Chapter Text
Snow fell gently across Caiyi as two figures covered in black arrived. Their robes flowed like smoke through the air; like dark shadows in the midday sun. The afternoon crowd watched on in interest. The pair walked with the elegance and mystery befitting of cultivators in the eyes of the common folk. The townspeople are used to the brilliant white gleam of the Lan Sect nearby. Of course, it didn’t help the curiosity that both figures covered their faces. Why would one shield away their identity if there was nothing to hide?
It wasn’t only the common folk that found interest in the pair in black. Sat by the river cutting through town were a few students of the Cloud Recesses. If they were actual members of the Lan Sect maybe they would have politely ignored the obvious or maybe they would have greeted the two. Instead, the disciples of nearby small sects gossiped among themselves. It was rare they received a day off after all.
With a decade since the war against the Wens, there was a boom of small sects that grew in the current time of peace. Robes of every color were common for a sect to choose as their uniform. These two couldn’t have been from a major sect. They were never so subtle about their activities. Then again, smaller sects weren’t so different. They were just as boastful. The power left behind by the Wens was still up for grabs after all. If they weren’t from a sect, they could be rogue cultivators. There used to be a worse reputation of such people but in recent years, there was new fame to be found in independence. Xiao Xingchen, the disciple of Baoshan Sanren, came to mind. His gentle demeanor and a strong sense of justice were becoming well-known even with the public.
The gossiping disciples grew quieter as the pair in black passed by, but they were no less fervent. One of the braver boys took a long up-and-down glance at them. Underneath the sheer outer layer, he spotted a glimpse of red on the robe inside. At the bottom was a light floating pattern of feathers.
“Black feathers…” he muttered. Somewhere in the back of his memory, he recognized the design. A lesson or maybe a warning from the old teacher Lan.
“You saw black feathers on the inner robes?” One of the other disciples questioned, Before any of the others could answer, the boy that looked yelled out. Thank goodness by then the two had already passed and were out of their earshot.
“Yiling Wei!” he exclaimed, “Do you think they’re Yiling Wei?!”
Wei Wuxian’s grin was evidence to Wen Sizhui even with his veil on. He took great pleasure in seeing the gaping mouths of the Lan disciples.
“Sect Leader,” Wen Sizhui said, exasperated, “We are trying to keep a low profile.”
“My darling, A-Yuan. If you truly were worried about that, you should have scolded me when I kept the uniform on along with the dramatic veil.”
“Oh. A-Die, so you know you’re being dramatic.”
The Yiling Patriarch pouted.
“You don’t think scaring the public is fun?”
The young boy stayed silent in response and Wei Wuxian was back to grinning again.
“So you do find it enjoyable. I knew you were born from my womb.”
Wen Sizhui began to walk a little faster. However, Wei Wuxian wasn’t one to be left behind.
They headed steadily towards the edge of Caiyi. From the pathway outside the courtyard, the Cloud Recesses could be seen, or rather, the gentle mist that enveloped its mountain. The clouds rolled off the top in time with the breeze. The thousands of steps to its summit, while worn, were well-kept. Greenery accompanied whoever climbed its path.
Wei Wuxian seemed to be deep in thought. His eyes were locked onto those stone steps and scanned upwards. The silhouette of a stone cliff revealed itself beneath wandering mist. Wen Sizhui waited patiently where they stopped on the road. At times, his father became like this— so heavily wrapped in his busy thoughts. Floating in his mind’s eye were unfinished sigils, new inventions, and a list of chores to do. But the more relevant thing was his storied past. His life before the Burial Mounds wasn’t something he liked to discuss. Despite how often Wei Wuxian brushed it off like dust, he would still occasionally confide in the Wen siblings and his son. He stood there, layers below the surface until suddenly, he snapped back to the present.
“That stone wall is the bane of my teenage existence, I tell you!”
“Yes, I have heard your stories,” Wen Sizhui said.
Wei Wuxian squinted his eyes at the wall of rules.
“Did the number of characters increase?!” He pointed towards the middle distance. “The writing used to be only up to there.”
