Chapter 72: 桀骜第十六

Jinlin Pavilion.

Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji walked side by side, moving slowly through a sea of Golden Star Snowwave blossoms.

Lan Xichen brushed his hand across one of the full, snow-white Golden Star Snowwave flowers, the gesture so gentle that not a single dewdrop fell. He said, 'Wangji, is something weighing on you? Why have you looked so troubled all this while?' Though to anyone else, this 'troubled' look was probably no different from any of Lan Wangji's other expressions.

Lan Wangji's brow was heavy, and he shook his head. After a long moment, he said quietly, 'Brother, I want to bring someone back to Cloud-Deep Unknown Place.'

Lan Xichen said, surprised, 'Bring someone back to Cloud-Deep Unknown Place?'

Lan Wangji nodded, deeply preoccupied. After a pause, he added, 'Bring them back... and hide them.'

Lan Xichen's eyes went wide on the spot.

This younger brother of his — ever since their mother died, his temperament had grown more and more withdrawn. Apart from going out on a Night Hunt, he spent all day shut up in his room reading, meditating, practicing calligraphy, playing the qin, cultivating. He didn't like talking to anyone — only with him would he say a few more words. But for something like this to slip out of his mouth — that was a first.

Lan Xichen said, 'Hide them?'

Lan Wangji frowned slightly and said, 'But he's unwilling.'

Just then a commotion rose up ahead, and a voice snapped, 'Is this a path you're allowed on? Who said you could wander around here?'

Another, younger voice said, 'My apologies. I...'

At the sound of that voice, Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji both looked up at once. By the screen wall stood two men. The one who'd just barked out the reprimand was Jin Zixun, with several servants and cultivators trailing behind him, and the one being reprimanded was a young man in white robes. The moment that man caught sight of the two of them, his face went pale and the rest of his words wouldn't come out. And just as Jin Zixun glared coldly down at him, Jin Guangyao appeared at exactly the right moment to smooth things over.

He said to the man in white, 'The paths up Jinlin Pavilion are complicated — no wonder Young Master Su took a wrong turn. Come with me.'

Seeing him pop up, Jin Zixun gave a snort and walked off around them. But the man in white was startled and said, 'You know me?'

Jin Guangyao smiled. 'Of course I remember. Why wouldn't I? Didn't we meet once before? Young Master Su Mianshan, your swordsmanship is truly excellent. Ever since the Hundred Phoenix Hunt I kept thinking — it'd be such a shame if a talented young man like this didn't come to our family. And then you really did come, which delighted me to no end. Please — this way?'

Sword cultivators who'd thrown in their lot with the Lanling Jin Sect like Su She were beyond counting, and he'd assumed no one would recognize him. To his surprise, Jin Guangyao had only met him once in passing and remembered him perfectly clearly — and praised him highly besides. Su She's expression eased considerably, and he stopped looking over at the two Lan Clan brothers, following Jin Guangyao away as if afraid they might step up to mock him or point and stare.

Inside the Beauty-Comparing Hall, Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji took their seats in turn. It was no longer convenient to continue their earlier conversation here, and Lan Wangji had returned to his usual ice-cold composure. The Gusu Lan Sect's distaste for drinking was widely known, and thanks to Jin Guangyao's arrangements, neither of their small tables held a wine cup — only tea cups and a few clean, simple little dishes. No one came forward to toast them either; it was perfectly peaceful. Who knew the peace wouldn't last long — a man in a Golden Star Snowwave robe suddenly came striding over, a wine cup in each hand, calling loudly, 'Sect Leader Lan, Hanguang-jun, a toast to the two of you!'

This was none other than Jin Zixun, who had been going around toasting everyone since a moment ago. Jin Guangyao knew that neither Lan Xichen nor Lan Wangji liked to drink, and hurried over. 'Zixun, Zewu-jun and Hanguang-jun both came from Cloud-Deep Unknown Place — there are three thousand sect rules carved on the Discipline Stone there. Making them drink would be worse than...'

Jin Zixun had no patience for Jin Guangyao at all — he thought the man was lowborn and was ashamed to share a clan with him. He cut him off directly: 'Our Jin Family and the Lan Family are one big family, all of us our own people. If you two Lan brothers won't drink, then you're looking down on me!'

Off to the side, several of his hangers-on clapped and praised him: 'Now that's the bold and hearty spirit!'

'A man of renown should be exactly so!'

Jin Guangyao kept his smile unchanged, but let out a silent sigh and rubbed his temples. Lan Xichen rose to politely decline, but Jin Zixun wouldn't let it go, saying to Lan Xichen, 'Don't say anything, Sect Leader Lan — our two families aren't like outsiders, so don't go pulling that outsider treatment on me! One word — are you drinking or not?'

