(END)Wei wuxian is back but something is wrong

safe?

Wei Wuxian barely had time to react before the darkness lunged.

Cold, suffocating tendrils wrapped around her wrists, her throat, pulling her down into the abyss. Her vision blurred, and for a brief, terrifying moment, she felt like she was back in the Burial Mounds all those years ago—alone, broken, surrounded by restless spirits whispering her name.

But this time, it wasn’t just whispers.

It was something else. Something ancient. Something that had always been there, lurking beneath the ruins, buried beneath years of death and decay.

And now, it wanted her back.

Wei Wuxian gritted her teeth.

— No.

She twisted her wrist, wrenching one hand free, and shoved Chenqing to her lips.

The melody she played wasn’t elegant, wasn’t controlled—it was raw, forceful, a desperate surge of spiritual energy that ripped through the darkness like a blade.

The thing screamed.

The shadows recoiled, thrashing like a wounded beast. Wen Qing flinched, her form flickering, and for the first time, her blank expression cracked.

— Wei Ying—!

But before she could say more, the ground beneath them split apart.

A blinding white light cut through the darkness—sharp, unyielding. A figure in white surged through the void, Bichen gleaming in his grip.

— Lan Zhan!

Wei Wuxian barely had time to breathe before Lan Wangji was beside her, his free hand reaching for hers.

— Come back, — he said, voice steady.

His fingers wrapped around her wrist, warm and real.

Wei Wuxian exhaled shakily.

And then—

Lan Wangji pulled.

The world shattered.

The shadows let out a final, enraged shriek as the light consumed everything—

And Wei Wuxian woke up.

She gasped, eyes flying open. Cold air rushed into her lungs. She was lying on solid ground, rough stone beneath her fingers.

The chamber. They were back.

Lan Wangji knelt beside her, his face calm but his grip on her hand tight, as if he was making sure she was still there.

Wei Wuxian blinked up at him, her mind still spinning.

— Lan Zhan…

He exhaled softly.

— You are safe.

Wei Wuxian let out a breathless laugh.

— Yeah. Thanks to you.

But before she could say anything else, her fingers brushed against something on the ground.

She looked down.

The red ribbon was still there.

And in the distance, the laughter had not disappeared.