At the heart of the Baling mountains, veiled by ancient spells and blessed by the whispers of departed sages, the Sanctum awaited them. It was an ethereal place - a colossal stone edifice sunk partly into the mountainside, with ivy-covered archways and glowing talismans fluttering like spirit moths in the wind.
The mountain spirits had been stirred by the trials, by the blood, sweat, and trust Mo Xuanyu had offered. They shimmered now around him - faint silhouettes of once-mighty cultivators - their voices weaving together into a breathless decree:
"You, Mo Xuanyu, are permitted to enter the Sanctum. You may bring one companion."
For a moment, silence.
Zhilan shifted beside him, standing taller, eyes gleaming with expectation. It was obvious whom he thought Xuanyu would choose. After all, they had fought together, crossed a bridge of death together. His mouth tilted into a smirk, already stepping forward.
Wei Wuxian, standing a little to the side, chuckled under his breath. "Looks like your knight is ready, Xuanyu."
Mo Xuanyu hesitated, feeling the weight of two gazes on him: one bright with pride, the other patient and waiting.
His heart thudded loudly - but when he spoke, it was clear, steady.
"I choose..." Xuanyu inhaled. His eyes moved past Zhilan to meet the cool, silver gaze of another.
"I choose... Lan Wangji."
The words dropped like a stone in still water.
Zhilan froze mid-step, an almost imperceptible crack appearing in his composed expression. Wei Wuxian's brows lifted in surprise. For a fraction of a second, an unreadable look flickered through his face - hurt? pride? - before he smoothed it away with an easy shrug and stepped back.
Lan Wangji, silent as ever, only inclined his head with serene acceptance, stepping to Mo Xuanyu's side without hesitation.
As they approached the grand gates of the Sanctum, the spirits parted like mist, allowing them passage.
Zhilan said nothing as he watched them walk away, but Wei Wuxian caught the subtle way Zhilan's fists clenched at his sides, the muscles of his jaw tight.
Wei Wuxian nudged him lightly with an elbow, half-teasing, half-sympathetic.
"Not everything goes according to plan, Ouyang Zhilan."
Zhilan huffed, sharp grey eyes still locked onto Mo Xuanyu's retreating back.
"Apparently not."
---
Inside the Sanctum
The air inside the Sanctum was heavy with ancient power. It smelled of incense, old paper, and rain-soaked stone.
The texts were stored in floating spheres of golden light, each one humming with silent energy. Between them, delicate spirit bridges wove paths across endless shelves suspended in midair.
Lan Wangji and Mo Xuanyu stood side by side, dwarfed by the enormity of it.
Mo Xuanyu swallowed, nerves rising again. He hadn't chosen Lan Wangji lightly. Zhilan... Zhilan made him feel seen. But Lan Wangji - he represented something Xuanyu had always yearned for: an ideal of steady, unwavering righteousness. A hope that he too could become someone stronger, someone worth something.
Lan Wangji broke the silence.
"Why me?" he asked quietly, without accusation.
Mo Xuanyu looked up at him, face open, vulnerable under the shifting golden light.
"Because you're... someone I trust not to take more than is needed," he said. "And because... because you already have everything I wish I could be."
Lan Wangji studied him for a long moment, then said, simply,
"You are stronger than you think."
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Return of The Yiling Laozu
FanfictionWei Wuxian jumps off the cliff and ends up in a parallel dimension, in the modern world, where despite all odds his Lan Zhan chooses Wei Ying. At the moment Wei Wuxian is about to find his happily ever after he is pulled back into his own world wher...
