[Lan Wangji's POV are written in italic]
It was another long and dreadful nightmare of his. The scene that was currently displaying in Lan Wangji's view was his greatest fear. In front of him, Wei Ying was losing grip and in a dire crisis. He could not do anything to help or say anything to calm him down. Wei Ying could not see him, touch him nor hear him as he was invisible. He could only watch in despair as the person he loves went through a torturous event alone.
"Wei Wuxian, you are losing control." The whispering voice said.
Wei Ying tried to shoo the voice away, screaming at the wisps of black smog that tried to get into his head and took over his control. "Get lost! Get lost!
"Let us out. Let us help you." Multiple voices kept swirling around Wei Ying who was on the verge of breaking. The air was thick with resentment and wretchedness. His face was pallid, the rim of his eyes was reddish, and his pupil quivered.
"Get lost! Leave me alone!" He desperately attempted to chase the invisible evil tongues that were taunting him as he was grasping to the small bits and pieces of sanity he had left. His body wavered as if he was standing on a rocky boat on the violent stormy sea.
The temptation persisted. "You can only rely on..."
"Go away!" cutting the voice mid sentences, Wei Ying yelled atop his lungs. He was just a step away from losing himself and he bolted out of the woods without looking back, trying to escape from the wicked beings that danced around him with every step he took and latched onto him without his consent. His breaths were ragged and short, beads of sweats formed on his forehead.
After he sprinted down the mountain, he stood amid the scrubs, catching his breath. Bent down, he propped his hands against his knees for a long while before he stood up straight again. With a vacant expression, he started to walk wherever his feet took him. Lan Wangji kept up with his speed and halted when they reach a familiar landscape. He scanned the fortress gate that stood in front of him. It was same place Wei Ying and him was surveying at just a week ago, the Nightless city.
"Sect Leader Jin said the Four Clans will hold a mobilization meeting at Nightless city." A group of cultivators were gossiping. "They will display the Wen Clan's corpses for three days and scatter the remains of the bandit chieftains for a demonstration of justice.
Lan Wangji saw the hanging bodies of elderly men and women and it was clear as a day, those lifeless people were not cultivators. He wanted to lecture some senses into the group of people who seemed to be proud of those deliberate display of plain brutalities.
Wen clan's corpses? Which part of this was justice? These people were normal citizen.
"The Ghost general suddenly went crazy. He claimed to ask for punishment but suddenly went crazy and kill many people in Koi Tower again." Said one person.
"Luckily I wasn't there that day." Another cultivator in a cream-colored robe spoke.
"He was indeed the dog trained by Wei Wuxian. Why did Wei Wuxian make something he cannot control? He did not even think of chaining that fierce mad dog. Sooner or later, it will backfire on him. With this trend, I can say that that day is not far."
Why are they talking about Wei Ying? Ghost general?
Wei Ying creeped without a sound behind the group that was badmouthing him. He heard every word and he continued to stand motionless at the back. He looked up at the dead bodies that was dangling, and his eyes lingered at the faces that he recognized. He tried to swallow his grief that was written all over his face.
"The Jin clan of Lanling is really unfortunate."
"The Lan clan of Gusu is more unfortunate. Over 30 people were killed in Qiongqi Way. More than half of them were from the Lan clan. They were just there to help repress the trouble."
What? Wei Ying, what did you do...
The muscles on Lan Wangji's face and fingers twitched slightly. A frightening thought emerged from the depths of Lan Wangji's heart. He studied the expression of this person who allegedly killed more than fifteen people from his clan.
"At least we finally burned the Ghost general. Otherwise, thinking of him haunting around all day long really make me sleepless. This ending served the Wen clan right."
Someone spat, "The Ghost general and his sister have been burned to ashes. Now Wei Wu Xian knows who's boss. All clan leaders made it clear that the meeting tonight is to discuss how to deal with Wei Wuxian."
"What a relief!"
One of them reveled, as though he had a role to this, "It's for the best if from now on, if he would hide in that barren hummock and behave himself. It would be wise of him. But if he dares to come out again, once he come out, then -"
The longer Wei Ying listened, the colder his expression grew. He lowered his head, his body trembled and boiled with anger. His fists were tightly balled, the surface had become pale white. When Wei Ying lifted up his chin again, his eyes were bloodshot and filled with murderous auras.
