so often after you died,” Jiang Wanyin’s voice was grim and somber, deeply serious. 

Wei Wuxian’s own face hardened and he looked at his shidi analytically. “Just what have you been doing these past seventeen years, Jiang Cheng? For four years, we stayed away from each other and focused on our lives. Three days ago, you decided you wanted to see me. What am I really here for?” he asked, stomach twisting at the thought that Jiang Wanyin didn’t actually want to see him. 

Jiang Wanyin sighed. “I needed you to get the grass because I couldn’t do it alone but I do want to see you. And it’s time I tell you what I’ve been doing. Let’s go. I promise this will be worth it.” he stood up and held out his hand.

Wei Wuxian gave him another skeptical look as he took his hand and stood off of the ground. “It better be.” 

Wei Wuxian had returned to the mountain which he and Lan Wangji parted on just three months after he left. Wei Wuxian came back to him and they acknowledged their deep feelings for each other, got married and became husbands. 

Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji dual cultivated every night, at least twice a day. They switched positions often and tried every method they could, steadily growing Wei Wuxian’s core until it was nearly as powerful as his previous one. 

As the years went on, Wei Wuxian’s features had started becoming more and more like his own from his first life. His scars, his tanned skin, his muscles, his facial features, his height, everything that made him look like him in his first life began to come back. 

Hints of Mo Xuanyu were still present but Wei Wuxian looked more and more like himself each day. He visited Mo Xuanyu’s shrine often, letting him know that his sacrifice had not been and never would be forgotten. 

As he grew his core, he picked up his sword again and relearned every technique he was taught with the help of some old friends and his husband. 

One day, a day Wei Wuxian would forever be very proud of, he and Lan Wangji’s sword fight ended in a draw. He was sure Lan Wangji tried his best and it elated Wei Wuxian. 

He tried to get in contact with Jiang Wanyin but his Shidi told him that he couldn’t talk to him. He needed to be away from him so that he could be happy! Not worry about him or have to put up with him. 

He wanted both of them to be happy but the only way that was going to happen was if they were apart, focusing on their own lives. 

Understandably, Wei Wuxian was deeply hurt. But he understood and knew that his brother was right. Jiang Wanyin told him to have a good life and that he loved him. That was the last they spoke for years. Until.. now. 

Jiang Wanyin led Wei Wuxian to a room in a room hidden in what used to be Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan’s bedroom, a hidden room that Wei Wuxian and Jiang Wanyin used to sneak off to and play around in. 

It was broad and filled with treasures and luxurious items that the two martial brothers threw around to play catch with. But when they got in there, Wei Wuxian saw six things that he didn’t remember being in the room. 

“What are these.. coffins and beds doing in here? Who are these people lying on these beds?” Wei Wuxian shook his head, glancing at Jiang Wanyin in confusion. 

“..These coffins are special. They preserve bodies. I found these and there were only three so I had to choose carefully. I chose A-jie, Zixuan, and Wen Qing. Their bodies are in those.” Jiang Wanyin pointed to the coffins and Wei Wuxian raised his head higher, frowning deeply. 

He was intelligent, he didn’t need to hear the rest to understand what was happening. “What the hell do you think you are doing, Jiang Cheng? No. No . Go lay them back to rest, you won’t do this. These people.. what do you plan on doing with them!?” Wei Wuxian pointed to the three people he saw sleeping on beds next to the coffins. 

“Vessels. For seventeen years the three of them have been piecing their souls back together in these bodies. Once complete, their souls will return to their bodies. But it would take hundreds of years for their souls to completely be patched together without this grass. So I found where it was and I asked you to help me get it.” Jiang Wanyin tried his best to stay patient as he explained. 

“Shidi. The world has a balance. There are deaths. It is natural. To bring three back into the world is unnatural and the world will be unbalanced. Don’t play with things you cannot control.” Wei Wuxian’s voice was shaking and he got a deep scowl from his shidi in response. 

“Do you have any place to tell me this? I’m not like you! I know what I’m doing, I’ve been studying it for decades. They won't go crazy and kill people when their master loses control!” Jiang Wanyin snapped. 

Wei Wuxian closed his eyes and shook his head, dragging his hands down his face as tears rolled out of his eyes. 

“Look,” Jiang Wanyin said calmly, not wanting to upset himself or Wei Wuxian any further. He didn’t come here to argue. “There won’t be any consequences.” 

At this remark, Wei Wuxian shook his head again. “A-Cheng. No matter how long you’ve been studying this, no matter how perfect your plan is, everything has consequences. How do you know that this is what they want?” Wei Wuxian asked, crossing his arms over his chest. 

“Because as we speak, they are piecing their souls together so that I can revive them. If they weren’t, this wouldn’t work. Granted they won’t remember this when they awake but their lives were wrongly taken and they deserve a second chance. Just help me do this, Wei Wuxian. Help me give them the chance to live again.” Jiang Wanyin searched Wei Wuxian’s eyes carefully. 

Wei Wuxian spent a long while staring at the crystal coffins, at the three bodies on the beds.. When he gave a slight nod, Jiang Wanyin sighed in relief. 

“How do you have Wen Qing’s body, anyhow? And why did you choose these people to be their.. vessels?” Wei Wuxian examined the bodies that were lying on the three beds, noticing how sickly they were, around Jiang Wanyin’s age. 

“They owed me a favor. This is how they repay me. Once A-jie’s soul finishes piecing itself together, Zixuan’s and Wen Qing’s too, they’ll leave these bodies and the vessels will die. There will be balance in the world once again,” Jiang Wanyin explained, putting the divine fungal grass in a bowl, grinding it down and turning it into an elixir. 

“They’re terminally ill anyway. This way.. their deaths won’t be painful,” he added, stopping his movements for a second before continuing. 

“What exactly do we need to do?” Wei Wuxian asked. 

“It can’t be this simple. What aren’t you telling me?” 

“..This plant. I have to feed it to them. But in order for it to work, they need some of our essence. Half from each of us. We’ll put it into them directly. Then their souls will return to their bodies and awake. We can cultivate our essence back but this is the only shot we have.” Jiang Wanyin finished his elixir and looked at Wei Wuxian again, watched him stare at the three coffins inquisitively. 

“One sixth of our essence will go into each body. Three sixths will be gone from each of us. Lan Zhan will feel that something is wrong if we do it, he’ll know something has happened to me,” Wei Wuxian said, glancing at his shidi. 

“Then we do it fast,” Jiang Wanyin said, picking up the elixir. 

“Wait.” Wei Wuxian held his hand out to stop Jiang Wanyin and the sect leader listened. “What?” 

“Wen Ning should be here. His sister is involved,” Wei Wuxian said reasonably. 

Jiang Wanyin sighed and gave a brisk nod. “Bring him here. And hurry up. It’s time,” he said, going to the bodies and examining them, paying close attention to the shallow breaths they were taking. 

Wei Wuxian left quickly, stepping onto Suibian who took him in the direction of the city where Wen Ning lived.

“Wen Ning! Wen Ning?” Wei Wuxian called, sheathing his sword and knocking on the door of Wen Ning’s cottage. 