Even with the enhanced eyesight cultivation gave him, there was no way for Wen Sizhui to tell what his father was referring to.
“I bet you can’t even speak freely in your own room now,” Wei Wuxian poked, “They might as well send those poor young masters to us in the Burial Mounds. With all the restrictions at the Cloud Recesses, what makes them so different from our precious animated corpses?”
“We’re not so bad, are we?” Wen Sizhui replied, amused.
“Can you imagine those golden Jin peacocks shaking their feathers around our dirt piles?” Wei Wuxian laughed at that ridiculous image. Even after all these years, their home in Yiling paled in comparison to the luxuries offered by the major sects.
“We got wealthy farmer money compared to their generations of stockpiled gold.” He continued.
“They also have night-hunt money, which we also can have,” Wen Sizhui said.
“I get it. I get it!” Wei Wuxian said, “Let’s go in.”
The pair finally entered the courtyard. The garden was simple yet elegant. A result of frequent maintenance, Wei Wuxian thought. The family had the money to hire servants yet they had chosen to contact the Yiling Wei Sect rather than the Gusu Lan Sect in their backyard. Wei Wuxian had a couple of guesses as to what their reasoning could be.
Reason one: they sought something devious from demonic cultivation. There had been cases of this before, and they had all been blocked out by the barrier without even a second thought. This was also unlikely since the messenger that was sent seemed panicked. There was a problem here.
Which led him to reason two. The problem can’t be fixed by the Lans. But, what made the family think this is something only he could help with? Maybe it was a dark curse. Still, they would have contacted the Lans. The cleansing from their musical cultivation should be more than enough to fix most problems. The Gusu Lan Sect would have been the ones to send for him if he was needed then. Unless Lan Zhan really hated him that much. Wei Wuxian frowned. He didn’t know why but that thought annoyed him. A piercing kind of annoyance— like a burning in his chest.
Before Wei Wuxian devised another dozen reasons why, a servant spotted them. The young man let out a sigh of relief and rushed toward them.
“Hurry! Come in quickly,” he said.
The cultivators were rushed inside before either of them could speak a word. They looked around the entrance and took off their veiled hats. Huang Daiheng lacked the patience that he usually might have had. Ever since a few days ago, when the incident occurred, everything had gone into chaos. The house’s interior was in disarray and there were fewer workers to help with the upkeep.
“Excuse me. I’m Wen Sizhui.” the younger cultivator said, “The letter sent wasn’t clear what exactly the situation is. Could you please elaborate?”
His polite attitude acted as a salve on the irritation that plagued him since the curse on the eldest son.
“Right, the curse,” Huang Daiheng mumbled aloud.
The young master had a heated affair with a strange lady he had met in the woods. He had seen the couple sneaking out to meet with each other a few times. As quickly as they had got together, they soon broke apart. This is where it would have usually ended. However, this romance had not been with a regular lady.
The young master had come home late a few days after their break up very tired. He slept late into the afternoon and woke bleary-eyed. Huang Daiheng had knocked on his door a few moments later. When he was allowed in, what he saw shocked him. He had dropped the bowl he held. Most of the young master’s body was the same, except his face. In place of his nose was now a pig’s nose, large and round. The young master let out a squeal. When he finally saw his reflection in a bronze mirror, he nearly fainted.
The situation had started out humorous at first. Once the servants looked past the initial horror of the situation, they had to stifle their laughter whenever they passed the poor man. He probably deserved it, considering his promiscuity. However, more and more people have been dismissed from the house. As one of the few servants left, Huang Daiheng was swamped with more than twice the work he usually had. The family wants this embarrassment to be swept under the rug.
They received a letter later that day from the ex-lover. In deceivingly beautiful calligraphy, it read—
“Your son is a cheating two-timing whore. Seeing as he clearly doesn’t respect me as an equal, I’ll turn him into what he truly is. I’ll even be willing to turn him back. Up until the transformation has been completed, that is. I doubt his ego would allow him to do so anyway.”