"Then what?" His voice was soft but there was nothing gentle about his tone. Wei Ying cold eyes flickered with killing intents as he gripped on Chenqing tightly. Raging fire within his heart burned bright. The flute emitted thick dark smoke of resentful energy. The ground under him shook.
The gossipmongers that were in the middle of mocking him, immediately paused, and turned around. They were shocked at first and then feared flooded their mind as they swung their swords, pointing the polished metal towards the man in black and red attire. The cocky earlier person now shook in fear when he saw the flute with the bright red tassel in his hand and he announced, "It's Chenqing! It's Chenqing!"
Someone shouted panickily, "Report to Sect Leader Jin, quickly!"
Wei Ying put Chen Qing's blowing hole under his bottom lip. His eyes sparked in crimson light and played the black flute proficiently, the resentful energy thickened and started pouring out Chen Qing and enveloped his body. The haunting loud shrill was a command to attack. The formless tendrils whooshed towards each one of the Cultivators, slamming them forcefully onto the ground that instance. Dark bloody spirits gradually took their forms on those people's backs and pressing them down incessantly with immense strength that the floor started to crack. None of those people could get up again. Few immediately became motionless, and some were writhing like worms, making noises like slaughtered animals.
Wei Ying stopped his music as he eyeballed the people, he knocked down without needing to lift a finger as if they were just bugs. The voice that came out his lips were lacking his usual brightness, it was just monotonous, "Why did you stop talking? How to deal with me? Huh, what's wrong? Weren't you all quite the cultivators when you were talking about me behind my back? Why is it that, now that you're in front of me, you can do nothing but lie on the ground?"
"Wei Ying! If you're really capable, then go to the pledge conference to compete with the clan leaders there. Bullying low rank, defenseless cultivators like us can't prove how capable you are." The arrogant man still dared to talk rubbish.
This was the second time Lan Wangji saw this ability, the first was when he rushed to rescue Xue Yang that night. Wei Ying's speed was unnatural. He moved from the back to the front in less than one second. His hand wrapped tightly around the neck of the person who still dared to provoke him, the sound of bone cracking was audible. The man's voice was hoarse as he pleaded with his dying breath, "Don't kill me."
"Low-rank cultivators. Should I tolerate you just because you're low rank? If you dared say those things, you had to dare shoulder the consequences. If you knew that you were insignificant pieces of scum as filthy as ants, how come you didn't know to think before you speak?! What kind of hatred do you have for me?" Wei Ying face turned cold and impassive; more bones were crushed under the sheer force of his fingers. "But you are right about one thing. Every injustice has its perpetrator. I shouldn't waste time on you."
The man was finally silent, just like his heart was. Wei Ying stood up emotionlessly and did not spare even a glance to those people who had passed on to the world of the dead and soon to be. As he moved forward, he didn't retrieve all those dark spirits. Lan Wangji was stunned to see Wei Ying unblinkingly killed someone and injured many. The lethal calm on his face made him look more dangerous.
At the wall, there was a large announcement bulletin. Wei Ying paused to read it. At the top of the announcement was the words 'Pledge Conference'. The contents told that the four leading sects: the LanlingJin Sect, the Qinghe Nie Sect, the Yunmeng Jiang Sect, and the Gusu Lan Sect, were going to scatter the ashes of the Wen Sect's remnants atop the ruins of the Qishan Wen Sect's abandoned residence, the Nightless City. At the same time, they'd take the pledge that they'd be forever opposing the Yiling Patriarch who had occupied Burial Mound.
Lan Wangji saw his own clan's name in list. He reminisced what he heard from Wei Ying before, 'the world turned their back on Wei Wuxian, and he died thinking he was alone'. Did he let this whole thing to happen? He closed his eyes momentarily, trying to sooth the aches in his chest.