Wen Ning opened the door, eyes wide and surprised. “Wei-gongzi!” 

“Wen Ning!” Wei Wuxian grinned upon seeing his old friend, smile soon fading as he remembered why he came. 

“A-Ning. There’s something I need to discuss with you,” he said gravely. 

Wen Ning blinked owlishly and let Wei Wuxian inside. 

“..Revive her? My sister’s body was turned into ashes, how can she be revived?” Wen Ning asked, blinking in confusion. 

“I asked Jiang Cheng but he didn’t tell me. All I know is that soon.. they’ll wake up. I don’t know all of the details but Jiang Cheng will explain. We have to go now.” Wei Wuxian stood up from the chair he was sitting in and Wen Ning began fidgeting, head tilted. 

“What if.. it doesn’t work? What if jiejie doesn’t wake up?” he asked, voice quiet, small and a little scared. 

Although he’d become a fierce corpse, Wei Wuxian knew he was still the shy boy he’d met at the Cloud Recesses all those years ago. 

“Don’t worry too much about it. I believe Jiang Cheng knows what he’s doing. It’ll be okay.” Wei Wuxian stroked Wen Ning’s head, smiling as he watched him hesitantly lean into the touch. 

“Let’s go. Are you ready to meet your sister again?” Wei Wuxian asked. 

Wen Ning nodded eventually, head ducking shyly. “I hope she’ll remember me.” 

“I hope so too.”

“Finally. Come on, let’s do this.” Jiang Wanyin gave a slight nod to Wen Ning in greeting and took the elixir to the vessels, spooning it to the three of them until it was gone. 

Afterwards, Wen Ning removed the tops off of the tops of the coffins and at the sight of his sister lying there in the crystal coffin, he swallowed thickly, suddenly reminded of the fact that he was unable to cry. 

Wei Wuxian bit down on his tongue, the sight in front of him blurring as he looked at the three bodies, all dressed in white robes, hands laid over their chests. 

“Come on,” Jiang Wanyin said, voice a touch softer. Wei Wuxian nodded, two tears plopping down onto the stone covered ground as he did so. 

“Jiang Cheng.. they say that when you give your essence away to someone else, the sound of the devil may fill your ears,” Wei Wuxian said in a solemn tone. 

He was quite used to the sound of it himself. He let it control him, take him over, let it make him lose his mind. The room was silent for a while. 

“Don’t listen to it,” Wei Wuxian continued, staring hard at Jiang Wanyin until the man nodded. 

Wen Ning stood back and watched as Wei Wuxian and Jiang Wanyin both held two fingers to their forehead and thrusted them in the direction of the bodies of Wen Qing, Jin Zixuan and Jiang Yanli. 

Purple and red essence began flowing into Jiang Yanli’s body first, the streams of energy going to her forehead. 

After a few moments, they repeated the process for Jin Zixuan and finally Wen Qing, watching color fill their bodies, skin looking less sickly. 

Once they finished, they lowered their hands. They stood still as they felt themselves being drained, blood dripping from their mouths down past their chins, nasty whispers in their ears. 

Wen Ning stepped closer to Wei Wuxian just in case he lost his footing, but Wei Wuxian hadn’t faltered even once. They all turned to the vessels, watching them all breathe their last breath. Now.. all they had to do was wait. 

“Wei Ying.” 

Wei Wuxian and Jiang Wanyin opened their eyes. They were sitting across from each other, meditating while Wen Ning hovered over the bodies, watching for any sign of life. He was entranced by the steady breathing of his sister, wondering if he truly would have her back. 

“Lan Zhan. Why did you come here? How’d you even get back here?” Wei Wuxian stood up and Lan Wangji quickly came to him, immediately feeling the difference in Wei Wuxian’s energy when he touched him. 

“What have you done?” he whispered, visibly concerned. 

“Calm down, Lan Zhan. I’m okay. I’m not going anywhere. I just.. it’s just half of my essence, I’ll cultivate it back!” Wei Wuxian said quickly, watching Lan Wangji’s eyes go wide. 

“ Half ?” he repeated, lips parting. 

“Yes, we needed to do it. Jiang Cheng-.” 

“You.” Lan Wangji directed a rather fiery gaze towards Jiang Wanyin who rolled his eyes and looked at Wei Wuxian, talking to him with his eyes before closing them again, resuming his meditation. 

Lan Wangji gripped the hilt of his sword and Wei Wuxian put his hand over his. “Lan Zhan. Calm down. Jiang Cheng did nothing wrong. I agreed to do this with him. And I am fine, don’t jump to conclusions,” Wei Wuxian scolded, stroking Lan Wangji’s cheek with his other hand. 

“Mn,” Lan Wangji said guiltily, taking a deep breath before turning his head to Jiang Wanyin. “My apologies, Sect Leader Jiang,” he said, turning back to his husband when Jiang Wanyin said nothing, eyes still closed. 

“W-Wei-gongzi! Sect Leader!” Wen Ning called, eyes wide. 

Wei Wuxian and Jiang Wanyin’s heads snapped in the direction of the coffins and they moved over to them immediately. Lan Wangji followed, eyes widening in surprise and confusion at what he was seeing. 

“Lady Jiang is awaking,” Wen Ning stated. 

They all looked at Jiang Yanli whose eyebrows were twitching, breaths becoming deeper, eyelids fluttering. Soon, Jin Zixuan was doing the same and then even Wen Qing began to stir. 

“Fierce corps-.” 

“No,” Jiang Wanyin and Wei Wuxian said together, cutting Lan Wangji off. 

“What is this?” he asked instead. 

“We used our essence and divine fungal grass to bring them all back to life. That’s why I look like shit,” Wei Wuxian grinned, gesturing at his tattered robes. 

“Wei Ying always looks ethereal,” Lan Wangji said, brushing a patch of grass off of Wei Wuxian’s shoulder. The man grinned and shook his head. 

“You two better not fucking start kissing in front of me, I swear to every god I will kill you both,” Jiang Wanyin said before his shixiong could reply to Lan Wangji’s compliment. 

“Shijie is waking up, she won’t allow it,” Wei Wuxian crossed his arms with a humph. 

“Then I’ll kill you now,” Jiang Wanyin grumbled, walking towards Wei Wuxian and gripping his throat. 

Wei Wuxian smacked Jiang Wanyin’s back and the two of them began fighting on the ground, trading hits while Wen Ning and Lan Wangji shared a look before watching it happen. 

“Hey! Don’t do that!” Wei Wuxian shouted, crying out when Jiang Wanyin smacked his back with Chenqing. Wei Wuxian flipped over and snatched it from him before wacking him over the head with it. 

“Boys. Stop fighting.” Jiang Wanyin and Wei Wuxian’s movements paused immediately and slowly.. everyone’s heads turned to the softly spoken voice. 

Jiang Yanli was sitting up in her coffin, eyes soft, a smile curling on her lips. 

“A-jie.” 

“Shijie.” 

Both men scrambled up from the ground and went over to Jiang Yanli. Wei Wuxian reached out to her before pulling back, lowering his head and stepping back. Jiang Wanyin grabbed his hand and looked at him steadily. 