There was no signature or name at the end of the letter. In its place was a paw print stamped in red ink. The mysterious lover was a huli jing, a fox demon!
Huang Daiheng had brought the cultivators to the head of the family before the problem was finally revealed to them. The older man he assumed to be Wei Wuxian held the message in his hand. He read carefully over each character. Then, he let out a bellowing cackle. The younger man, Wen Sizhui, if he remembered correctly, brought his hand up to his brow in exasperation. That didn’t stop the Yiling Patriarch from doubling over and clutching his stomach.
“I CAN’T BREATHE! AHAHAHA!”
Even though the younger cultivator was the more courteous of the two, Huang Daiheng thought he could still see a glimpse of amusement in his eyes.
The situation was an embarrassment and Wei Wuxian’s amusement was evident of that. If such a juicy rumor were to spread to those sweet-talking girls gossiping along the river, the family’s good reputation would be swept away with the current. Though the Lan Sect prohibited such things, they could not bear the thought of presenting this problem to them. So, the family sent the messenger to Yiling
“Sorry! Sorry.” Wei Wuxian gasped out between the last of his laughter. As he calmed down Wen Sizhui asked questions about the curse.
“How fast has the transformation progressed?”
“Nose and ears, but the skin is starting to turn pink all over.”
The young cultivator turned to the Yiling Patriarch and whispered among themselves.
After a few moments, Wei Wuxian spoke. “I will definitely be able to pause the transformation. However, the reversal of what is already there is much more difficult.”
The family looked conflicted.
“Stop what you can first them,” the father said.
“You said the curse is difficult, not impossible to reverse, right?” the mother questioned. The worry was evident in her shaky voice.
“Any chance the young master can be talked into apologizing to his past lower?”
The family looked offended.
“We hired you to solve this problem, not give in to that demon!”
Huang Daiheng heard Wei Wuxian mumble to himself from where he stood.
“There goes my easy way out. I should have known they’re stubborn like this.”
The servants had also approached with this idea. That had not gone well either. Even as the eldest son felt his ears painfully elongate into those of a pig’s, he cursed the huli jing with every breath he took.
The parents had stood their ground, too, siding with their heir. If one thought this cheating eldest son was bad, the younger son would scare them to their graves. The younger had been doted on since childhood. The family had let him wander the town with more money than the servants made in a year. “Terror of Caiyi” was the least dramatic thing he could be called. Thankfully, the boy was recently sent away. He had no talent in cultivation, but that didn’t stop the parents from paying the way for him to ransack whatever poor sect that allowed him in.
“You’re a demonic cultivator!” the father yelled, “Force her to turn him back if you need her power so bad!”
“Now, now, fierce corpses and demons are two completely different things.”
“Well, that’s for you to figure out!”
The family stood up and marched out, footsteps heavy. The rest of the servants followed in tow, leaving only one behind. Huang Daiheng held back a sigh until everyone else left. The two cultivators took a meaningful glance at each other before Wei Wuxian said, “Well, that went well…” His voice was laced with light humor as it always seemed to be for him.
“I’ll take you to the young master,” Huang Daiheng said.
They left the room. The family was long gone and the other servants had scattered to where they were needed. With their masters gone, they grew more bold with their curiosity. One of the aunties that loved to gossip can be spotted peeking out from the kitchen. Huang Daiheng led them out into the courtyard and into an adjacent building. He gave the door a quick knock and announced his entrance. The young master was lying in his bed when they entered. His face was entirely covered by his blanket as if he was afraid to see light.
“Let’s see it now,” Wei Wuxian said to the man who still hadn't emerged from beneath his cover.
They could hear the hidden man take a deep breath— a quick inhale, and a slow and shaky exhale. The cover came off and revealed a pink figure underneath. Wei Wuxian looked the man up and down. His face showed curiosity but was otherwise unreadable. At least he has the decency to not laugh in the young master’s face, Huang Daiheng thought. Of course, the actual details of the situation are much less funny. The turning process was always pushing and pulling on skin and bones. It was a painful thing to imagine on your own body.