After the Qishan Wen Sect was destroyed, the main palaces of Nightless City had become a magnificent, yet empty pile of ruins. Before the tallest place was the Palace of Sun and Flames and it was a wide plaza. They landed at the rooftop of the palace. Wei Ying sat down with his back leaned on the beast statue that made up the end of the ridges, watching the spectacle that unfolding right under his nose quietly. That night, square arrays of sects both large and small filled the entire plaza. The crest-embroidered flag of every sect fluttered in the night wind. In front of the broken flag poles was a temporary altar.
Lan Wangji recognized most of them at the big gathering. Jin Guangshan seemed to be the host of the event as he stood at the front facing the crowds, the man with black hat that assisted the Jin clan leader was unfamiliar. That unfamiliar man presented each of the leader of their respective clans with a cup of drink. His eyes darted towards his brother, who looked like he did not want to be there. Then, there was Jiang Wanyin with his sour expression as usual.
"Whoever they are, whichever name they bear, this cup of liquor represents my respect to our past heroes!" Jin Guang Shan toasted. He turned around and faced the altar, "Your spirit is everlasting. May you rest in peace."
Everyone lifted their cups and echoed Jin Guangshan. The sect leaders raised their cups high up and poured them onto the ground, wetting the floor. The porcelain shattered to pieces as the leaders smashed their cups. The ritual of honouring the dead comrades was complete.
"Wen Qing, Wen Ning. Bandit chieftains of the Wen Clan. I'll scatter their remains." Jin Guangshan took a metal box from the unknown man and with some incantations, he sent forth his spiritual energy and broke the box that float above the empty space between him and the rest of cultivation clans. The iron box broke into pieces, and white dust drifted alongside the cold wind. Ashes of remains scattered all over the place. A series of cheers exploded through the crowd. "Great!"
Lan Wangji brows bumped together in a scowl at this unsightly event. There were so many levels of wrong in this spectacle. He understood now why Wei Ying insisted to meet the Wen siblings and save them from this tragic and disrespectful end.
Jin Guangshan was smug and proud as he listened to the incited crowd. He raised his hands, signaling for the people to be quiet and listen to him talk. When the cheers slowly died down, he continued, raising his voice, "Tonight, it is the two bandit chieftains here whose remains were scattered. Tomorrow, it will be the rest of the Wen Clan's last dregs. And also, the Yiling Patriarch, Wei Ying!"
Lan Wangji stiffened and clinched his jaw at the sight. He glanced at Wei Ying who scoffed at the mentioned of his given name. He turned his attention back to the crowd to see their reactions as well. His older brother closed his eyes and swallowed hard probably due to regret. While Jiang Wanyin looked a little restless and his lips set in a grim line.
Suddenly, a laugh interrupted Jin Guangshan's grand speech. There was no humor in that laugh but rather it was full of sorrow and disdain. The laugh was too untimely, sounding both stark and jarring. It was obvious to Lan Wangji. Wei Ying could not keep his silence anymore.
In unanimity, the crowd turned to look at where the sound came from. Everyone brandished their weapons and pointed it towards one person. Jin Guangshan was yelling with both shock and hatred, "Wei Ying! How dare you show yourself here!"
The corner of black clothes dangled down from the roof, swaying softly. What came out was indeed Wei Ying's voice, but he spoke in a strange tone, "Why should I dare not show myself here? Do you people here even add up to three thousand? Don't forget that back in the Sunshot Campaign, let alone three thousand, I've fought against five thousand on my own before. Besides my presence here, is just what you all want, isn't it? Save you efforts in finding my den and burn me tomorrow."
Him alone against that many?
Lan Wangji felt like his blood was drained out. He remembered what Wei Ying told him before about 'how he was capable to slaughter thousands with the power he held'.
Nie Mingjue spoke coldly, "Arrogant lout!"
Wei Ying smirked, his hands fiddled around with his black flute, "Sect Leader Nie, haven't I always been arrogant?"
Wei Ying fixated his frosty gaze on Jin Guangshan, scorning at the two-faced greedy man, "Sect Leader Jin, how does it feel, having slapped yourself in the face? Who was the one that said he'd let the matter go if the Wen siblings went to Koi Tower and gave themselves up? And who was the one that just said he'd scatter my ashes and the ashes of the rest of the Wen Sect's remnants tomorrow?"