“Where do you think you’re going?” he asked, squeezing his hand. 

Wei Wuxian smiled brokenly and laughed, squeezing his hand back before they both reached out to Jiang Yanli with their other hands, releasing a heavy breath when she grasped the both of them. 

Lan Wangji and Wen Ning watched from a distance, both smiling at the interaction. 

“A-Cheng. A-Xian. Look at how you’ve grown,” Jiang Yanli laughed wetly and took in a sharp breath, lips trembling. 

“Shijie is still as youthful as ever. The most beautiful woman in all of Yunmeng,” Wei Wuxian cheesed. 

“In all of the world. No one looks better than A-jie,” Jiang Wanyin humphed. 

“Not even Wen Qing?” Wei Wuxian grinned slyly, cackling as Jiang Wanyin smacked his shoulder with a small smile he was unable to hold back. 

“Now now, boys. Would either of you like to explain what’s going on..? I thought I had died,” Jiang Yanli said. 

And only then did she begin looking around. The moment she turned to her left, her face went pale again and pain filled her expression. 

“He’ll wake up soon,” Jiang Wanyin said quickly, eyes averting to Wen Qing when she groaned softly. 

“What did you two do?” she asked, her next breath came out as a shudder. 

“Jiang Cheng revived the three of you. I gave him a little help,” Wei Wuxian said, holding his breath as Jin Zixuan’s eyes opened a little and the man sat up. 

“A-Xuan,” Yanli gasped. 

Jin Zixuan immediately grabbed at his chest and Wen Ning’s expression dimmed as he looked away in shame. 

“You’re healed,” Jiang Wanyin said. 

He and Wei Wuxian let go of Jiang Yanli’s hands and helped her out of the coffin, letting her shakily walk over to Jin Zixuan’s. 

“A-Li,” Jin Zixuan whispered, voice dry and hoarse. 

Jiang Yanli choked on a sob, holding his cheek. Jin Zixuan closed his eyes and leaned into her palm, sighing. After a few moments, he looked up again and his eyes eventually landed on Wen Ning who didn’t dare to meet his gaze. 

Instead, he dropped to his knees and bowed. “Young Master Jin. Please forgive me,” he said, body shaking. Wei Wuxian was on his knees too, head lowered. 

Jin Zixuan got out of his coffin and helped both of them stand up. 

“You were not in control,” he said to Wen Ning. “And you lost control. It was not intentional. I can see that.. you have done a lot to bring me back here, give me another chance to live again. We can consider ourselves even,” he continued, looking at the both of them now. 

“In any case, I apologize for taking your life. For everything that happened,” Wei Wuxian said, looking between his sister and brother-in-law.

They both looked at each other and smiled before taking each other’s hand. “We’re together now. Nothing else matters,” Jin Zixuan said. 

At that, Jiang Yanli began looking around again. “Where is our A-Ling?” she asked. 

“At Koi Tower. We’ll take you guys to him later. But before that.. there is much to discuss,” Jiang Wanyin said. Jin Zixuan’s face brightened at the mention of his son and he nodded.

Wen Qing groaned again, eyebrows knitting together as she sat up slowly, squinting. Wen Ning quickly moved to her side, taking her hand. 

“Jiejie,” he said, voice no louder than a whisper. 

“A-Ning?” Wen Qing replied, tilting her head as she looked at her brother, her free hand shakily coming up to Wen Ning’s cheek. 

“Is this real? Yes.. it is, isn’t it,” she spoke quietly, more to herself than the others. 

“It is,” Wen Ning replied anyway. 

“Now that the three of you are awake.. There are some things that you all need to know. You’ve been dead for a long time. Things have changed drastically,” Jiang Wanyin said. 

“Where do we begin?” Wei Wuxian asked. 

“Nightless City,” Lan Wangji supplied quietly. 

Everyone in the room turned to him and he bowed to Jiang Yanli, Jin Zixuan and then Wen Qing. 

“Yes. Let’s start from Nightless City. The day A-jie and Wei Wuxian died.” Jiang Wanyin nodded in agreement. 

“The day what ?” Wen Qing and Jiang Yanli said together, both looking at Wei Wuxian who scratched his head. 

“I was only dead for thirteen years. Then I was resurrected for a reason. Which Jiang Cheng will explain,” Wei Wuxian said, leaning on Lan Wangji’s shoulder and taking a piece of grass off of his arm, chewing on it.

“Why do I have to say it?” Jiang Wanyin asked. 

“Because I was dead!?” Wei Wuxian blurted incredulously. 

“Tell your husband to do it. I’m fucking tired,” Jiang Wanyin complained. 

“Husband?” The three newly resurrected people repeated. 

“I made an honest man out of Hanguang-Jun,” Wei Wuxian grinned, kissing Lan Wangji’s cheek. 

“Finally,” Wen Qing muttered. 

“My A-Xian is a husband now,” Jiang Yanli cheered, eyes watering again. 

“You’re a cutsleeve?” Jin Zixuan asked. 

Wei Wuxian shrugged. “I’d marry a woman too. Or a man. Either is fine. But Lan Zhan is the only one in my heart,” Wei Wuxian said with a teasing voice. 

Lan Wangji kissed Wei Wuxian’s lips, smiling back. He didn’t even have to lower his head anymore, height now practically equal to his husband’s now that his body had become his own again. 

“As Wei Ying is the only man in mine,” Lan Wangji replied. 

“Aiyo~,” Wei Wuxian chuckled, kissing his lips again. 

“I shouldn’t have fucking said anything,” Jiang Wanyin muttered.

“A-Yao.. I can’t believe he’d do something like that,” Jin Zixuan shook his head, sighing. 

“Are you two fucking stupid!? What if you killed yourselves trying to revive us, giving away half of your essence! I can’t believe you’d go and do some stupid crap like this without a doctor present,” Wen Qing scolded, pinching both Wei Wuxian’s and Jiang Wanyin’s ears while they hissed. 

“A-Ling is all grown up now.. he seems to have gained A-Xuan’s qualities,” she said. 

“Is that a bad thing?” Jin Zixuan puffed his chest a little. 

“No, dear, of course not.” Jiang Yanli beamed. 

“And you have a son, Xianxian. That little A-Yuan, I can’t wait to make him some of my soup, he’s only had one bowl before. A-Ling too, he hasn’t even tried it once. That won’t do. Hanguang-Jun, or shall I say Chief Cultivator, please do give me A-Yuan’s measurements and maybe I can make him a set of robes,” Jiang Yanli said, smiling happily. 

“Don’t worry about that for now. We should head back to Lanling and the Cloud Recesses.” Wei Wuxian shook his head. 

“Yes. Give us a moment,” Wen Qing said. 

She had been out of her crystal coffin for a while now and slowly walked over to the three bodies lying on the beds. She examined them with her eyes, hands too shaky to touch. 

“So this did not come without a price. I hadn’t suspected otherwise but still.. the sight of these bodies.. knowing that their deaths were so that we could live.” Wen Qing sighed softly and her hand hovered over one of the body’s faces before she ultimately decided to pull it away. 

“Even without us doing this, they would’ve died. They would’ve suffered more. None of them had any family and all of them were okay with this. I swear,” Jiang Wanyin replied gently. 