The corner of Jin Guangyao's smiling mouth was practically twitching. He cast an apologetic glance at Lan Xichen and said gently, 'Sect Leader Lan and his party still have to fly back by sword afterward — drinking might affect their sword-flight...'

Jin Zixun was unconvinced. 'A couple of cups could knock someone over? I could down eight great basins of it and still fly my sword straight into the sky!'

Praise and cheers broke out all around. Lan Wangji remained seated, staring coldly at the cup Jin Zixun had shoved in front of him, and seemed about to speak — when suddenly, a hand took the cup.

Lan Wangji froze for a moment, his furrowed brow smoothing all at once, and he looked up.

The first thing to meet his eye was black robes, a dizi at the waist, a blood-red tassel hanging from its end. The newcomer stood with his hands behind his back, tipped his head back, and drained the cup in one go, then showed Jin Zixun the empty bottom of it. 'I'll drink it for him. Satisfied?'

Smiling eyes, a teasing lilt at the end of his words. Tall and elegant, striking and handsome.

Lan Xichen said, 'Lord Wei?'

Someone gasped under their breath, 'When did he get here?!'

Wei Wuxian set down the cup and straightened his collar with one hand. 'Just now.'

Just now? But just now no one had been announced or greeted in — not one person had noticed when he'd slipped, ghostlike, into the Beauty-Comparing Hall. A chill went through the crowd. Jin Guangyao recovered quickly, as warm and gracious as ever. 'I didn't know Lord Wei was gracing Jinlin Pavilion — forgive us for not welcoming you properly. Shall we set a seat for you? Oh, right — do you have an invitation?'

Wei Wuxian skipped the pleasantries and went straight to the point. 'No need, and no. ' He gave Jin Zixun a slight nod. 'Young Master Jin, a word, if I may.'

Jin Zixun said, 'Whatever you've got to say, come back and say it after our Family Banquet is done with its guests.'

In truth he had no intention of talking with Wei Wuxian at all. Wei Wuxian saw that too. 'How long is that?'

Jin Zixun said, 'Six, eight hours, maybe. Could even be ten or twelve. Or tomorrow.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'I'm afraid I can't wait that long.'

Jin Zixun said haughtily, 'You'll wait whether you can or not.'

Jin Guangyao said, 'May I ask what business Lord Wei has with Zixun? Is it very urgent?'

Wei Wuxian said, 'It's pressing. Not a moment to spare.'

Jin Zixun turned to Lan Xichen and lifted the other cup. 'Sect Leader Lan, come now, you haven't drunk yours yet!'

Seeing him deliberately stall, a dark flicker passed between Wei Wuxian's brows. He narrowed his eyes, the corner of his mouth curving up. 'Fine. Then I'll just say it here. Tell me, Young Master Jin — do you know a man named Wen Clan?'

Jin Zixun said, 'Wen Clan? No.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'You'll definitely remember this one. Last month you were on a Night Hunt around Ganquan, chasing an eight-winged bat king all the way to where the remnants of the Qishan Wen Sect are gathered — or rather, where they're confined. You took away a group of the Wen Clan Master's disciples, and the one at the head of them was him.'

After the Sun-Striking Campaign, the Qishan Wen Sect was wiped out, and the territory they'd once spread across in every direction was carved up among the other families. The Ganquan area fell under the banner of the Lanling Jin Sect. As for the remnants of the Wen Clan, they were all driven into one corner of Qishan, holding less than a thousandth of their former land, crammed in there and barely scraping by. Jin Zixun said, 'If I don't remember, I don't remember. I'm not so idle that I'd bother committing the name of some Wen Dog to memory.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Fine, I don't mind being more specific. You couldn't catch that bat king, and you happened to run into a few of the Wen Clan Master's disciples who'd come to check on the strange phenomenon, so you forced them to carry the Soul-Calling Banner on their backs and act as bait for you. They didn't dare. One of them came out and stammered through an argument with you — that man is the one I mean, Wen Clan. While you dragged it out, the bat king escaped, and you beat these Wen Clan cultivators senseless and hauled them off by force, after which they vanished. Do I need to give you any more details? They still haven't returned, and other than asking you, I really don't know who else there is to ask.'

Jin Zixun said, 'Wei Wuxian, what's your point? Coming to demand people back from me? Don't tell me you mean to stick your neck out for a Wen Dog?'

Wei Wuxian said, all smiles, 'Whether I'm sticking my neck out or chopping necks off — what's it to you? Just hand them over!'