Jin Guangshan scoffed, "Those are two different things! Let's consider things as they stand! At Qiongqi Path, you slaughtered over a hundred of the Lanling Jin sect's disciples, this is one thing. You let Wen Ning commit murders at Koi Tower, this is another."
Wei Ying curled his lips with icy contempt and did not hide the scorn in his voice when he spoke, his eyes narrowed dangerously, "Then let me ask you, Sect Leader Jin, at Qiongqi Path, who was one being ambushed? And whose death was wanted? Who was plotted? And who was the one being plotted against? In the end, just who was the one that came to provoke me first? And please tell me. How can I control Wen Ning to commit murders in Koi Tower from miles away?"
A brazen disciple shouted from a distance, "Even if Jin Zixun was the assaulted you first, you shouldn't have been so heartless and kill so many lives there!"
Wei Ying inhaled a sharp breath and laughed bitterly. His laughter contained not even a sliver of joy in it but rather, it felt heavy and full with grievance. "Oh, I understand now. If you want to kill me, you can do whatever you want. But if I wanted to protect myself, I must be careful about not hurting this and that person? If I die, it will be my own bad luck. In conclusion, you all could ambush and pull a siege on me, but I'm not allowed to fight back, am I right?"
Wei Ying....
Sect Leader Yao raised his voice, "Fight back? Those over a hundred people and the thirty on Koi Tower were all innocent. If you were fighting back, why did you have to involve them?"
Wei Ying's face angrily retorted his unjust statement, he yelled back at that older man, "The fifty cultivators on Burial Mound are also innocent, so why do you have to involve them?"
Someone else spat, "Just what great kindness has the Wen-dogs given you? To have you be on those scum's side like this."
"In my opinion, there isn't any great kindness at all. It's just that he thinks he's a hero fighting against the entire world. He thinks he's doing an act of justice, that he himself is quite an impressive person, risking everyone's condemnation!"
Lan Wangji gritted his teeth. Wei Ying just pointed out that they were going back on their words, and that he did what he did only to defend himself when he was ambushed. Yet, no one listened to his reasons and those people only cared to justify their own wrongdoings.
Hearing this trash-talking about the Wen remnants that became his family, Wei Ying's face turned scarlet with uncontrollable rage. His breathing got harsher, and his eyes sparked with burning inferno.
Jin Guangshan took his chance to shine through the chaos, "Wei Wuxian! Do you think that being against all clans makes you a hero or a martyr? Do you think daring to do what's forbidden will make you a great person?"
Wei Ying drew deep breaths and still listened to the endless accusations and verbal attacks hurled at and against him unresponsively. He leaned back against the statue, twirling Chen Qing with a seemingly cavalier expression. Lan Wangji however noticed, the welling of tears in Wei Ying's eyes and the hard swallowing of resignation. He could feel his hopelessness, futility and distraught. Nobody stood up for him. Not even Jiang Wanyin who was supposed to be his brother.
The crowd mistook his lack of responses as their winning sign and became more daring, "When it comes down to it, you were the first to place such a dark curse on Jin Zixun!"
Being wrongly accused on something he never did, Wei Ying spat out his words harshly, "May I ask you, just what evidence do you have to prove that I was the one who placed the curse?"
The one who asked the question was at a loss for words at the unanticipated reply. He stammered, "Then do you have any evidence to prove that you weren't the one who placed the curse?"
Wei Ying snickered at the preposterousness, "Then let me ask you again. Why couldn't it have been you? You don't have any evidence to prove that you weren't the one who placed the curse either, do you?"
The person was both shocked and enraged, "Me? How could I be the same as you? Don't you mix the black and the white! You're the most suspicious. Do you think we don't know? You and Jin Zixun have held enmity toward each other ever since a year ago!"
Lan Wangji was perplexed with how unjust and biased their judgements sounded. Wei Ying lowered his eyebrows, propped his body forward and his voice dripped in ice, "Just who is the one mixing the black and the white? That's right. If I wanted to kill him, I would've done it a year ago. I didn't have to keep him until now. Little characters like him, I already forgot his existence in just three days. Much less say a year."