“I don’t doubt you.” Wen Qing looked away from the bodies and then Jiang Yanli and Jin Zixuan looked at them as well. 

After a short while, when they had moved away, Wei Wuxian and Wen Ning pulled the blankets from the bed up over the bodies, covering them. 

“Okay, guys. You’ve got cousins and sons and nephews to see. More crying,” Jiang Wanyin said, rolling his eyes. 

“Me and A-Ning ordered a carriage for them on the other side of the lake. He’s going to take them to Lanling. I’ll go back with Lan Zhan to get Sizhui and we’ll travel to Lanling,” Wei Wuxian added. 

Wen Qing looked at him, tilting his chin up and down, side to side. “We have to talk later,” she said, walking outside without another word. 

Lan Wangji followed her out and Wen Ning quickly trailed after them. 

“See you guys there,” Wei Wuxian called, skipping out of the room. 

Once he and Lan Wangji were outside, they got on their swords and left for Gusu. Wen Ning helped Jiang Yanli and his sister into a boat while Jin Zixuan sat down himself before Wen Ning began taking them across the lake. 

Jiang Wanyin said a few words to his head disciple before he began flying off too, preparing his ears for all the sobbing he was about to hear from Jin Ling. 

“Wei Ying, if you need to ride with me, it’s alright,” Lan Wangji said, looking at his husband briefly as they flew above the trees. 

“Me and Jiang Cheng meditated for a while, I’ll be okay for now. Even if I couldn’t use my sword, I have Chenqing after all,” Wei Wuxian said, whistling idly. 

Lan Wangji hummed and kept going, listening to Wei Wuxian’s whistle over the faint wind. When they arrived at the Cloud Recesses, Sizhui was there waiting for them at the entrance, frowning at the sight of his dad. 

“You look pale, Wei Qianbei,” he said after bowing when they landed. 

Wei Wuxian put his sword away and scoffed. “You’ll be the one looking pale if you don’t call me properly,” he threatened, though there was no heat behind it. 

Sizhui smiled and corrected himself. “A-die.” 

“Ah, it’s a bit of a long story. Lan Zhan, you should go see Zewu-Jun. I’ll talk to A-Yuan,” Wei Wuxian said, nudging Lan Wangji’s shoulder. 

“Mn.” Lan Wangji gently squeezed Lan Sizhui’s arm before walking off. 

Wei Wuxian put his arm over his son’s shoulders and they began walking together. 

“Today, I lost a lot of my essence, spiritual energy and what not for a very good reason. It’s why I look like shit. Anyways.. Jiang Cheng has been working on something for a while, something that I initially didn’t approve of,” Wei Wuxian explained, sighing. 

Sizhui listened quietly, not sure where this was going. 

“We revived my Shijie. We revived Jin Zixuan. And we also revived Wen Qing,” Wei Wuxian said bluntly. Sizhui’s steps faltered and Wei Wuxian gripped his shoulder tighter, keeping him upright. 

“They’re on their way to Lanling right now to see Jin Ling. We came to get you,” he continued. 

Sizhui knew his dad was being serious, but he wasn’t sure he believed what he was hearing. “Are.. are they in different bodies? Like you were?” he asked finally, voice more choked up then he had intended it to be. He cleared his throat, asking again. 

“No. They’re in their own bodies. They aren’t fierce corpses. They are just.. alive again. Like you and me. No side effects or anything. The consequence was that three other people had to die but Jiang Cheng told me they were well on their way. That they were dying anyway. The balance of the world has not been disrupted.” Wei Wuxian stood in front of Sizhui and looked down at him. 

“I understand that this is a lot to process. I understand that you have many questions. And all of them will be answered in their own time but you’ve got a few people headed to Lanling waiting to meet you,” he said, smiling at his son. 

Sizhui quickly wiped his eyes with his sleeve, standing tall. He nodded briskly and Wei Wuxian’s smile grew. “Let’s go.”

When Wei Wuxian, Lan Sizhui, and Lan Wangji arrived at Koi Tower, the rest of them were there waiting. 

Upon seeing Sizhui, clad in his Gusu Lan robes, Wen Qing’s knees nearly buckled. Sizhui quickly caught her before she could fall but soon, they were both kneeling on the ground, sobbing as they held each other. 

“Why are you so grown up, look at you,” Wen Qing said sadly, holding Sizhui’s plump cheeks in her hands. Sizhui smiled in her hands, tears flowing freely. 

“The Yiling Wei Sect is back in business, eh?” Wei Wuxian grinned, nudging Wen Ning who smiled. 

Wen Qing laughed wetly and smacked Wei Wuxian’s thigh. 

“Shut up. Let me look at my A-Yuan some more, he’s so handsome,” Wen Qing said, wiping Sizhui’s eyes. 

“Qing-jiejie. I’ve missed you,” Sizhui said, voice watery. 

Wen Qing nodded and stroked her hand through his hair briefly. “I’ve missed you as well. Come on, let’s not hold them up,” she said. Wei Wuxian helped them stand up after that. 

Once they’d gathered themselves, the group walked through Koi Tower to Jin Ling’s bedroom. 

“Let me go in first,” Wei Wuxian said suddenly as Jiang Cheng was about to open the door. 

He looked at Wei Wuxian and frowned. “Why?” 

“Just because! He’s m-my nephew, I need to say a few words to him first,” Wei Wuxian said, crossing his arms. 

Sizhui nodded vigorously. “Yes. I think A-die should go in first. Jin Ling will.. be.. less overwhelmed!” 

Lan Wangji rolled his eyes and said nothing while Jiang Wanyin and Jin Zixuan squinted dubiously. 

“My son is right. I’ll be out in a minute,” Wei Wuxian said, sliding open the door a little to go inside, quickly closing it after. 

Jin Ling’s eyes widened at the sight of Wei Wuxian entering his room. Jingyi was sitting on his bed next to him, thankfully still dressed. Wei Wuxian breathed a sigh of relief, seeing that they were still decent. 

“Stop making out, your uncle and some friends are here and Hanguang-Jun is here too, yes we reconciled. If I hadn’t walked in here, Jiang Cheng would’ve been kicking your ass by now,” Wei Wuxian said quickly, snapping his fingers. 

“Why are they here?” Jingyi said, getting up and smoothing out his robes. 

“Jin Ling has some people to meet. Sneak him out of here, you know the drill,” Wei Wuxian said as if he’d done this hundreds of times. 

In truth, he had. Although he had no contact with Jiang Wanyin, he went on night hunts with the Junior Quartet often and it didn’t take him long to realize that Lan Jingyi and Jin Ling weren’t just frenemies. He helped them sneak off while snickering to himself many times now. 

Lan Wangji knew, because of course he did, but he and Wei Wuxian never discussed it. It was like an open secret. Jiang Wanyin however did not know anything about Jingyi courting his nephew and Jin Ling wanted it to stay that way. 

So, Jin Ling helped Jingyi escape the bedroom while Wei Wuxian went back to the door and opened it. 