On that last sentence the smile vanished from his face, his voice turning abruptly cold and grim — he'd clearly run out of patience. A good many people in the Beauty-Comparing Hall couldn't help shuddering. Jin Zixun's scalp prickled too. But his fury surged up at once, and he barked, 'Wei Wuxian, how arrogant! Did our Lanling Jin Sect invite you here today? And you dare stand here running wild — do you really think you're invincible, that no one dares cross you? You want to turn the world upside down?'

Wei Wuxian smiled. 'You're comparing yourself to the heavens? Forgive me for being blunt, but that's a bit thick-skinned.'

Though Jin Zixun had in fact long regarded the Lanling Jin Sect as the new heaven, he knew he'd misspoken. His face flushed slightly, and he was about to raise his voice in retort when, at that moment, Jin Guangshan spoke up from the head seat.

He gave a chuckle. 'It's hardly a big matter to begin with — why do you young people need to lose your tempers? But Lord Wei, let me say a fair word. Barging into our Lanling Jin Sect's private banquet like this — it really won't do.'

To say Jin Guangshan didn't mind the business at the Hundred Phoenix Hunt would be impossible. That was exactly why he'd sat back smiling all this while as Jin Zixun butted heads with Wei Wuxian, never stepping in to stop it — until Jin Zixun had the upper hand knocked out from under him, and only then did he speak. Wei Wuxian inclined his head. 'Sect Leader Jin, I had no intention of disturbing a private banquet — my apologies. But the few people this Young Master Jin took away are now of unknown fate and whereabouts; a moment's delay and it may be too late to save them. One of them once saved my life, and I absolutely cannot stand by and do nothing. I won't ask your forgiveness — I'll make amends later.'

Jin Guangshan said, 'What is there that can't be set aside for a bit? Come now, sit down first, and let's discuss it slowly.'

Jin Guangyao had long since soundlessly set out a fresh table and seat. Wei Wuxian said, 'You're too kind, Sect Leader Jin, but I won't sit. This can't be put off any longer — please resolve it quickly.'

Jin Guangshan said, 'No need to rush. As it happens, there are a few matters of our own still unsettled between us, and they can't be put off either. Since you're here now, why don't we take this chance to settle them all together?'

Wei Wuxian raised an eyebrow. 'Settle what?'

Jin Guangshan said, 'Lord Wei, we've mentioned this matter to you a few times before — surely you haven't forgotten. During the Sun-Striking Campaign, you once made use of a certain thing.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Oh, you did mention it. The Yin Tiger Talisman. What about it?'

Jin Guangshan said, 'I hear this Yin Tiger Talisman was cast from the iron essence of an iron sword you obtained at the bottom of the Butcher of Xuanwu Cave. You used it once on the battlefield back then, and its power was terrifying — to the point that even some of our own cultivators were caught in its backlash...'

Wei Wuxian cut him off. 'Get to the point, please.'

Jin Guangshan said, 'This is the point. In that great battle, it wasn't only the Wen Clan that suffered — our side took considerable losses too. I think a treasure like that is hard to control, and for it to be kept by a single person alone, I'm afraid...'

Before he could finish, Wei Wuxian suddenly began to laugh.

After a few laughs, he said, 'Sect Leader Jin, allow me one more question. Do you think that, now that the Qishan Wen Sect is gone, the Lanling Jin Sect ought to step in as a matter of course and take their place?'

Inside the Beauty-Comparing Hall, you could have heard a pin drop.

Wei Wuxian went on, 'Everything has to be handed over to you, everyone has to do as you say? The way the Lanling Jin Sect carries on, I almost thought it was still the glory days of the Wen tyrant's reign.'

At those words, a flash of humiliated fury crossed Jin Guangshan's square face. After the Sun-Striking Campaign, the murmurs among the great families about Wei Wuxian practicing the Ghost Divine Art had been steadily mounting. By raising the Yin Tiger Talisman here, his real aim had been to threaten Wei Wuxian a little, to remind him: you've still got a weakness, everyone's watching you, don't be too arrogant, don't dream of riding over our family's heads. Who knew Wei Wuxian would speak so nakedly, so bloodily — though he himself had secretly harbored the ambition to inherit the Wen Clan's position, no one had ever dared lay it bare so plainly, and mock him for it on top of that. A guest cultivator on his right barked, 'Wei Wuxian! Mind how you speak!'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Did I say something wrong? Forcing the living to act as bait, beating them down every which way the moment they don't comply — how is that any different from the Qishan Wen Sect?'

Another guest cultivator rose to his feet. 'Of course there's a difference. The Wen Dogs committed every kind of evil — ending up like this is no more than what their crimes deserve. We're only giving them a taste of their own medicine, letting them eat the bitter fruit they themselves planted. What's there to find fault with?'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Whoever bit you, you make them pay it back. Wen Clan's branch never got a drop of blood on their hands — or are you trying to drag in guilt by association?'