Sect Leader Yao scorned, "Wei Wuxian, Wei Wuxian, today, you've really broadened my horizon. I've really never seen a villain as unreasonable as you are. Even after you killed the people, you have to shame them with words. Don't you hold any empathy or conscience?"
The crowd flung curses at him, but Wei Ying seemed to accept all of them. Lan Wangji felt the bubbling of anger rising in his chest.
How dare them talked about conscience when they hanged the bodies of innocent elderly for display? Didn't they cheer for the scattered ashes of the Wen siblings just now?
One of the cultivators who stood in the front rows commented bitterly, "Wei Ying, you disappoint me so much. There used to be a time when I admired you and said that at least you were someone who founded your own sect. Now that I think about it, it's almost repulsive. From this moment on, I'll forever stand on the opposite side of you!"
Hearing this outrageous and silly declaration, Wei Ying exploded with laughter. He leaped to the center of the roof and continue laughing. Tears of laughter seeped from the corners of Wei Ying's eyes from a bad mix of anguish and hilarity, "You admired me? You said you admired me, but why haven't I ever seen you when you admired me? And as soon as I'm loathed by everyone, you jump out and wave your little flag?"
His melancholic tears dripped as he continued his frenzy of cackles. He spoke up with derision, "Your admiration as a bit too cheap, isn't it? You said that you'll forever stand on the opposite side of me. Very well. Does the fact that you're standing on the opposite side of me affect me at all? Both your admiration and your hatred are so, so insignificant. How could you be so shameless as to flaunt them in front of others?"
No!
Recognition dawned on Lan Wangji's face and his eye widened in horror. Before Wei Ying could finish, a fletched arrow in the center of his chest stopped his sentences. He looked down to see the head of the arrow that was buried between two of his ribs. He gazed toward the direction in which the arrow came from. Lan Wangji etched the image of the attacker in his brain. He would never forgive this young cultivator who shot it. Lan wangji could tell the arrow tip was originally aiming for Wei Ying's heart.
Everyone around the person who shot the arrow had eyes wide open, staring with shock and even fear at the disciple who had done such a thing.
Darkness veiled Wei Ying's face. He pulled out the arrow that was embedded in his body and tossed it back hard. The young cultivator who snuck an attack at him was hit right on the chest with the same arrow.
A boy next to him wailed, "Brother! Brother!"
The crowd straightaway thrown into pandemonium. The sect leader pointed his finger at Wei Wuxian, "You! Y-You are so cruel!"
Wei Ying was attacked first, and he retaliated in the same manner. That was fair. Why did they call Wei Ying cruel and ignored the attacker's crime?
Wei Ying languorously put some pressure to the puncture wound at his chest, momentarily stopping the bleeding. His voice was indifferent, and his expression dulled, "What does cruel mean? If he dared shoot the arrow at me when I was off guard, he should've known what would be facing him if he failed. They call me the cultivator of the crooked path, anyways, so you can't possibly count on me to be generous and not bother with him, can you?"
Jin Guangshan shouted in a wide and exaggerated gestures, "Set up the battle arrays, set up the battle arrays! We won't let him leave here alive no matter what!"
At that point, Lan Wangji could see the ugly truth of the society that he was standing with. Even then, Wei Ying still tried to point out that he was attacked first and demanded to know why they accused him just because he defended himself. Not only was he attacked first; they attacked him when he was trying to reason with them. They just conveniently ignored the logical argument and followed the Jin sect's leader orders for them to prepare their battle arrays and attack. Those people declared that they would fight and kill Wei Ying then and there. They already portrayed as an irredeemable evil and bearing the sole responsibility for this conflict.