“He’s in here! All good.” he gave a thumbs up and Jiang Wanyin pushed him out of the way impatiently, sniffing and searching around Jin Ling’s room like a hound while his nephew stood there, trying not to give anything away. 

“Hm. Come here, kid, have a seat,” Jiang Wanyin said eventually, seeming to have found nothing incriminating. 

Jin Ling sat down at the small table in his room and Jiang Wanyin sat next to him. He opened his mouth to speak but he wasn’t quite sure what to say. How to say what he had to say. 

Wei Wuxian sat down on his other side and Lan Wangji blocked the doorway with Sizhui, making sure their three guests could not be seen. 

“Jin Ling. When you were just a baby, you lost your mom and your dad. Inadvertently, I was the cause of their deaths. I’m not going to make this about me because it’s really about you and your parents-.” 

“Why are you bringing them up?” Jin Ling asked, face already feeling hot. 

It took a lot of him to forgive Wei Wuxian, to forgive Wen Ning, to look at them and not see the people who took his parents away from him. And while he’d fully let go of the animosity he had towards them, it didn’t mean that it didn’t hurt when the situation was discussed. Especially when Wei Wuxian was the one speaking about it. 

“Your uncle loves you, you know? And, while you lost your mother and your father, he lost his older sister. His brother-in-law. Living without them was difficult-.” 

“Was?” Jin Ling cut him off again and Jiang Wanyin sighed, putting a hand on his nephew’s shoulder. “Let him speak.” 

Jin Ling shut his mouth and looked at Wei Wuxian again, not sure what was about to be said. His stomach was in knots. 

“For over seventeen years, your uncle has been working to find a way to revive your parents and Wen Qing, a good friend of ours. Today, he called me here to help and together, we revived all three of them. No, they are not fierce corpses. No, they are not in different bodies. Yes, they are here for good,” Wei Wuxian continued at once. 

Jin Ling’s face went white. And then it turned from red to purple as he stood up angrily, fists shaking. “What kind of sick joke is this?” 

Jiang Wanyin stood up too and looked at Lan Wangji, nodding his head. Lan Wangji and Sizhui came inside, followed by Wen Ning, the infamous Wen Qing, and two people with faces that made Jin Ling feel so nostalgic and confused that his head was spinning. 

Growing up, Jin Ling had forgotten their faces entirely and rarely saw paintings of either of them yet upon seeing them… they just looked so familiar. 

Sizhui looked away briefly to nod at Jingyi who was hiding outside. He came in while Jingyi whispered questions to him, confused and in disbelief. 

“A-Ling,” Jiang Yanli called, looking like she wanted to come forward and hug him. 

She stayed a distance away, wanting to give her son some space only for Jin Ling to jump at her, clinging to her while he sobbed. Jin Zixuan enveloped the both of them in his arms and Jin Ling knew . 

The scent on them smelled like home and Jin Ling never knew how much he missed it until now. He couldn’t do anything but cry and Jiang Yanli steadily hugged him back, sniffing while tears streamed down her cheeks. 

At this moment, Jin Zixuan didn’t even attempt to hold his head high, he just cried freely. In a matter of seconds, his life was snatched from him. His family, his son, his wife. All gone just like that. To have a second chance at living, at having a family to call his own once again, he truly couldn’t ask for anything better. 

“Good child,” Jiang Yanli whispered. She pulled back Jin Ling’s head to look at him, stroking her thumb over his cheekbone. 

“Mama,” Jin Ling called, voice choked. 

“There’s so much for us to talk about,” Jin Zixuan said, looking down at his son. He saw so much of himself in the young adult’s face that it made his heart ache. 

All of them were still wondering if this was real, thankful that it was. All of them were so full of love. 

“When the hell did you get here?” Jiang Wanyin asked, interrupting the light conversation everyone was having. 

His eyes were directly on Jingyi who promptly turned red in the ears. Everyone looked at him then, with the exception of Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian who stayed silent and sipped their tea (alcohol for Wei Wuxian). 

“Jingyi came to meet up with Jin Ling,” Sizhui said cryptically, yet honest. 

“For what?” Jiang Wanyin asked, eyebrow raised. 

“A night hunt,” Jin Ling lied straight through his teeth. 

Jin Zixuan snickered and Wei Wuxian coughed on a sip of his drink at the sound, bursting into a fit of deep and quiet giggles. Jin Zixuan then cracked a smile and tried to stop himself from giggling too but even Lan Wangji’s lips curved faintly and he could no longer control his laugh. 

Jiang Wanyin was still scowling before catching on and turning the same color of his robes. Jin Ling was red in the face while Jingyi was red everywhere but his face. 

“How long have you been having sex, you little brat?” he shouted to which Jin Ling squeaked and hid in his mother’s robes. 

Jiang Yanli smiled, eyes wide with surprise and happiness before she relaxed and smoothed a hand down her son’s hair. “Now now, A-Cheng, I’m sure they were being responsible,” she said. 

“Don’t worry! They were, I can confirm they are both still virgins,” Wei Wuxian said, downing the rest of his wine, quickly refilling it. 

Jiang Wanyin snatched his cup away though, making Wei Wuxian pout. 

“And just how fucking long have you known, huh?” he asked, refusing to give the cup back while Wei Wuxian flailed dramatically. 

“I was forced to stay silent on the matter,” he said pitifully, putting a hand over his forehead and falling down into Lan Wangji’s lap. 

“Be truthful,” Lan Wangji said to him, pinching his cheek. 

Wei Wuxian wailed and moved to fall bonelessly into his sister’s lap, all over Jin Ling. “Now I’ve been hurt by my own spouse! How pitiful am I!” 

“So you’re going to ignore the fact that you didn’t tell me my nephew has been messing around with a Lan disciple?” Jiang Wanyin asked, less angry than before. 

Seeing that he’d dissipated the tension in the room, Wei Wuxian sat up and took his wine from Jiang Wanyin, gulping it down as if he’d never started acting like a helpless maiden in the first place. 

“Tell you? We haven’t talked for four years, Jiang Cheng, when should I have told you? In any case, A-Ling is grown now, he should be able to have secret relationships and what not. He was going to tell you, he just needed to work up the courage,” Wei Wuxian said, swirling his cup lightly. 

“So much for that,” Jingyi muttered. 

“You two haven’t spoken for four years?” Jiang Yanli asked, frowning. 

“Nope! The Yunmeng Heroes had fallen until just now apparently. Sect Leader Jiang avoided Wei Qianbei like the plague when he came to take us on nighthunts and Wei Qianbei made himself scarce anytime he knew Sect Leader Jiang would be close by,” Jingyi replied for them, pouring a cup of tea for himself. 

Sizhui dutifully refilled everyone’s cups afterwards. 

“Why.. how could you two have become estranged?” Jiang Yanli then asked, tears sparkling in her eyes at the thought of her didi and shidi not speaking for so long. 

Wei Wuxian and Jiang Wanyin wore grim expressions, not happy to see their sister in such disbelief and sadness. 

“Shijie.. do you really have to ask?” Wei Wuxian spoke quietly, looking down into his cup. 

Silence fell over the room and everyone could feel the tension around them. 

“We’re okay now,” Jiang Wanyin said eventually to which Wei Wuxian nodded. 