One man said, 'Lord Wei, just because you say they've got no blood on their hands, that makes it so? That's nothing but your one-sided word. Where's your proof?'

Wei Wuxian said, 'You think they slaughtered people indiscriminately — isn't that your one-sided word too? Shouldn't you be the one producing proof first? How is it turned around to demanding it from me?'

The man shook his head over and over, the very picture of 'this person is being unreasonable.' Another sneered, 'Back when the Wen Clan slaughtered our people, they were a thousand times more brutal than this! They never talked of decency with us, so why should we talk of decency with them?'

Wei Wuxian smiled. 'Oh. The Wen Dogs committed every kind of evil, so everyone surnamed Wen deserves death? That's not quite right, is it. Plenty of the turncoat clans that surrendered from the Qishan side are doing quite well these days. Aren't there a few right here in this hall — the very heads of families that were once vassals of the Wen Clan?'

Seeing themselves picked out, those several family heads instantly changed expression. Wei Wuxian went on, 'Since anyone surnamed Wen is fair game to vent your rage on, guilty or innocent — does that mean it's perfectly fine if I go and kill every last one of them right now?'

Before the words had finished, he pressed his hand down onto the Chenqing at his waist. In that instant, everyone in the banquet hall had certain memories stirred awake, as if they'd returned to that lightless battlefield, heaped with mountains of corpses and seas of blood. All at once people sprang to their feet here and there. Lan Wangji said in a low, grave voice, 'Wei Ying!'

Jin Guangyao, closest to Wei Wuxian, didn't change color at all, saying gently, 'Lord Wei, whatever you do, don't do anything rash — everything can be talked through.'

Jin Guangshan stood up too, alarm, fury, fear, and hatred all mixed together. 'Wei Wuxian! Just because Sect Leader Jiang... Sect Leader Jiang isn't here, you act with no restraint at all!'

Wei Wuxian said sharply, 'You think if he were here I'd show any more restraint? If I want to kill someone, who can stop me — who would even dare?!'

Lan Wangji said, word by word, 'Wei Ying, put down Chenqing.'

Wei Wuxian glanced at him, and in those eyes pale as glaze he saw an almost ferocious reflection of himself. He suddenly turned his head and barked, 'Jin Zixun!'

Jin Guangshan said hurriedly, 'Zixun!'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Enough talk. I'm sure you all know my patience has its limits. Where are they? I've wasted enough time on you — I'll give you to three. Three!'

Jin Zixun wanted to grit his teeth and hold out, but a glance at Jin Guangshan's expression sent a chill through his heart. Wei Wuxian went on, 'Two!'

Only then did Jin Zixun shout out, '...Fine! Fine! They're just a few Wen Dogs — if you want them to order around, take them. I won't waste my day tangling with you! Go find them yourself on the Qiongqi Path!'

Wei Wuxian gave a cold laugh. 'You could've just said so from the start.'

He came like the wind and left like the wind. The moment his figure vanished, the cloud of dread over many hearts finally lifted. In the Beauty-Comparing Hall, the people who'd been unable to sit still earlier sat back down in twos and threes, nine in ten of them already broken out in a cold sweat. Jin Guangshan stood blankly in his place, and after a long while, his fury suddenly erupted — he kicked the little table in front of him over. A table's worth of golden cups and silver dishes went clattering down the steps. Seeing him lose his composure, Jin Guangyao moved to smooth it over. 'Father...'

Before he could finish, Jin Guangshan had already swept off in a fury. Jin Zixun, feeling deeply that he'd backed down and lost face in front of everyone just now, was furious and resentful and made to exit along with him. Jin Guangyao said hastily, 'Zixun...'

Jin Zixun, in the thick of his temper, didn't think — he flung the undelivered cup of wine still in his hand straight at Jin Guangyao's chest. On the snow-white robe, the Golden Star Snowwave blazing over his heart suddenly bloomed another splattered flower of spilled wine — a wretched sight. But the scene was too chaotic, and this badly improper breach of manners drew hardly anyone's notice. Only Lan Xichen said, 'Third Brother!'

Jin Guangyao said quickly, 'It's fine, it's fine, it's fine — Second Brother, please sit.'

It wasn't Lan Xichen's place to comment on Jin Zixun, so he simply took out a snow-white handkerchief and handed it to him. 'Go change your clothes.'

Jin Guangyao took the handkerchief and dabbed at himself, smiling ruefully. 'I can't very well leave.'

He was the only one left in the hall to clean up this mess — how could he get away? While soothing the whole room, he said, frazzled, 'Ah, this Lord Wei really is far too impulsive. How could he say such things in front of so many families?'

