Red Rose [Never Let You Go, Again Book 3]

36: Tragic Smile

Doctor Liu walked to Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian didn't know how a doctor could possibly be so evil, but he shut his eyes and bit his lip, readying himself for the stab. 

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"Wei Wuxian? Wei Wuxian! Wei Wuxian, wake up!"

Wei Wuxian was jerked awake by feminine hands shaking him gently.

"Wei Wuxian! Thank goodness! I thought you were..." she gulped.

"Xiaolian?" Wei Wuxian squinted against the bright white glow from the woman.

"No, young lad, it's me, get up!" She slapped his cheeks lightly.

Wei Wuxian smiled as he recognised the tinkle in her voice. "Chang'e!"

"Thank goodness, I thought you'd lost sanity," Chang'e beamed at him. "Get up!"

Wei Wuxian slowly sat up and Chang'e helped him up onto his feet. "Why am I in Guanyin's garden? Oh, is this where I'm supposed to be after death?"

"Tch, you silly young man," Chang'e shook her head, golden-white robes billowing in the breeze around her glowing white body. "How could you possibly die just because of that? You've gone through it before, you're a strong man. He didn't stab you to death, did he?"

"No," Wei Wuxian nodded. "So I fell asleep?"

"You had to stay awake until all of it was over, but then you fell unconscious once it was done. The drop in your immortal energy might have caused it."

"Right. Wait, so, if I'm no longer immortal, how did I get here?"

"Once an Immortal, always an Immortal. With a core or not. You only need the core to cultivate towards immortality, the rest..."

"Is permanent?"

"Correct. Because it's like your soul's enlightened. Immortality is for the soul mostly. Now then, tell me, how do you feel? Want to lie down against a tree perhaps?"

"No, Chang'e, I'm fine. Like you said, I've undergone a core transplant before. Guess my soul's used to the pain. Only my body's a bit weak because Mo Xuanyu never did it. But I'm fine. Now tell me, why are you here? It's not the Mid-Autumn Festival or anything yet, right?"

"No, but I came to see you. And him."

"Him?" Wei Wuxian looked up. It was as though a spark of lightning had shot across his eyes.

He smiled with sad joy.

"He's here, isn't he?" His voice quickly lowered to a whisper.

"Yes, he was here. Left a minute or two ago, I can't believe he only just missed you! Came to stare at the water for quite a while. Didn't really talk to me, but appreciated my presence at his side. He only kept saying one thing."

Wei Wuxian raised his eyebrows in query.

"A-Ying is gone; I have to find him."

Wei Wuxian sighed and looked away into the water, eyes welling up uncontrollably. "Was he... Was he doing well? Healthy? Safe?"

"Safe, of course. But, I wouldn't say healthy. He looked whiter than ever. Clearly hasn't even drunk water since your brother-in-law and you went missing. Wei Wuxian–"

"No, Chang'e."

"But Wei Wuxian–"

"Chang'e, no," he pleaded, holding her hands and shaking his head like a child who doesn't want medicine. "I don't know how to face him." 

"Wei Wuxian, are you out of your mind? You don't really think he's going to lose interest in you just because you're core-less now!"

"Of course, not, I know and understand his love. It's pure, pure as frost. Undeterred and unbreakable as ice. Delicate and tender as snow. He loves me beyond anything in this world and I know it."

Chang'e was beaming delightfully at him. "Boy, am I happy to hear you saying all this," she grinned, stroking his head in a motherly way, reminding Wei Wuxian of his Shijie. "Then what are you deterring from meeting him about? Maybe you could wake up with him there!"

"No, it doesn't work that way, I'm still chained up. And also... I'm scared, Chang'e..." He lowered his head, shoulders slumped.

Chang'e understood what he was indicating and pulled him into a loving hug. "Now tell me what is it?"

"Chang'e, Nie Jiuyue has my core now. My demonic immortal's core. Does that make him a demonic immortal too?"

"He might be almost as powerful as one. But no. He can't be as powerful because his soul hadn't been as uplifted."

"Good. Then he can't be as powerful as I was. But he can be nearly so, right?"

"I guess. I see where you're going with this."

"I'm glad you do. If Nie Jiuyue is as powerful as I am, then he's a nearly inevitable threat to the world. Even A-Zhan won't be able to fight back. I myself know how I am when angered, only I know my capabilities back when I had the core. I could have destroyed the world with it. And that's what Jiuyue is planning on doing. What if that happens? He won't be as strong, plus, he can't manipulate the powers as much as I could, our skill levels are different."

"True, you're supreme, he's good-for-nothing," Chang'e smirked.

"But when the battle begins... If the battle begins, he will be unstoppable. I don't want A-Zhan putting himself in danger. Not him, not anyone else. That's why I don't want them coming to me right now..."

"But you know they're going to keep coming... You know they're going to come swords flashing in fury to save you. There's no if."

"I do."

"And what are you going to do then?"

"I've done what I can."

"Mn?" Chang'e frowned before quickly pulling Wei Wuxian away from her chest to stare into his eyes. "Wei Wuxian! What did you do?"

Wei Wuxian smiled at her. That one smile she and all his loved ones hated to see. The Wei-Wuxian-Trademark-Tragic-Smile.