“Yeah. We’re going to be okay. We.. there’s no way for us to return to the brotherhood we once had but we won’t pretend the other doesn’t exist anymore,” Wei Wuxian continued. 

“Despite all the shit that happened, we’re still family. All of us,” Jiang Wanyin finished. Jiang Yanli hugged them both and they hugged her back, wiping her tears away. 

“Sect Leader Jin? Jin Ling? Where are you?” everyone heard a voice call from outside. 

“Zizhen. In here,” Jingyi called back. 

Ouyang Zizhen rushed into Jin Ling’s bedroom, going very still at the sight of everyone in there. 

“What the..” 

“Sit, sit. Sizhui will explain,” Jin Ling said impatiently, tugging Zizhen to sit down next to the other juniors. 

After a while of answering Zizhen’s extensive questions, the explanation was over and he stared openly at Wen Qing. 

“The paintings really don’t do her justice,” he blurted to which Wen Qing smiled and laughed. 

Zizhen promptly turned pink and Sizhui smiled, letting Zizhen hide in his shoulder. 

“Sect Leader Jiang-.” 

“Come on. No need for all the formalities. I dislike most of the people in this room but we’re connected in one way or another so there’s no need for titles,” Jiang Wanyin said, cutting Wen Qing off. 

“In other words, he’s still crushing on you a bit and he can’t handle you calling him Sect Leader,” Wei Wuxian said, laughing loudly. 

Jiang Wanyin punched him and Zizhen looked up again. 

“Sect Leader Jiang, you have a crush on Doctor Wen?” he asked, eyes wide. 

“Do you plan on fighting for her honor, Zizhen?” Wei Wuxian asked, his laugh growing louder and more ridiculous with each passing moment. 

“A-die,” Sizhui scolded, letting Zizhen hide again. 

“Don’t worry, I can completely understand having a crush on Wen Qing. She’s beautiful! Even I used to-.” Wei Wuxian stopped talking as his eyes fell on Lan Wangji’s and he cleared his throat. 

“But, of course, I no longer look at her as anything more than a good friend and I am very in love with my precious husband,” he said quickly, shutting his mouth afterwards. 

“Nice save,” Jin Zixuan said sarcastically and Jiang Wanyin scoffed. 

Lan Wangji took a sip of his tea. “Indeed.” 

Wei Wuxian sunk in on himself, face red, and shot a look at the juniors who were all chuckling under their breath. 

Jiang Yanli smiled at them all and Wen Qing merely shook her head. 

“Can’t you have some decency? Anyways, Jiang Wanyin, I need to ask. How did you find my body?” she asked, and everyone’s attention focused on Jiang Wanyin. 

“Tell me how much you know about your death.” 

“.. I was hit over the head. The last thing I remember was the heat of flames on my body. Then I passed out.. didn’t wake up until now.” 

“You didn’t just pass out. You died from the blunt force of whatever you were hit over the head with. Your body only suffered second degree burns because I took you out of the fire. I.. paid a few guards a lot of money to take your body. I wanted to give you a proper burial at the very least. And I had. But once I found out about the crystal coffins and divine fungal grass, it wasn’t even a choice,” Jiang Wanyin explained. 

“You’ve had her body this entire time?” Wen Ning asked, speaking up for the first time since they arrived at Koi Tower. 

“I couldn’t tell anyone. Hell, I didn’t know you were still.. undead until I saw you for myself. I didn’t want to tell anyone in case I failed. If I did, I’d give you her body to bury along with the rest of your clan,” Jiang Wanyin said. 

“Alright, we can stop speaking about me like I’m not sitting right here,” Wen Qing said, ending the conversation. 

Wei Wuxian ran a hand through his hair and cringed at the leaves he pulled out. Lan Wangji immediately began helping him clean his hair and his clothes while Jin Ling had begun to fall asleep with his head on his mother’s lap. 

He awoke quickly though when a loud grumble came from the side of the room that the other Juniors were sitting at. Everyone looked over and Zizhen smiled bashfully. 

“I’ve been in Lanling for a couple days and actually came to ask Jin Ling if he wanted to go have lunch. I’m starving,” he said. 

Wei Wuxian hummed and patted his own stomach. “Now that I think about it, me and Jiang Cheng haven’t eaten anything since before we fought those beasts in Yingzhou! And you guys haven’t eaten in like two decades. And look at my poor husband, so thin. I have to feed him. Kids, let’s get out of here and get lunch. It’s probably best if our newly resurrected guests don’t go out and about where everyone can see them,” Wei Wuxian said, standing up. 

“Please keep in mind that we don’t all live off of chili oil like you,” Jiang Wanyin said, taking Wei Wuxian’s wine. 

“Yeah, yeah.” Wei Wuxian rolled his eyes and pushed the four juniors out, walking behind them. 

He quickly turned around though and ran back to Lan Wangji, kissing his forehead and his nose. “Don’t miss me too badly, Er-gege, I love you!” 

“Mn. Love you,” Lan Wangji said, watching Wei Wuxian beam and skip away with the disciples. 

“You two seem very happy together,” Jiang Yanli said, smiling into her cup of tea. Something about her tone though made Lan Wangji sit even straighter as though he were.. apprehensive. 

Jin Zixuan noticed immediately because he found himself in that same position one too many times when he and Yanli got together. He laughed inwardly. 

“I would hope that you take good care of him. And that he takes good care of you,” Jiang Yanli said. 

Lan Wangji nodded dutifully. “Wei Ying is a very good husband to me. I do my best to keep him happy, that is all I want for him. To be happy and well,” he said. 

Wen Qing looked at him then too and tapped her nails on the low table idly. “You don’t live in the Cloud Recesses, do you?” 

“No. We built a home outside of the Cloud Recesses. We have a garden that Wei Ying tends to often. A-Yuan often stays over as well,” Lan Wangji replied. “Me and Wei Ying have raised him as best we could during these past years. He’s strong and intelligent,” he continued. 

“I have no doubts. Thank you for taking care of him. For loving him.” 

“Wei Ying as well,” Jiang Yanli added. 

Lan Wangji offered a soft glance to them both. “They deserve nothing less.” 

“And you, A-Cheng. A-Ling.. he’s quite like you and A-Xuan. He’s so smart and strong, so handsome. Thank you for taking care of him,” Jiang Yanli directed her attention to her brother who shook his head. 

“There’s no need for thanks. I would do it forever if I had to,” Jiang Wanyin said. 

“We know. We’re glad it was you,” Jin Zixuan said, then sighed quietly. 

“I still don’t understand how A-Yao could betray us this way. I never even suspected that-.” 

“Do not blame yourself. What has happened was not anyone’s fault but those who committed the crimes. All that we can do is love our children, protect them, and teach them to be better people. Teach them to be more courageous than we were,” Lan Wangji interrupted, not unkindly. 

Jin Zixuan nodded and silence fell upon them for a while until Wei Wuxian came back with bags and bags of food in his hands. 

“I got Hunan!” Wei Wuxian announced to which Jiang Wanyin gave him a suffering look. 

“For me,” he continued, laughing heartily as he set all the food down. 