Lan Wangji said coldly, 'Was he wrong?'

Jin Guangyao gave the faintest, barely perceptible start, then smiled. 'Haha. Right. He's right. But it's precisely because he's right that he can't say it to their faces.'

Lan Xichen, meanwhile, looked thoughtful. 'This Lord Wei — his nature truly has changed greatly.'

At those words, beneath Lan Wangji's tightly furrowed brow, a flicker of pain passed through those pale eyes.

Down off Jinlin Pavilion, Wei Wuxian wound through twist after twist of Lanling City and turned into a narrow alley. 'Found you. Let's go.'

Wen Xu had long been sitting and standing in agitation in the alley, and at his words she immediately rushed out. She was weak just now, a little dizzy and faint, and her foot turned under her. Wei Wuxian caught her body with one hand and offered, 'Do you want me to find you a place to rest? I can manage alone — I'll definitely bring Wen Clan back.'

Wen Xu hurriedly grabbed hold of him. 'No! No! I'm going, I have to go!'

After Wen Clan went missing, she had run on her own two legs without a moment's pause all the way from Qishan to Yunmeng, not closing her eyes for days. Since finding Wei Wuxian she'd been urging and begging him like a madwoman the whole way; right now her lips were white, her eyes glassy, barely recognizable as human. Seeing she was about to collapse and with no time to let her eat slowly, Wei Wuxian bought a few plain steamed buns from a street stall and put them in her hands. Wen Xu knew too that she was near her limit and had to eat. With her hair in a wild tangle, her eyes rimmed red, she gnawed at the buns through clenched teeth. The sight reminded Wei Wuxian of when he and Jiang Cheng were fleeing along the roads back in the day. He gave his assurance again. 'It'll be fine. I'll definitely get Wen Clan out.'

Wen Xu sobbed even as she ate. 'I knew I shouldn't have left... but I had no choice, they forced me to be reassigned to another city, and by the time I got back, A-Ning and the whole family were gone! I knew leaving him on his own wouldn't do!'

Wei Wuxian said, 'He can manage.'

Wen Xu broke down. 'He can't! A-Ning's always been timid since he was little — afraid of trouble, faint-hearted, didn't even dare take on anyone under him with a bit of temper, all of them just as meek and yes-saying as he is! When something goes wrong, without me he doesn't have the first idea what to do!'

Back when Wei Wuxian had carried Jiang Cheng on his back and bid her farewell, this was what Wen Xu had said: 'However this campaign turns out, from now on you owe us nothing and we owe you nothing. We're even.' Proud and aloof — he could still see it clearly. And yet last night she had gripped Wei Wuxian's hand for dear life, all but kneeling before him, pleading, 'Wei Wuxian, Wei Wuxian, Lord Wei, please help me. I truly can't find anyone else to help. You have to help me save A-Ning! There's no one but you I can turn to!'

Every trace of her former pride was gone.

The Qiongqi Path was an ancient road set in a mountain valley. Legend had it this road was where Wen Mao, the ancestor of the Qishan Wen Sect, had made his name in a single battle. Hundreds of years ago, he'd fought a savage struggle against an ancient ferocious beast here for eighty-one days and eighty-one nights, and finally slew it. This ancient ferocious beast was the Qiongqi — a divine beast that punished the good and exalted the evil, chaotic and wicked, that delighted in devouring the upright and loyal while rewarding those who did all manner of evil. Of course, whether this legend was true, or merely exaggerated by later sect heads of the Qishan Wen Sect to deify their ancestor, there was no way to verify.

Over hundreds of years, this valley had gone from a perilous strategic pass to a site of monument and sightseeing, all praise and tourism. After the Sun-Striking Campaign, the various families carved up the territory that had once been the Qishan Wen Sect's, and the Qiongqi Path too was taken into the Lanling Jin Sect's pocket. The tall, broad cliff faces on either side of the old road had once been carved with the deeds of the great sage Wen Mao's life. Once the Lanling Jin Sect took over, naturally they couldn't let these glorious tales of the Qishan Wen Sect remain, and were in the midst of rebuilding. 'Rebuilding' meant chiseling the entire cliff-face murals on both sides perfectly clean, scrubbing them all away, and carving new totems in their place. And of course, in the end, it would all have to be given a new name — one that showcased the Lanling Jin Sect's valor.

A great undertaking like this naturally required no small amount of hard labor. And for that labor, there was naturally no more fitting choice than the Wen Clan prisoners of war, who'd been reduced to homeless dogs after the Sun-Striking Campaign.