The young master kept his eyes closed, but that didn’t stop the wandering eyes of Huang Daiheng and the cultivators. His nose and ears had been transformed as the family had stated. They were features of a swine but misshapen, having been stretched from that of a human. The skin was pink yet there were still splotches of untouched tan spread throughout.
When he stood up, he had difficulty staying balanced. Huang Daiheng rushed forward to steady him. He urged him to sit rather than stand. Wei Wuxian’s eyes drew downwards. The young master’s feet had been crushed together. Bones still seemed to be moving and pulling the toes together into the shape of a pig’s foot. The man winced in pain as he sat. He moved to allow for something to move away beneath him. A lump moved out from behind in his robes. A tail!
Wei Wuxian could see that despite all the changes, the young master was handsome. The features that were still human were delicate, pretty even. He could imagine how the man managed to earn the yearnful gaze of the Caiyi women and even that of a mystical huli jing.
“Stop staring at me!” the young master scowled scornfully.
Wen Sizhui spoke before Wei Wuxian could say something witty.
“Sorry if we made you uncomfortable,” he said, “We’re just trying to assess the situation.”
The young master’s expression stayed sour even after the cultivator’s apology. Still, his desperation was visible in how he stayed quiet as the two cultivators continued their examination. He shifted nervously where he sat. It wasn’t too long before the Yiling Patriarch spoke.
“Can you tell us about anything suspicious that happened before the curse appeared?”
“No. How would I even know? I’m not a cultivator!”
Unperturbed by his outburst, Wei Wuxian continued his questioning.
“Were you given something by the huli jing? Something to drink or eat? An item maybe?”
The young master frowned in thought.
“We went out to eat often and up until we parted. It’s hard to tell if anything happened then.”
“How about a timeline near the end of the relationship? When could she have found out about your other lover?”
“I didn’t even meet the other girl till a few days before the breakup.”
Wei Wuxian raised an eyebrow to that. Despite his flirtatious behavior, he was a romantic at heart. A virgin looking for their soulmate! Promiscuous people like this young master are unimaginable for him.
“Okay. Well, at least that limits the possibilities,” he said, “The curse will be on the simpler side with only a couple of days to work with.”
Wen Sizhui added in, “There wasn’t a full moon or other reason for stronger resentful energy in the area either.”
“All things considered, you were rather lucky the huli jing isn’t more patient,” Wei Wuxian said.
“Lucky?! the young master exclaimed, “I still turned out like this, didn’t I?”
Huang Daiheng couldn’t help but think he got what he deserved. The young master didn’t seem all that sorry about what he had done. The cultivators ignored this outburst too.
“Can we physically examine the curse?” Wen Sizhui asked.
The disapproval on the other man’s face was immediate.
“Don’t worry,” Wen Sizhui reassured, “We’re just going to check the resentful energy you're giving off.”
“Yeah! Don’t give us that look. We’re not going to strip you, you know,” Wei Wuxian said.
The young master nodded, signaling them to approach. The Yiling Patriarch reached into the sleeves of his red robes and pulled out two items. Huang Daiheng looked over and spotted a circular device. It was like a compass and the size of his palm. However, instead of directions, numbers were labeled the four points. The other item was a black wooden box. The wood was the darkest he had ever seen. The rumors of the heavy resentful energy seeping into the vegetation at the Burial Mounds must be true.
Wei Wuxian handed the box over to the other cultivator and brought the compass-like device towards the young master.
“This is a tool that reads resentful energy levels. I’m going to wave this around your body to see where it is strongest.”
He began scanning, going up and down from the young master’s hands to his face, then down his torso and legs. The needle on the device moved back and forth as the cultivator waved it around.
“The highest concentration of energy is located on your forehead. That has to be where the spell entered.”
The young master’s eyes widened in recognition. “That demon! She kissed me on the forehead as a last goodbye!”
“Yes. That must be when the curse began,” Wei Wuxian agreed.
“Can the curse be reversed?” Huang Daiheng asked.
“That is possible, but it would be easier to directly confront the huli jing,” he said, “For now, I will stop the curse from furthering.”