Everyone began to take out the food and eat, filling the room with the scent of their meal and the sounds of their chewing. Wei Wuxian was about to pick up another piece of beef when he caught Wen Qing’s eye. 

“What?” he asked, dropping the meat into his mouth. 

Wen Qing looked over his form, frowning minutely. She pointed her chopsticks at him briefly, head tilted. 

“You look the same. More mature I suppose but the same. And I can just look at you and know you are stronger than you have ever been before. Too healthy for it to make sense,” she stated, capturing the attention of all the others. 

She got up and set her utensils down before taking Wei Wuxian’s wrists, feeling his pulse. Wei Wuxian let her do as she wanted, stomach dropping as he anticipated her next words. 

“Why do you have a golden core?” 

“What do you mean, Doctor Wen?” Zizhen asked around the bun in his mouth. 

Jiang Wanyin looked at Wen Qing also, and then at Wei Wuxian who looked pale, visibly uncomfortable. 

Wen Qing looked at Jiang Wanyin and then sighed, realizing he was no longer in the dark. “Wei Wuxian’s core is in Jiang Wanyin’s body. I put it there myself. So I want to know how he has a core inside of him,” she said, and Wei Wuxian looked like he wanted to be anywhere but in the room with all of them. 

“Outside,” he said, looking at Wen Qing and his siblings, leaving promptly. 

The juniors looked out after him but stopped when Lan Wangji gave them a look. “Eat.” 

“A-Xian, if you don’t feel comfortable-.” 

“Shijie. My comfort doesn’t matter. Not right now. We’re out here for two reasons,” Wei Wuxian spoke, holding up two fingers. 

“Firstly. This core.. it had originally belonged to Mo Xuanyu. Mo Xuanyu is the man that used a sacrifice summoning spell to raise me from the dead. In doing so, he sacrificed his body to me and died. His body belonged to me and after getting rid of his enemies, I was allowed to keep it. I cultivated with Lan Zhan tirelessly as our goal is to reach immortality and I worked really hard to get this core in good shape,” Wei Wuxian said, answering Wen Qing’s initial question. 

He then looked at his two siblings. “You died before you were aware of this but Wen Qing performed a surgery that transferred my core into Jiang Cheng’s body. This is why I was practicing Demonic Cultivation. This is why I stopped carrying Suibian but Chenqing instead,” Wei Wuxian said to Jiang Yanli. He sighed and took a shaky breath, keeping himself composed. 

He looked at his shidi, pain in his eyes. “Second.. A-Cheng. I’m sorry. You.. I didn’t mean to cause you any pain. I never ever meant for you to think that you owed me because of what I did. And I realized a long while ago that I was wrong for how I handled things. I should’ve asked you first. I should’ve asked,” Wei Wuxian said, fumbling over his words. 

Jiang Wanyin’s posture sagged and he shook his head, taking a long deep sigh. “You idiot.” 

Wei Wuxian smiled sourly and Jiang Wanyin smacked the back of his head, causing Wei Wuxian to pout as he rubbed his hand over the offended spot. 

“Really. You dumbass, do you think I’m mad at you? Listen to me. We were going through one of the hardest times of our lives. We were kids. Knowing your stupid ass, you probably stayed awake for days trying to figure out how to save me. We were distraught and in mourning. How the fuck could I blame you for doing what you did?” Jiang Wanyin asked, genuinely asking, waiting for Wei Wuxian to answer. 

“You wouldn’t have wanted it.. I did it without your permission and violated your trust, I kept it a secret-.” 

“No. You don’t know what I would’ve said. Hell, I felt like I was half-dead, I don’t know what I would’ve replied with if you did ask me. Yes, you kept it a secret and yes that was wrong but this was so damn long ago,” Jiang Wanyin said, shaking his head with exasperation. 

Wei Wuxian kept his eyes on the paved ground, ear twitching when Jiang Wanyin spoke again. 

“You know, I’ll never forget Mother’s last words to you. She.. didn’t hug you, didn’t tell you she loved you. She just told you to protect me with your life. That’s exactly what you did, didn’t you? She made you believe you were worthless, that nobody loved you, and you only did what you were told.” 

Wei Wuxian looked up then, eyes dimmed. “Maybe. But I didn’t just do it because I was told to. I only wanted you to be okay, Jiang Cheng, I did it because I care about you,” he explained, blinking back the wetness in his eyes. 

Jiang Wanyin rolled his own eyes, making a tear fall down his cheek. “Well I sacrificed my core for you too. Because.. I care. Or whatever. So we’re even. Shut up,” he said and Wei Wuxian smiled and huffed. 

After a second, Wen Qing and Jiang Yanli watched as Jiang Wanyin walked forward and pulled Wei Wuxian into a hug. 

“Listen to me, Wei Ying,” he began, making Wei Wuxian take a long shuddering breath. 

He closed his eyes, hugging Jiang Wanyin back tightly. Wei Wuxian couldn’t remember when his shidi last called him by his birth name. 

“I love you, alright? I love you. A-jie loves you. Wen Qing loves you. We all fucking love you. Even if Mother didn’t. She didn’t give you the hug you needed. You were a kid and you needed comfort and she failed you,” Jiang Wanyin said, surprising his sister with his words. 

Jiang Wanyin had usually stood by his mother and her words and didn't dare to defy her. This was the first time Jiang Yanli saw him speak like this about her. She was not displeased. Because he was right. 

“You did everything you had to do to survive. You couldn’t stay by my side but that wasn’t your fault. I won’t let you be blamed for this bullshit anymore. I won’t let you take the blame, it’s not yours. Be fucking happy, alright? Just live freely without the guilt everyone put on your shoulders.” Jiang Wanyin clapped Wei Wuxian’s back and Wei Wuxian repeated the gesture. “Alright.” 

With that one word, with Jiang Wanyin’s short speech, he found himself in silent tears. Tension he didn’t know he’d been carrying on his shoulders lifted away and he felt so new. So light. He couldn’t remember ever feeling this free. 

“By the way, if I had known I was going to get my core melted, I wouldn’t have distracted those guards,” Jiang Wanyin said, causing Wei Wuxian to laugh and smack his shidi’s back again, not ending the hug just yet. 

“You’re a liar, Jiang Cheng. You love me too much, how could you let me be captured!” “Fuck you.” 

“Okay, we still have an issue here,” Jin Zixuan said. They were all back inside now, finished with their food. 

“What is it, father?” Jin Ling asked. 

Lan Wangji looked up from his cup of tea, immediately understanding. “You three are now alive. We do not know how the cultivation world will react to Lady Wen being alive. With Jin Zixuan and Lady Jiang alive, questions will definitely be raised. We must tread carefully,” he said. 

“Maybe not,” Wei Wuxian cut in, shrugging. Lan Wangji looked at him. 

“I mean, everyone watched me come back from the dead,” Wei Wuxian continued. 

“And you saw how others reacted,” Lan Wangji replied. 

Wei Wuxian shook his head though. “But that’s because I’m the Yiling Laozu. Of course nobody liked me but my few devoted fans! And all of this was before Jin Guangyao’s crimes came to light. Things have changed, Lan Zhan. If anyone wants to know how they got back, let them wonder. But you guys are alive now, there’s no reason for you to hide,” he said, finality in his words. 