By the time the two of them reached the Qiongqi Path, it was night, and threads of cold rain drifted down from the dark sky. Wen Xu followed close behind Wei Wuxian, stumbling, shivering all over as if chilled from the inside out, and now and then Wei Wuxian had to steady her. In front of the valley stood a row of makeshift shelters where the prisoners rested at night. Leading Wen Xu along, Wei Wuxian saw from a distance a hunched figure, draped in the falling rain, moving slowly with a great banner hoisted on its shoulder. Drawing nearer, he saw that the banner-bearer was a trembling old woman, with a bewildered small child strapped to her back with cloth strips, earnestly chewing its fingers. The old and the young walked back and forth along the road, the old woman struggling mightily under that tall banner, taking two steps and resting, setting the banner down. Seeing this, Wen Xu cried out with reddened eyes, 'Granny! It's me!'

The old woman's eyes and ears were probably both failing — she couldn't make out clearly who had come or what was being called, only knew someone had drawn near and was calling something. Hurriedly she hoisted the banner back up, her face full of fear, as if terrified of being caught and scolded. Wen Xu ran up and snatched the banner away. 'What is this? What are they making you do!'

On this great banner was painted a huge Qishan Wen Sect sun crest, but now it had been smeared over with a great bloody red cross, the banner itself torn to tatters. From the end of the Sun-Striking Campaign until now, the people branded as 'remnant scum of the Wen Dogs' were beyond counting, and the methods of tormenting them beyond counting too — all dressed up under the fine name of 'self-reflection.' Wei Wuxian knew this old woman was surely too old to do hard labor like the others, so whoever was in charge here had dreamed up this method of tormenting her, making her carry the Wen Clan's tattered banner back and forth to humiliate herself.

The old woman first shrank back in fright, and once she'd barely made out who had come, her mouth fell open. Wen Xu said, 'Granny, where's A-Ning? Where's Uncle Four and the others? Where's A-Ning?!' The old woman looked at Wei Wuxian behind her and didn't dare speak, only gazed off toward the far side of the valley. Wen Xu couldn't spare a thought for anything else and went flying off that way.

Torches were set up along both sides of the broad valley, the flames flickering slightly in the fine rain but still blazing fiercely, lighting up the hundreds of figures trudging burdened along the mountain road.

These prisoners were all ashen-faced, their steps unsteady and dragging. They weren't permitted to use spiritual power or any outside aid — not only because the Lanling Jin Sect was wary of them, but because there had to be an element of punishment in it. A dozen or so overseers, holding black umbrellas, rode their horses through the rain, barking out orders. Wen Xu rushed into the rain, her gaze flying wildly over every grimy, exhausted face. An overseer noticed her and raised a hand, shouting, 'Where did you come from? Who said you could go barging around in here!'

Wen Xu said urgently, 'I'm looking for someone, I'm looking for someone!'

The overseer drove his horse closer, drew something from his waist, and brandished it. 'I don't care if you're looking for someone or someone's looking for you — go! If you don't go...'

Just then, he saw a black-robed young man come walking up behind this young woman, and as if his tongue had tied itself in a knot, his voice cut off all at once.

This young man had a bright, handsome face, but his gaze was decidedly cold and grim, fixing on him until he couldn't help shuddering. Soon he realized the young man wasn't staring at him, but at the Iron Brand he was brandishing in his hand.

These Iron Brands in the overseers' hands were exactly like the ones the Qishan Wen Sect's household servants had always used — only the shape of the branding plate at the tip had been changed from a sun crest to a peony crest.

Wei Wuxian noticed this, and a cold light flashed in his eyes. Quite a few of the overseers recognized his face, and quietly reined their horses back, whispering among themselves. No one dared block Wen Xu anymore as she searched and called out, 'A-Ning! A-Ning!'

Her cries were piercing, yet no one answered. She searched the whole valley and found no trace of her brother. If Wen Clan were here, he would have rushed out to her long ago. Those few overseers quietly dismounted, the whole circle of them straining to get a look at Wei Wuxian, as if hesitating whether they should step up to greet him. Wen Xu threw herself over and asked, 'Where are the Wen Clan cultivators newly sent in these last few days?'

Several of them traded glances. After dawdling a moment, one overseer who looked rather guileless said amiably, 'All the prisoners here are Wen Clan cultivators, and new ones come in every day.'

Wen Xu said, 'It's my younger brother — Jin Zixun brought him. He's... he's about this tall, doesn't talk much, and when he does, he stammers...'

The overseer said, 'Hey, miss, look — there are so many people here. How are we supposed to keep track of whether one or two of them stammer or not?'

Wen Xu stamped her foot in desperation. 'I know he's definitely here!'

