[MDZS] My Dark Angel

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Wei Ying awoke to darkness. It wasn't the darkness like in the Jingshi, where the moon could still be seen. No - it was the darkness of a cave. He felt as though he were suffocating. As he stood, a wave of dizziness hit him, and he nearly fell forward. He felt a deja vu - as if he'd been there before. As soon as the dizziness passed, he began walking, searching for an entrance. Why does this all feel so familiar? he wondered. He continued walking for what felt like hours, until he came upon light at the end of the tunnel. Only, it wasn't as he was expecting. Instead, he entered a large room hidden deep inside the cave. The walls were aligned with all kinds of gemstones - rare and common - but the thing which caught his eye right away was the statue standing just beyond the entrance.

The statue was beautiful. It looked to be made of onyx, a rare gemstone within that part of the world. Wei Ying began shuddering. He didn't know why, but the statue - something about it - reminded him of his nightmare he'd had. He wanted to run, but his body wouldn't move - as if someone had placed a paralyzing talisman on him. He eventually found the courage to escape from there, but as he tried to leave the cave, he was stopped by a barrier. He wondered how it had come to be there when he never felt anything passing through.

The barrier was quite strong. Whomever created it was a very strong and ingenious cultivator. He was very frightened now as he was unable to remove it to escape. He wished Lan Zhan was there. He felt his belly. Sure enough, the child was unharmed. He curled in on himself as best as he could with the slight bulge in the way. He was frightened, cold, lonely, and Lan Zhan wasn't there. He wondered if his husband had even tried - was even trying - to rescue him. How he would feel so rewarded once he had his answer.

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Lan Zhan, Xichen, Qiren and Jiang Cheng were all panicking - especially Lan Zhan. He had just witnessed his husband be kidnapped right in front of him after all. Jiang Cheng was furious. He slammed the table out if impatience.

Jiang Cheng: " How could you allow that to happen? What happened to you guarding my brother all day, huh?" he fumed.

Xichen grabbed the Jiang boy's waist and stopped him from jumping across the table onto Lan Zhan. "Calm down, Wanyin. It wasn't his fault. I am positive Wei Gongzi is still very much alive. We will begin where Lan Zhan fought with the creature, then we will go from there. No one else needs to be harmed. Please, leave your violent outbursts for the mastermind behind all this."

Jiang Cheng seemed to calm down some. "Fine," he growled. He crossed his arms, sitting down again, a glower on his face. "You better not let him die, Lan Wangji! I won't ever trust you again!"

Lan Zhan understood perfectly, even if he didn't express it. He was in too much shock to care what anyone else said - especially Jiang Cheng. Qiren simply stroked his beard. He was thinking maybe setting out today was a bad idea, but then again, delaying could cause the inevitable to happen.

Qiren sighed. "Alright, then. We shall begin right away. Let us meet at the gate in ten minutes. Wangji," Lan Zhan looked at his uncle, "we will find your sword first. You can't battle without it. I know you have Wangji, your guqin, but you won't last long with only that instrument of yours."

Lan Zhan: "Yes, Uncle," was all he could say. He was too worried about Wei Ying. He didn't care whether he'd lost his sword or not. It was his beloved husband he wanted - not a sword. However, his uncle was right on one note. Using Wangji only in a battle was going to be hard.

Lan Xue was sleeping peacefully in Qiren's arms as Lan Zhan was shaking too much to be able to hold him. Xichen gave his brother a sympathetic smile. "Don't worry, Wangji," he tried reassuring the younger. "We'll find Wei Gongzi before anything more can happen to him." At least, he hoped they could. How wrong he would be in the end.

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Ten minutes passed as they all met at the gate. No one spoke a word as they passed through, heading toward where Lan Zhan had battled the creature. Xichen was wondering how on Earth the creature would still be alive. Qiren wondered the same thing. They were all flying on their swords - except for Lan Zhan. He had to ride with his brother. Lan Zhan suddenly pointed to the ground.

Lan Zhan: "There!" he said aloud, pointing to a spot where there was a glare from the sun. The party descended. The thing glinting in the sunlight was Bichen, Lan Zhan's sword. The creature must have thrown it away at some point.

Xichen: "Why is your sword here of all places, Wangji?" The younger jade froze. He knew he had to explain how he'd lost his sword now.

Lan Zhan sheathed Bichen. "Brother..."

Xichen breathed deeply. "It's alright, Wangji. I'm certain there is a good explanation for it. Don't stress yourself over having to explain now. We should continue following this path and see where it leads."

Lan Zhan nodded. "Brother." He pointed to a giant hole in the ground. It was about the size of a person. There was blood on the edge of it - either from Wei Ying or the creature, no one knew for certain. Xichen nodded.

Xichen: "Uncle, Wanyin, we are following this tunnel. It was most likely created by the creature and may lead us directly to Wei Gongzi." When there were no protests he added, "We will enter in pairs. Uncle, you stay with Wanyin. I will go with Wangji first." He was regretting his decision, but he had something important to speak to his brother about. "You two stay here and guard the entrance in case it comes out again." How I wish I were the one staying with my sweet Wanyin! he cried inside.

The two brothers entered the tunnel. It led far underground. A silence grew between them. Xichen unsheathed Shuoyue. A dim white light glowed along the blade. "Wangji, why don't you take out Bichen to help light the way." Lan Zhan nodded. He unsheathed Bichen, but nothing happened. He sheathed it back, his head hung in disappointment. "Tell me right now," Xichen demanded, stopping their procession.

Lan Zhan really didn't want to tell his brother what happened, but it had come to this point, and if he didn't say anything, he would be placing everyone in danger. "Spiritual power was sealed," he managed to say. Xichen nodded. Lan Zhan continued. "When fighting the creature, felt something bite," he moved his hair to show the back of his neck.

Xichen gasped. There was a strange marking embedded deep into his brother's skin. Xichen tried touching it, but it gave off an electric shock similar to Zidian's. "Wangji, we need to hurry. Whoever placed this mark on you did an excellent job. I'm afraid you've been cursed. I don't even know if it can be removed or not. I don't even know if I can unseal your power temporarily." Xichen's hand and arm were numb. His fingers twitched slightly.

Lan Zhan saw it and panicked. "Brother!" Xichen only smiled.

Xichen: "Don't fret over me. It's temporary numbness from the curse. It should leave shortly." With that being said, the two carried on their journey to the underground.