“Good,” the young master said with a snarl, “Kill that bitch!”
Wen Sizhui's brows furrowed at the foul language but continued his work. He opened the box that was handed to him earlier. Inside is yellow talisman paper, a container of dark ink, and a calligraphy brush. The pair walked over to the desk and spread their materials out.
The Yiling Patriarch grabbed the brush and dipped it in the ink. On a closer look, the ink wasn’t black but a dark red.
“What is that smell?” the young masker asked, snorting his pig nose.
“Blood,” Wen Sizhui answered as Wei Wuxian continued to work. “Traditional cultivation empowers talismans through imbuing the ink with spiritual energy as you work. Demonic cultivation needs the body as a conduit to manipulate the energy around us. Blood is an extension of our body.”
With swift movements, the talisman quickly appeared with each stroke. Some portions of it looked like regular characters. But with it all assembled, it was difficult for an outsider like Huang Daiheng to decipher. Once it was completed. Wei Wuxian waved it around to quickly dry the blood ink and walked towards the young master. He held it between two of his fingers and the detailed strokes started to glow red. One moment the paper was in his hand and the next it was stuck to the young master's forehead.
“Hey!’ he yelled in response. His pig nose twitched. The smell must be pungent with the new nose. “Why did you put it here and make me look like a jiangshi?”
“That is where it is most effective,” Wei Wuxian said, "Unless you want me to move it and put your body at risk.”
The young master kept his complaint to himself as the cultivators turned to leave. Huang Daiheng led them out to the entrance of the courtyard and wished them luck. He watched as the two walked towards the town and finally disappeared behind the trees.
The winter sun laid low in the sky. The snow has stopped but everything has been covered with a fluffy layer of white. Wei Wuxian and Wen Sizhui walked back to town. They had foregone their veil with the cover of night to hide their faces. Wei Wuxian pranced around in the fresh snow, drawing shapes and figures as they went. Wen Sizhui chuckled as his father accidentally ran into a tree. The snow on the barren branches immediately dropped on top of Wei Wuxian. The younger cultivator shouldn’t have let his guard down. In the next moment, a snowball pelted him in the chest. He quickly retaliated with no strength barred.
The two cultivators continued like this till they reached the edge of Caiyi.
The town is peaceful at night. There weren't many people out and about in the cold. Still, there were rowdy drunks even in the early evening. The fragrant scent of Caiyi’s Emperor Smile carried far. Or maybe, it was only that Wei Wuxian’s expert nose was always searching for his favorite wine. Its smell seemed to permeate throughout the entirety of his teenage years— the years before the war and before demonic cultivation. He thought of the days spent annoying Lan Zhan. Wei Wuxian feels the same as he did back then. However, now he was a parent with a kid the same age as he felt inside. Same yet, not the same, he thought. The twisting of time is more visible from the outside in.
Wei Wuxian wasn’t sure what would happen on this night-hunt. He wasn’t sure what he expected.
“If there was anywhere to go for my first trip outside the Burial Mounds in a decade, I guess I would rather it be here,” Wei Wuxian mused.
The warm light of the inn came into their view. Wisps of smoke rose through the darkening sky as dinner was being cooked. Cultivators didn’t really need to eat much, but Wen Sizhui was young and couldn’t last as long. Maybe being in a new environment was weighing on Wei Wuxian too. His stomach growled at the thought of deliciously spicy chicken.
As the two cultivators approached the welcoming entrance, suddenly from the roof flashed a white figure. Before Wei Wuxian could turn around, a hand grabbed his wrist.
“Wei Ying!”
Wei Wuxian stopped in his place. His eyes went as wide as saucers. Before him stood Lan Wangji as handsome as he remembered. The wind picked up at that moment and the previously settled snow swirled around them. The flowing fabric of his white robes suggested that he might just fade into the atmosphere. Yet, the sturdy hand on his wrist told another story.
“Lan Zhan,” Wei Wuxian answered. The words came out breathier than he intended. After thirteen years apart, they finally met again.