The chief overseer, round and plump, put on a placating smile. 'Don't fret, miss. The thing is, people from other families often come here to ask for cultivators — maybe he was taken away by someone these last few days? And every now and then at roll call we find someone's run off too...'

Wen Xu said, 'He wouldn't run off! Granny and the others are all here — my brother wouldn't run off alone.'

The overseer said, 'Why not look for him slowly, then? Everyone's right here. If you can't find him in this valley, then there's nothing we can do.'

Suddenly Wei Wuxian said, 'Everyone's here?'

The moment he spoke, those several men's faces stiffened. The overseer turned to him. 'That's right.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'All right. I'll grant for now that everyone who's alive is here. So — what about the others?'

Wen Xu's body swayed.

The 'others,' set against the 'living,' could naturally only mean the dead.

The chief overseer hurried to say, 'You mustn't talk like that. Sure, this place is all Wen Clan cultivators, but no one here would dare go causing deaths...'

Wei Wuxian seemed not to hear, and took the dizi from his waist. Several prisoners who had been struggling along beside him suddenly cried out, threw down the loads on their backs, and fled. In the valley, a great clearing rapidly opened up with him at its center.

In truth these prisoners didn't recognize Wei Wuxian's face, because every Wen Clan cultivator who had ever crossed paths with Wei Wuxian on the battlefield of the Sun-Striking Campaign had met only one end — total annihilation. So the Wen Clan cultivators who knew his face had mostly been reduced to a Malevolent Corpse each, manipulated and driven by him, made into his subordinates. But this black wooden dizi with its dangling crimson tassel, and the black-robed young man who controlled it, had long since become their nightmare. All around, people gasped out, 'The Ghost Dizi Chenqing!'

Wei Wuxian raised Chenqing to his lips, and the shrill, piercing dizi note tore across the night sky like a single sharp arrow splitting the clouds, cutting through the night rain — then the echo rang out and reverberated through the whole valley. Just one note, and Wei Wuxian lowered Chenqing again, standing with his hand hanging at his side, a cold smile on his lips, letting the threads of rain soak his black hair and black robes.

Before long, someone suddenly said, 'What's that sound?'

From beyond the crowd came bursts of startled cries, as people scrambled and tumbled to break open a clearing in the encirclement. In the space they'd cleared, in the pattering rain, stood a dozen or so ragged figures swaying and leaning, tall and short, men and women, some of them giving off waves of rotting stench. Standing at the very front, his eyes still open, was Wen Clan.

His face was deathly pale as wax, his pupils unfocused, the blood at the corner of his mouth already congealed to a dark brown. Though his chest didn't rise or fall at all, you could clearly see half his ribs had been beaten in. Anyone who saw such a shape would never believe the man was still alive, but Wen Xu still refused to give up, reaching out with trembling hands to feel for his pulse.

She gripped on for the longest time, and finally burst out crying with a wail.

All these days she'd been frightened and afraid, running until she was half-mad, and still she'd come too late — hadn't even seen her brother's face one last time.

Crying, Wen Xu felt along Wen Clan's ribs, as if she wanted to set them back together, clinging to the deluded hope of catching some last thread of life. That once-sweet face was twisted with weeping, gone ugly, hard to look at. But when a person is truly heartbroken to the very depths, there is simply no way to cry prettily.

Before the stiff corpse of her only brother, the pride she had held to was wiped out without a shred remaining.

The shock was too great for Wen Xu, and at last she couldn't hold on and fainted. Wei Wuxian stood behind her and caught her without a word, letting her lean against his chest. He closed his eyes, and only after a moment opened them again. 'Who killed this man.'

His tone was neither cold nor warm, as if he weren't angry but pondering something. The overseer at the head of them, taking it as a stroke of luck, said stubbornly, 'Lord Wei, you mustn't say such things wildly. No one here would dare kill anyone — he was just careless at his work and rolled off the cliff to his death.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'No one dares go killing people? Really?'

Several overseers swore in unison, 'Absolutely true!'

'Not a word of a lie!'

Wei Wuxian gave a faint smile. 'Oh. I understand.'

Then, unhurried, he went on, 'Because they're Wen Dogs, and Wen Dogs aren't people. So killing them doesn't count as killing people — that's what you mean, right?'

That very thought had just been in the chief overseer's mind, and being struck through so suddenly, his face went pale. Wei Wuxian went on, 'Or do you really think I wouldn't be able to tell how a man died?'

The overseers fell silent, finally beginning to sense that things were going very wrong, with a faint inclination to back away. Wei Wuxian kept his smile unchanged. 'You'd better confess right now — whoever did the killing, step forward yourself. Otherwise, I'll just have to kill the wrong ones rather than let any guilty one slip by. Wipe them all out — that way there's no fish slipping the net.'

