Black Greed

THIRTY TWO

Lan XiChen brought her to her beloved home inside the forest. The barrier was half destroyed. Anyone can enter but illusion is still up.

Wei MeiLan's gaze wandered around the place and felt melancholy. Even without memories, she felt an attachment to the wrecked place she can't describe well.

"This was your haven for the people you cared about, Wei Qing," Lan XiChen said as he walked deeper the ruins. "People who were seeking shelter away from abuse and fear, you accepted them and gave them home."

Burnt or destroyed, the place is in chaos. "When I came here the first time, your house is the only building erected inside the barrier. I came here back then to subjugate whoever is hiding inside this barrier. Then you lead me here, amused about your own rumors of being a devil or monster residing inside the forest.

"When I saw you here, I sensed something different yet comfortable feeling that I know belonged to you and I can own too: home.

"I never got the chance to see you often back then, but events allowed us to get closer to one another. But when you obtained a dangerous item, the decision I made was the biggest mistake I ever did in my entire existence."

Lan XiChen stopped at the once huge house that is destroyed. "My uncle's refusal and my decision of not speaking up caused you this." He turned towards Wei MeiLan that was staring intently at the destruction.

"I'm sorry, Wei MeiLan," Lan XiChen saluted and bowed towards Wei MeiLan. "In behalf of my uncle too, I—"

A crack of whip hurling in between them interrupted whatever Lan XiChen wants to say. "ZeWu-Jun, stay away from Second Sister!"

Jiang WanYin had come to interrupt them. "Giving her disappointment to your clan is one thing, and I don't want that to happen again!"

”A'Cheng," Wei MeiLan called over. "Why are you here?"

"That's my question to you, second sister. Why are you here with that man? Did he took you away? We must go home now." Jiang WanYin took a step towards her when she smiled and spoke.

"A'Cheng, if you only answered my questions back then, I wouldn't do this, you know? Go back to YunMeng. Take care of our dear sect. I need answers, and I believed he can answer them for me."

"Second sister, are you angry at me? For I never told you everything I know?"

"I'm not angry. Disappointed, probably. If ever I didn't gave that item to you that my dear disciple told me when I woke up, then that means I'm trying to protect you. But you're not protecting me by keeping the information; you're hurting me unintentionally."

Hurt flashed in Jiang WanYin's face. "I'm sorry, Second Sister."

"Am I a fragile person to you, A'Cheng? If you care for me, you know what to do. But what you have done isn't the right thing for me."

"I know but—"

Wei MeiLan stiffened. "Someone's here."

Lan XiChen and Jiang WanYin got alerted. Preparing their weapons, they both surrounded Wei MeiLan who's weaponless.

Four figures came out of nowhere. Like the previous one they fought inside the forest years ago, they are made of black entity, only a human shaped entity with no soul or rationality.

"What are these things?" Jiang WanYin gripped on Zidian tightly.

"Be careful!" Wei MeiLan spoke then one of the figures ran towards them. Zidian lashed through the figure, cutting it in half.

The figure stopped for a bit after the attack then tried to attack them again, surprising the two guys. "Find their cores!"

Wei MeiLan dodged the incoming attack from the two figures with no weapon except her hairpin with bells. She pulled it and injected her spiritual powers to use it.

Her powers can weaken and obliterate the black figures with adequate amount. But in her current state, if she's unable to retrieve her memories, she won't be able to fully recover.

Lan XiChen cut through the chest of the figure and saw a silvery item inside that is oozing with black energy. He grabbed it and tried to break it but it won't budge.

"If you can't break it, seal it." Wei MeiLan said as she fling her hairpin towards the two that were avoiding it.

Lan XiChen pulled a sealing pouch and tried to put the item inside. But the item keeps on resisting until Wei MeiLan shouted.

"Stall them, or take their cores as I put it on that pouch!"

Lan XiChen ran towards Wei MeiLan and hand over the items to her. She coated her hands with her spiritual power to subdue the item as she stored it to the pouch. Jiang WanYin found the core of his opponent and gave it Wei MeiLan as he tried to help Lan XiChen.

In the end, all of them successfully subdued the black figures and sealed them inside the pouch. "I think, I need to make an object that will hold my energy as reservoir."

"Now, let's return—"

She didn't managed to finish her statement when she left a warm liquid trickling down from her nose. She touched it to check it, and it turned out blood. Both guys ran towards her as the last thing she saw was her surroundings tilted as her vision went black.

"Wei Qing!/Second Sister!" Both Lan XiChen and Jiang WanYin saw her faint after her nose bled.

Lan XiChen reacted faster than Hiang WanYin, catching Wei MeiLan as she toppled down to the ground.

"Call a healing sect, Clan Leader. Please tell them I asked for their help."

Jiang WanYin nodded. "Please send my sister back to Lotus Pier."

For once, the two didn't fought for the sake of Wei MeiLan who's currently unconscious. Worry overwhelmed them more than animosity from Jiang WanYin and aloofness from Lan XiChen.