A year went by and then a next one and next one, sixteen years had passed in total. The world had changed for the better and people had already almost forgotten about the war and all the suffering and discord it had caused. The strong alliance between all four major sects was focusing all their effort to make the world a better place and keep peace. New generation of cultivators was on the rise and no one doubted that they would be capable of high achievements, they were the cream of the crop.
The name of the Yiling Patriarch went mostly forgotten as well, it only remained in wild stories and as a monster to keep in line misbehaving children. And why was that? The Yiling Patriarch had apparently disappeared from the face of the earth. No one had seen him for years now and no new rumours were going around. Stories had long turned to legends and legends to myths.
The only thing which the cultivation world mourned was that at the same time as the Yiling Patriarch, the brightest of his generation, the honourable and esteemed Hanguang-Jun, had disappeared as well. No one had seen him ever since either.
Some believed that the occasional appearance of a cultivator clad in white and another man, all in black who carried a flute, could be those two but they never stayed for too long nor gave their names. There was also no ribbon on the foreheads of either of the men so none of them were apparently from the Gusu Lan sect. Some swore that there was a white ribbon tied around the black clothed man but no one could testify to that fact.
Their appearances were however so rare and had only few witnesses that no one could be certain of anything. Not even if the two of them were true people or just some urban legends and characters from stories that common people and some of the cultivators whispered around a fire at night and during long winters.
The only sure thing was that those two appeared where the chaos erupted and always helped everyone in need before disappearing without as much as saying their goodbyes or accepting any payments as soon as their job was done. Those were just wild rumours though and hardly anyone actually believed them as the witness' reports could only be heard from common people; no cultivator had even seen those two with their own eyes.
Or at least that was what was believed in the biggest part of the world, among common people and majority of the cultivation sects. However, the four major sects would tell a different story if they were asked and about to breach the wow of secrecy they had taken in relation to Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji.
Truth was that the Yiling Patriarch and Hanguang-Jun were actually travelling around, happy and unrestrained all this time. They often went to visit their families so Lotus Pier, Koi Tower, Cloud Recesses and Unclean Realm were frequently hosting the pair. They would not keep it a secret but Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji made it their point to always visit when no other sects were present, only remaining in the family circle before setting out to continue their travels again. And if they did not give their names to any of the servants, no one blamed them and they were simply called 'Young Masters'.
At times, they would stay in Cloud Recesses or Lotus Pier for a longer period of time, always finding their rooms prepared. Those were however only occasional occurrences since Wei Wuxian preferred to travel around and help whoever was in need of his assistance, and Lan Wangji could not deny him anything. They were happy like that.
Oh so slowly, the burden of demonic cultivation was lessening as Wei Wuxian had found a way to go without it and control the after effects when he actually had to use it as his last resort. Mainly because of Lan Wangji always being there to protect him so there was no need for him to resort to it too often and also because he had invented so many talismans that he could take good care of himself all the while helping others in a night hunt.
And night hunt they did, quite frequently as well. They often joined groups of junior disciples from different sects and taught them the basics and were looking after them. None of the cultivation sects opposed that – both if they knew who Wei Wuxian was and if they did not have any idea about his forgotten identity of the Yiling Patriarch – simply because their children and junior disciples would always come home and brag about improving and being instructed by a master of sword and a master of talismans.
The group of disciples they both favoured was one which included Jin Ling, the heir to the Lanling Jin sect and son of Jiang Yanli, A-Yuan, Wen Qing's and Wen Ning's cousin, Lan Jingyi and Ouyang Zizhen. They were very talented and already way stronger than others from their generation. It was a bliss to see them grow and be able to take part in that process.
At last, Wei Wuxian had founded a life for himself that he could enjoy. Lan Wangji always stayed by his side, only too eager to take care of him but not in an overwhelming way. They respected their boundaries and their love burned strong even after all those years. They were both extremely happy.
And they lived happily ever after, the end. Thank you for reading and for staying with me until the end. I could not have done it without all your support :)
This have been such a roller-coaster for me, I have actually thought until like 10 chapters back that the ending would be different but then I realized that it would not be right to let Wei Wuxian stay in Lotus Pier. There were so many bad memories for him and he also needed to spread his wings. The Cloud Recesses also did not seem quite right; hence we have a duo of rogue cultivators. This way, he has the peace he so needed to heal.
I hope you have liked the story and if you feel like it, I would love to hear what you have thought about it :)