Scalps prickled, spines went cold. The chief overseer mumbled, 'The Yunmeng Jiang Clan and the Lanling Jin Sect are on good terms right now, you mustn't...'

At that, Wei Wuxian glanced at him, surprised. 'You've got nerve. Is that a threat?'

The chief overseer said hastily, 'I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Congratulations — you've successfully used up every last bit of my patience. Since you won't say it, then let him answer for himself.'

As if it had been waiting all this while for that very word, Wen Clan's stiff corpse suddenly moved and lifted its head. Before the two nearest overseers could even cry out, each had his throat seized in a hand clamped like an iron band.

Wen Clan, expressionless, hoisted these two short, stocky overseers high into the air. The circle of cleared ground all around grew wider and wider. The chief overseer cried, 'Lord Wei! Lord Wei! Show mercy! This one rash act of yours — the consequences can never be undone!'

The rain came down harder and harder, sliding ceaselessly down Wei Wuxian's cheeks.

He turned sharply, set his hand on Wen Clan's shoulder, and barked, 'Wen Qionglin!'

As if in answer, Wen Clan let out a long, deafening roar, until everyone in the whole valley felt a faint ache in their ears.

Wei Wuxian said, word by word, 'Whoever made you this way, make them meet the same end. I grant you this right — settle the score clean!'

At those words, Wen Clan immediately smashed the two overseers in his grip head-on into each other. The two heads burst at once like split watermelons, with a thunderous 'crack,' red and white exploding in a scatter of blossoms.

The scene was utterly bloody. Screams rose and fell through the valley, horses neighed, prisoners fled, all in absolute chaos. Wei Wuxian scooped Wen Xu up sideways into his arms and, as if nothing were the matter, threaded through the boiling crowd, took hold of a horse, and was about to turn when a small, scrawny prisoner said, '...Mr. Wei!'

Wei Wuxian looked back. 'What is it?'

The prisoner's voice trembled slightly as he pointed in a direction. 'At... at the far end of the valley there's a hut, the one they used to... lock people up and beat them. The ones beaten to death they just dragged out and buried. The people you're looking for — maybe some of them are still there...'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Thank you.'

Following the direction the man pointed, he did indeed find a shed that looked makeshift. With Wen Xu in one arm, he kicked the door open with one foot. A dozen or so people sat in the corner of the hut, every one of them bloody-headed, noses bruised and faces swollen, jolting in fright at his rough kick. Several of them, seeing Wen Xu in the crook of his arm, paid no mind to their own injuries and threw themselves over, crying, 'Miss Wen!'

One demanded furiously, 'You... who are you? What have you done to our leader?'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Nothing. Which of you are cultivators under Wen Clan? Enough talk — out, all of you!'

Several of them traded glances, but Wei Wuxian had already left carrying Wen Xu, so they had no choice but to force their bodies up and follow, propping each other along. The moment they were out of the hut, before they could even make out what was going on in the chaos of the valley, Wei Wuxian said, 'Everyone find a horse — quickly!'

A middle-aged man said, 'No — our Young Master Wen Clan...'

At that moment, a human head flew past in front of him. The whole group turned their heads in unison, just in time to see Wen Clan hurl a headless corpse, hands and feet still twitching, to the ground and dig into its innards with his bare hands. Wei Wuxian barked, 'Enough!'

A low roar came from Wen Clan's throat, as if he still wasn't satisfied, but Wei Wuxian gave a whistle and said again, 'Get up!' Wen Clan had no choice but to stand. Wei Wuxian said, 'What are you all standing around dazed for? Get on the horses! Or are you waiting for me to go find you flying swords?'

One of them remembered the old woman was still there, and hurried to bring her and the small child along too, helping them up onto a horse. Wei Wuxian himself, still cradling the unconscious Wen Xu, swung up onto his horse. With several dozen people, in the chaos they'd managed to find only a dozen or so horses, two or three to a mount, crammed tightly. The old woman couldn't ride alone and had to barely hold the small child as well. Seeing this, Wei Wuxian reached out a hand. 'Give him to me.'

The old woman shook her head over and over, and the child clung tight to its grandmother's neck, about to slide off, yet both their eyes held a fear they couldn't hide. Wei Wuxian reached out and lifted the child over, tucking it under his arm. The old woman was terrified. 'A-Yuan! A-Yuan!'

The child called A-Yuan, though very young, already knew to be afraid — but he didn't cry, only kept gnawing at his own fingers, sneaking glances at Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian barked, 'Let's go!' He clamped his legs against the horse's back and set off first. A dozen or so horses followed close behind, galloping away through the night rain.