The most precious medicine

Chapter 1

"I am sorry, Master Lan, Young Master Wei, there is nothing I can do." The best healer of the Cloud Recesses told them with a serious face.

Lan Qiren collapsed on his chair, his knees had suddenly become too weak to hold him standing. How could it be? Even the best healer could not do anything for his nephew. Was Lan Wangji truly going to die?

He was so shell-shocked that he nearly did not hear Wei Wuxian's frantic denial: "No! That cannot be right. There must be something which would save him! We just did not search hard enough!"

Wei Wuxian was standing beside the bed in which Lan Wangji was laying in a seemingly peaceful sleep. Lan Qiren could have been fooled except for the fact that his nephew's muscles were looking strained, even his deathly pale face was the epitome of suffering. There was also a thick sheen of sweat covering his forehead.

The hand that Wei Wuxian was carefully but oh so desperately holding was completely still, just the accentuated veins gave it any colour at all. In the silence of the infirmary, his breath could be heard as it was unevenly coming out of his chest. It sounded like it took much effort to take more oxygen into his lungs with every passing minute, they always listened attentively and were praying that the breath their ears managed to catch would not be the last one.

"Young master Wei, there is really nothing I can do." The healer apologized again, not looking at anyone in the room anymore. "We have tried everything, but no medicine was of any help. Transferring spiritual energy has also very limited effect, negligible as of late. Second Young Master Lan's golden core is decaying and dissipating..."

"No!" screamed Wei Wuxian again and Lan Qiren did not have the heart to reprimand him for breaking the rules or for possibly disturbing his nephew's sleep. The former demonic cultivator was not the only one who was despairing. Lan Qiren felt like he wanted to scream as well.

"No, no, no..." went Wei Wuxian on and on as if enough repetition would change the truth. "There must be something, there has to be. We have surely just overlooked something..." he was now mumbling to himself more that talking to anyone in particular. It was heart-breaking to see him trying so hard.

It was stirring the feeling of guilt in Lan Qiren's heart and making him dizzy. It had been all his fault that Lan Wangji had ended up like this. If he had not been so stubborn, his nephew would have not ended up poisoned with some unknown substance. If he had just stood behind Wei Wuxian and shown the cultivation world that cared, no one would have dared to attack him, and Lan Wangji would not have ended up being hurt because of protecting him.

Suddenly, Wei Wuxian turned to Lan Wangji and gently caressed his forehead. Then, he leaned closer and kissed him featherlight. Lan Qiren was not even mad at the public display of affection. If this could help Lan Wangji to hold on for just a second longer, he would allow anything at all.

Wei Wuxian gently tugged Lan Wangji's hand back under the sheets and let go with what seemed like a heroic amount of self-restraint. His steps were hesitant and tired when he went to sit at a low table which was set up in the room and started reading the various medicinal books laying there. Lan Qiren knew it was pointless, they had gone through them several times already, there was no cure for Lan Wangji inside. Still, Wei Wuxian must have thought they had overlooked something and was rummaging through the pages with desperation.

Although Lan Qiren was grateful for all his efforts in trying to find a cure for the dying Lan Wangji, it was just too pitiful to watch. They were all sad and terrified that the next time they would see the Chief Cultivator, he would not be breathing anymore. But this was simply too much. He could not have two youngsters dying on him just because of his stubbornness.

Before he could say anything or try to get his still weak legs working to go to Wei Wuxian's side – to do what, he had no idea, he just wanted to snap him out of his frantic and pointless search – Lan Xichen intervened.

"Young Master Wei, please, that is enough..." his older nephew's voice was tired and full of the same pain Lan Qiren was feeling.

Lan Wangji was their only remaining family and losing him like this over the last few days had taken a toll on them both. Lan Xichen had just come out of his seclusion, his heart still raw from recently losing his sworn brother, and now this had to happen. Lan Qiren was not sure if his nephew would be able to take another loss. He already looked like he was falling apart.

And now there was another person who was visibly crumbling. Wei Wuxian did not stop turning the pages even after Lan Xichen's words. It was as if he had not heard anything at all. Or perhaps he was just ignoring them, not being able to cope with Lan Wangji's condition and stubbornly refusing to see the truth.

If the healer said that there was nothing, then their last hope had just vanished. They had already sent a request for help to all the other sects, had their healers come over and check Lan Wangji's condition. They had gone through all the books in the Library pavilion. They had sent the disciples out to search for any cure or any similar cases.

But everything had been for nothing. No healers could help in advising them about possible treatment, they had not seen a case such like this when a strong cultivator's golden core would be dissipating seemingly for no reason at all and poisoning him in the process

. The books had been even less helpful and the disciples who had already come back had not brought any news. Apparently, no one had ever heard about anything similar.

And now, even their last resort was not helping anymore. If Lan Wangji's golden core was too depleted and too far gone to accept spiritual energy, there was truly nothing they could do. It was hard to watch his nephew – or son as Lan Qiren had been taking care of the boy from the moment he had been born and had been his only father figure – die right in front of his eyes.

But denying the truth and stubbornly refusing to accept it, that was not going to help either of them.

He felt moisture in his eyes when he was looking at how Lan Xichen went to kneel by Wei Wuxian's side, his steps slow and laboured as those of a hundred-year-old ancestor. They were already grieving and Wei Wuxian was taking it perhaps the worst out of them all.

"Young Master Wei," he coaxed with saddened expression, "please, stop this. You will just ruin your own health. We have tried everything we could. It is not like we are giving up, but you really need to take a rest, you have not slept or eaten in almost a week. I do not want to see you withering in front of my eyes like my brother. So, please, stop this for a while and let the healers take care of you. I am sure Wangji would not want you to collapse either..."

When Lan Xichen was holding his hands, Wei Wuxian finally stopped rummaging through the books. However, he did not look at anyone in the room and slowly turned his eyes towards the dying patient. Lan Qiren saw them only for a short moment, when the former demonic cultivator's gaze passed over him before reaching his nephew's bed.

It was as if he was struck by a dagger. There was so much pain in Wei Wuxian's eyes that he was amazed the young man was not yet going crazy.

No, Lan Qiren quickly corrected himself, it was more likely that Wei Wuxian was holding onto the scarce remains of his sanity with immersing himself in medicinal books and trying to find a cure. If they took even this from him and Lan Wangji died, he would for sure not be able to recover.

Lan Qiren shook his head, overcome by sadness and desperation. This was truly too much, too hard to watch. He sighed and spoke, more to himself than for anyone else's sake: "It is hopeless... Wangji's golden core is decaying... There is nothing we have not tried..."

The healer nodded to his words, his expression full of sadness: "Yes, we have even tried to seal it, but it did nothing to stop the poison from spreading. It had already affected the Second Young Master Lan too much. Unless the root of the problem is eradicated and he somehow gets a new golden core, I cannot see anything..."

To the shock of everyone, Wei Wuxian suddenly jumped to his feet and exclaimed: "That is it! Why have I not thought about it earlier?"

His face was lit with hope that Lan Qiren could not tell where it was coming from. Could it be he had truly gone mad with grief this time? There was no way they would be able to somehow get Lan Wangji a new golden core to heal him.