Wei Ying slowly tilted his head, looking intently at the faces of those who were adamant in demanding his death. He looked so utterly in control, but these deliberate movements were the opposite of it. He had let go of all restrains and he did not care of the consequences. As though he got nothing more left to lose. With a bitter smile, Wei Ying twirled Chenqing up and placed it at his lips. The black flute howled the eerie lethal tune, pale hands broke through the dirt and corpses began to crawl out from the depths of the soil. Some mounted their swords and attempted to flee the scene but they were immediately struck back by the vines of black wisps that whooshing in the air. Amid the notes of the flute, the glowing blood red eyes lit up brightly contrasting with the night sky, looking down at the thousands of people from clans of cultivation world that were fighting to their demises with his battalion of the underworld. All sects were jumbled. Each sect leader hurried to protect their own disciples. Lan Wangji watched with a heartache as his own sects was not spared as they were all part of an army gathered together to pledge to kill him. He tried to call out his name. "Wei Ying."
Wei Ying spun around and meet his eyes. He spoke in a cold voice, "Lan Zhan. You finally came."
Lan Wangji was caught up in a surprise when Wei Ying responded to his call, he froze rigid. Before he could react, he got another shock.
"Lan Zhan, I knew it. One day, we are going to have a real fight." Wei Ying again placed his flute to his lips without any hesitation. However, this tune was a little different than the one that he heard earlier. The dark fog surrounded Wei Ying got thicker. Right now, Wei Ying had already lost his judgement. He was already half-mad, half-unconscious.
No! I'm not here fight you.
Lan Wangji wanted to say that and tried to reach him. As he got closer, the barrier made of the smoke started to attack him. He dodged it way too easily as if that wicked thing was ordered not to hurt him at all.
"Wei Ying! Stop." Lan Wangji wanted to say more but the amidst the high-pitched melody, his voice would drown, and his words wouldn't be heard. He tried again and this time he pulled Bichen out. His only intention was to break through the barrier and pull Wei Ying into his arms. The dense resentful energy created an impenetrable shield that even his sword could not break. He was forced to move backward again and until a certain distance, the formless protector withdrew. Lan Wangji realized; Wei Ying never wanted to harm him. Instead, he just would not let him come near.
Why won't you let me go near?
"Wei Ying! Stop this now!" Lan Wangji shouted. His voice was clearly shaking.
Perhaps his voice could still reach Wei Ying because not long after, Wei Ying dropped Chen Qing to his side. Sadness clouded his features, "Lan Zhan, do you think I have other choice now?"
"You must trust me." Lan WangJi pleaded.
"But you didn't trust me." Wei Ying lips trembled as tears slowly rolled down his cheeks.
Lan Wangji wanted to refute it, but he couldn't no longer make any sound. From that point, it seemed like the scenario was set in fast forward. What he saw next shook him to his core. His blood ran cold, and he felt a rising tide of fear from his head to toe.
Staying true to his title as the grandmaster of demonic cultivations, Wei Ying was fully consumed with the darkness within him. He was levitating mid-air, enveloped by black layer of prickly tendrils of smog, emitting deadly red bolts of lightning and unleashing his true power. His face was devoid of emotions and his eyes were set ablaze in crimson. More corpses of all kinds and vengeful spirits of all forms crawled out from the underworld and obeying the Yiling Patriarch's control with the deadly whistle of Chen Qing. Wei Ying was a one-man army, but he was stronger than all of the gathered forces combined. Thousands of lives were lost in bloodbath.
Lan Wangji's soul was drowning into the river of his grief and heartbreak. He wasn't aggrieving for the thousands that died under Wei Ying's hands but rather he was mourning for Wei Ying himself. He came to an understanding that those people who died had no one to blame for killing them but themselves. None of them were innocent, and they all got exactly what they were asking for. Wei Ying tried everything he could to resolve things peacefully. Yet the entire cultivation world was determined to attack and kill him, and they wrongfully slaughtered all of the innocents under his protection, he fought back. If they weren't all vowing to kill him and hadn't attacked him first, they wouldn't have died. They were the ones who insisted on violence. In the end, they all just reaped what they sowed.
Lan Wangji jolted awake from his slumber and the reeling emotions still lingered in his mind. He was not sure whether it was just a dream or part of the future that Wei Ying had told him before. He heard the story of it but experiencing it firsthand was more disturbing and despairing than he thought. One thing for sure, his perspectives on certain things and certain people had drastically changed. He felt the urge to sneak in the room next door to check on the person he wanted to see right now but it would be inappropriate.