“Actually, this is great. Being a sect leader has its perks I guess but I feel like a figurehead and I’m always missing out on spending time with my friends. Father can take over the position,” Jin Ling said, wincing when Jiang Wanyin gave him a threatening glare. 

“You want to get out of your classes to go play? Even if he becomes Sect Leader, you will take the position eventually. Don’t think that this means you can study less,” he said, crossing his arms. 

“Jiujiu, Zizhen doesn’t have to go to all these boring classes about how to be a good sect leader, why the hell do I have to?” Jin Ling asked, raising his voice. 

“Sect Leader Ouyang is a mess and can’t go a day without gossiping- no offense, kid.” Jiang Wanyin looked at Zizhen who simply shook his head. “No no, I agree.” 

“Zizhen, you’re not helping,” Jingyi groaned. 

“B-But Sect Leader Jin- or Young Master Jin? Anyways, Jin Ling is always studying, we barely get to see him anymore,” Zizhen added. 

Sizhui spoke up as well. “Jiang-shushu, even I don’t have as many classes as Jin Ling.” 

“Well that’s because you’re a goody two-shoes like your other dad over here, you never get in trouble,” Wei Wuxian said, scoffing. 

Lan Wangji and Sizhui both gave him a matching look of exasperation and Wei Wuxian barked a laugh. 

“What’s the use of telling people I birthed you when you act just like him. Maybe it was Lan Zhan who birthed you instead,” Wei Wuxian muttered, gulping down more wine. 

Lan Wangji was tempted to take his cup away. 

“You tell people you birthed me?” Sizhui asked. 

“Not anymore, keep up!” Wei Wuxian sighed dramatically. 

“Alright, alright, enough about birthing people. I’ll.. let Jin Ling go out more, I guess. He is getting older or whatever. If it’s okay with his parents,” Jiang Wanyin grumbled. 

Jin Zixuan nodded, patting his son’s head lovingly. “I’d be glad to take over the Sect Leader position. You’re young and you have all these friends who care about you. You deserve to have fun.” 

“I agree completely,” Jiang Yanli said, kissing Jin Ling’s forehead. 

“It’s settled then! Well guys, what do you say we all-.” Wei Wuxian stopped talking abruptly when he heard the sounds of an animal panting. Then he heard barking and his entire body went still. 

“Time for me to leave!” he said, jumping up out of his seat and peering outside to see if the dog was in sight yet. 

“Fairy doesn’t bite,” Jin Ling said. 

Wei Wuxian scoffed and grabbed Suibian, Chenqing tucked into his belt. “I’m going home. Anyone who wants to come can get up, I’m not sticking around for that.. dog to come here,” he said, shuddering as he said the word. 

Lan Wangji stood as well and Wen Qing got up with Wen Ning quickly following. 

“We’ll stay here then. A-Xian, I’ll come soon to visit, okay?” Jiang Yanli said, squeezing Wei Wuxian’s arm. 

“Okay. Take your time, Shijie. Enjoy spending time with your family and getting to know your son. I love you,” Wei Wuxian said sincerely. Jiang Yanli smiled and squeezed his arm once more before letting go. 

Wei Wuxian nodded to Jin Zixuan and Jiang Wanyin before looking at the juniors. “See ya, kids. If you find yourself in trouble, ask yourselves, ‘What would Wei Wuxian do?’” 

Jingyi crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. “I’ll make sure to do the exact opposite.” 

“I see why you’re Lan Qiren’s favorite. Let’s go, guys,” Wei Wuxian said, waving at everyone else before skipping out of the room. 

He saw Fairy and started running away desperately while the dog barked playfully, ready to chase him. 

Lan Wangji led Fairy to Jin Ling’s room though and watched Sizhui give Wen Qing another hug. 

“We’ll meet you in Gusu,” Wen Qing said. Sizhui nodded and smiled. 

Then, the Wen siblings and Lan Wangji made their way over to Wei Wuxian, following him out. Wen Ning made his way back without help while Wen Qing held onto Wei Wuxian as he directed his sword to Gusu. Lan Wangji followed along beside them. 

“So Wen Qing. You have a second shot at life, what do you plan on doing with it?” Wei Wuxian asked. 

Wen Qing looked out at the trees, at the food stalls and people in the city below them. “What did you do when you came back?” 

“Well. After everyone’s crimes and whatnot came to light, once I defeated all of Mo Xuanyu’s enemies, I left! Me and Lan Zhan parted ways and I went to travel the world. That lasted a few months before I came back but I just tried to enjoy life because after losing it the first time, I realized that it’s too unpredictable to not take advantage of,” Wei Wuxian said, smiling. 

“Now I’ve seen all that I wanted to and lead a beautiful life with my soulmate, not bound to any sect or person except for my husband and child. Freedom is what I wanted. It’s what I have,” he concluded. 

Wen Qing nodded. “I think I want freedom too. I don’t want to live in poverty or look over my shoulder everywhere I go. I think I’ll become a doctor. Heal people like I’ve always dreamed of doing. I’ll visit my clan’s ancestral shrine with A-Ning and A-Yuan. Maybe I’ll even start a family of my own some day,” she said, smiling at the thought. 

“Wherever life takes you next, I hope that you’re happy. That you have the chance to live on your own terms. And if you ever need us, we’ll be here,” Lan Wangji said. 

Wen Qing directed her smile at him and hummed. “Thank you, Hanguang-Jun.” 

“You may call me Wangji. I’d like for us to call each other as friends would,” Lan Wangji said after a moment of silence. 

“Alright then. You should just call me Wen Qing. I’m no longer Lady Wen anyways,” Wen Qing replied. 

“You could be Sect Leader Wen if you wanted,” Wei Wuxian cut in. 

Wen Qing’s lips curved again and she sighed, taking in the fresh air. “Perhaps. I suppose I’ll just have to see where life takes me.” 

Wen Qing went on to become a well sought after doctor. She was appreciated across the cultivation world and eventually, she began to rebuild her clan with the help of Wen Qionglin and Lan Sizhui. She became Sect Leader Wen and ruled justly, bringing a new legacy to the Qishan Wen Sect. 

Jin Zixuan became the Sect Leader of Lanling Jin and lived a happy life with his wife and his child who he grew to know and understand. He and Jin Ling had a lot in common, they spent quality time together and became very close. 

Jiang Yanli revisited Yunmeng Jiang and came to Lotus Pier often to hold dinner between all of her family and friends. She realized that her life could change overnight and wasted no time. Every month, she got everyone together for a meal, cooking her Lotus and Pork Rib Soup. She even allowed Lan Wangji to watch her make it so that he could replicate the dish for his husband. They often cooked together after that and grew close because of it. She learned everything about her son, reconnected with her brothers and lived the life she always dreamed of. 

The three of them were happy. They were grateful to be alive and cherished each moment like it was their last because it very well could be. They did everything they never got to do in their first life and lived to the fullest. Everything was beautiful. 

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Crystal Coffin

Divine Fungal Grass (close up)

Divine Fungal Grass