WangXian Forever 6

Chapter 35 Shards

Wei Ying looked at the shard, completely surprised.

"I thought we had the only one." He said.

"You have another one?" It was Huaisang's turn to look surprised. "Is it the same shape? Do you know what it is? What they are?"

"Bai Hua spent her last days getting this for us. Uncle Qiren said a demon was holding on to it when they killed him, and then they hid it in a secret place, but she found it anyway. She told us it's essential for getting to the Nether world, so we assumed it is a key. Now we just have to find the door." Wei Ying tapped his nose, thinking hard.

"May I see your one?" Huaisang looked at them hopefully.

"Yes of course, but be careful. We could only touch it when we were in Bai Hua's home because it was similarly warded." Wei Ying looked at Lan Zhan, who pulled out the special pouch from his sleeve.

They tipped it out onto the table.

"It's got writing on it." Huaisang remarked.

"We never noticed that!" Wei Ying replied, taking a closer look.

Sure enough, golden characters shone brightly on one smooth side.

"I don't believe you of all people, would not have noticed that!" Huaisang smirked. "I think it's reacting to the closeness of its twin, though that's not strictly true. Your shard is slightly longer and pointier than this one."

Wei Ying looked at the one suspended by magnets.

"Your one is also shining with characters now. Look!" He pointed at it. "Can you read the writing?"

"No." Huaisang admitted after studying the shard closely.

Wei Ying remembered something.

"I think I know someone who can read it, though." He beamed excitedly. "Do you mind if we take this with us?"

"Not at all, but only if you stay for dinner. It's been so long since I've had company, I'm only just realising how much I missed you." His last words were aimed at Wei Ying specifically.

"What do you think?" He looked up at Lan Zhan. "Do we have time?"

"We can do whatever Wei Ying wants to do." Was the reply he got, and Wei Ying beamed at him.

There would be rewards aplenty for that...later.

"Okay then, we'll stay."

Huaisang smiled broadly at both of them.

"Besides, I have something else to show you. Our curator has a theory about the shard, and he found something that might shed some light on what to actually do, when you find the door."

Wei Ying was glad for the confidence shown him in the use of that one word, 'when' instead of 'if'. He put an arm around Huaisang's shoulder.

"Go ahead."

They waited for Lan Zhan to put the new shard in a separate pouch away from the first one, in case it had another reaction that they might not be prepared for.

Huaisang led them out of that room and back into the main library where they found Yezi thumbing her way through a book on weaponry, while JingYi and Zhitiao were bent over one on dragonlore.

Huaisang brought out a carved wooden box made out of mahogany. He slid open the lid and gingerly lifted out a very old tome. Already, the parchment was crumbling away, but he gently placed it on the table and motioned them over.

The front cover was messy with cracks covering the surface, so even the title was obscured. As he carefully turned the page, something caught Wei Ying’s eyes, and he leaned forward.

"Man or demon?" He pointed to the illustration.

"I'm guessing demon, but the artwork has faded so much, it really is a guess." He turned the page. "This is what I wanted to show you."

The next picture showed a definite demon standing in front of a tall wall...or it could have been a door, they couldn't tell. He was reaching up with something in his hand.

"I bet that’s the key." Wei Ying said. "But hang on, why does it look like there are a lot of holes on that door? Do you guys think there are many keys? And what would be the purpose? Unless it's to trick us? What if there are booby traps? What if only the genuine key will work? And then how do we tell?"

Huaisang held up a hand to stop him talking further.

"I love the way your mind works. Right there, is so much to discuss. But I'm hungry, and I would be a bad host if I didn’t look after my guests properly." He put away the book away back in the cupboard whence it came, and locked the drawer, discreetly putting away the key.

They followed him out to return to the Great Hall. Tables were already set, but Wei Ying didn’t like being so far from Lan Zhan's table, and he shifted to push it closer, at the same time as his husband, who was wearing a deep frown at what he termed as a huge mistake on the part of their host. But he did not say anything, and Wei Ying was glad because it was easily fixable.

As a host, Huaisang was quite attuned to their needs. He had plain vegetables and rice served to Lan Zhan, spicy noodles for Wei Ying and an extra bottle of chilli oil ready by his side. JingYi had the same as the other Lan, and the twins were asked for their preferences.

"What do you know about the Nether world?" Wei Ying asked Huaisang while they ate.

"Not much. Only old wives' tales, and rumours, nothing concrete. But I would imagine there's a reason why it's so secret, or why people can't come and go as they please, wouldn't you?" He smiled wryly.

"Well, obviously it's not a great place, but do we really know that?" Wei Ying speculated. "What if it's a totally different dimension? Maybe time runs differently there? What if it's nice?"

JingYi dropped his chopsticks, Yezi choked on a pea, while Zhitiao's face was utterly disbelieving at the same time as slapping her back in an attempt to dislodge the obstruction.

Lan Zhan snorted.

"Whaaat? We don't know anything for certain, and I'm just throwing out ideas here." He went back to his noodles, miffed.

After they finished eating, Wei Ying took Huaisang aside.

"When you're tired of, you know, plotting and whatever else you do to wile away the hours, where do you go? Got a favourite place?"

"Why?" Huaisang looked at him suspiciously. "What are you going to do?"

"Nothing, just something nice. Now, show me?" Wei Ying beamed at him.

The twins and JingYi waited for them, as Huaisang took them into the inner part of the bucket.

He opened double doors to what looked like his bedroom, and then on to the large windows which was actually a door and he opened it, leading them outside.

It was small but nonetheless beautiful, a garden of flowers cultivated to bring peace of mind to the wanderer.

"This is my mother's garden. I come here when I am troubled, and need guidance."

Wei Ying looked back to the room they had just come from. Come to think of it, the room had lacked personal touches that he would have expected from the man who loved fans.

"Yes. That is my mother's room. She...wasn't exactly happy here, but she loved her garden. I am always reminded of her here."

Wei Ying found an empty spot, near a small bench.

"What do you think about here?" He asked Lan Zhan.

"Mn." Lan Zhan pulled out the bag of seeds, and the green box.

Wei Ying made a hole in the earth and together, they planted another moon tree with the aid of the magic growth aiding dust.

"What is that?" Huaisang stepped forward, interested.

"A surprise, and a gift. You have helped us out many times. You deserve peace." Wei Ying patted his back. "It was good to see you, old friend."

"Likewise."

They watched the seed grow into a sapling before their very eyes, its heart shaped leaves fluttering gently.