Prologue
Chapter 01 – Prologue
Jiang Cheng didn´t know how it had happened. One moment he was in his study, organizing his paperwork and attending to his sect duties, and then everything went black. The next thing he was aware of was that he was no longer in said study, and from the looks of it, he wasn´t even in Lotus Pier anymore.
He turned his gaze from side to side, realizing that he wasn’t the only one in this cave like place. Multiple bodies of hopefully unconscious cultivators were around him. White, yellow, dark green, black, orange, purple, gold …there were so many more colours.
He felt a slight movement on his left side, and when he looked down, he came face to face with the unconscious form of his nephew who apparently thought it was the best time for freaking cuddles.
Jiang Cheng sighed in relief after making sure Jin Ling was well, and while trying to stay as still as possible as to not wake him up, he looked around hoping to recognize potential allies in such an unknown situation.
In a little sea of white robes at his right, he could recognize Lan Qiren, the Lan juniors that were always with his nephew, the insufferable Second Jade of Gusu who was hugging (-the bane of his existent-) Wei Wuxian even in his sleep.
In further inspection, he realized that the Second Jade´s older brother, Lan Xichen, was also there. Which was even stranger. As far as he knew, the Sect Leader Lan was supposed to still be in seclusion.
“Was he still a Sect Leader?” It had been 4 years since he last saw the First Jade after the Guanyin Temple´s incident, so it was honestly a good question in Jiang Cheng´s opinion.
.
Looking around a little more, he saw Nie Huaisang hugging his fan and being surrounded by the Nie disciples. Ouyang Zizhen was sleeping against his father´s chest, who was holding him in a protective way, almost as if he wanted to protect his son from the world around him. Which he could actually understand. He had heard of what had happened to the Ouyang´s Sect Leader´s family during the Sunshot Campaign. Although by then it had already been too late.
His wife and three daughters murdered by Wen soldiers while Sect Leader Ouyang was on the battlefield. The only reason the younger Ouyang was even alive was because the third daughter, Ouyang Lifen, had knocked him unconscious and hidden him in a secret compartment on the floor of her own room along with a jade bracelet that had belonged to her, which had a strong protection spell webbed into it. If she had just kept wearing it as she had since the moment she received it, she would had been there.
Trying to stop himself from thinking any further about it, he looked around some more. He was surprised to see some distant relatives and cultivators from Meishan Yu, her mother´s former sect. He could even distinguish the tell-tale chains and ragged cloths of the Ghost General´s robes a little further away but not too much from the Lan sea of white, which made his and his idiotic brother´s black robes all the more notorious to say the least.
In the back, far away from the rest, Sect Leader Yao along with some other Sect Leaders from minor clans where also there, although they had three or four disciples from each sect, which were few, considering that around him and Jin Ling were at least eight cultivators from each of their respective sects, surrounding them in a small sea of yellow and purple like the Lans. So far, Gusu Lan had the majority of cultivators from one same sect, being around ten at least.
He heard small groans around him, along with some small movements coming from the brat, who apparently thought he was a fucking pillow. “He better not drool on me, or I´ll break his legs-!”
“Wanyin-Shixiong?” asked the Sect Leader Nie, with a voice too normal for it to be of someone that had just woken up.
Jiang Cheng narrowed his eyes minutely, assessing the other. It was true they, along with Wei Wuxian, had become sworn brothers while they were studying in Gusu, but that didn´t make him trust him any less nor more than any other person he knew. After all, he had seen him scheme against Jin Guangyao, which later on let to his imminent demise.
Of course, he didn´t blame him.
If it had been up to him, he would have done a lot worse than that.
“Lan Zhan? ...A-Yuan?” the black robed man looked around, seeing himself surrounded by unconscious Lans, when he suddenly felt someone´s eyes on himself. He incorporated himself, searching for the source of that feeling, only to end up locking eyes with his brother. ”Jiang Cheng, wha-what´s going on?”
Before he could answered, he heard some colourful swearing at his side.
“He sure as fuck hadn´t taught him that!!”
The young Sect Leader Jin woke up slowly, feeling as though his head was being split opened, kept on groaning in pain and cursing under his breath. Completely oblivious to the punishments that that moment of distraction had gained him.
Little by little, all the remaining people started to woke up. Some cursing, others being confused or angry at the uncertain situation they had found themselves in; and in one memorable occasion, even going as far as to pass out as soon as they opened their eyes because they were too damn frightened. Which was absolutely ridiculous! It wasn´t as if they were surrounded by fierce corpses, they were just in a strange cave, no big deal.
Right?
~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~
They had been trying to make themselves comfortable in the barely lighted cave, when suddenly balls of fire similar to those produced by certain types of fire talismans appeared in strategic places of the cave, making it a lot easier to see where they were.
It was after seeing the high ceilings and bloody pool in a corner for the third time that Jiang Cheng realized why it all looked so familiar. They were in the Demon Slaughtering Cave where Wei Wuxian had lived in with the remnants of the Wen Sect before the siege. And right in front of them, where Wei Wuxian used to hang his talismans to dry, was now a big black clothed thing similar to the screens used on plays.
Every single cultivator on the room was tense enough already, that when suddenly Sect Leader Yao screamed “It´s Xue Yang!”, all hell broke loose.
In the middle of the chaos, a couple of rogue cultivators that had remained on the outskirts of the cave made their presences known. They were quite a few of them, all in different types and shades of robes that showed that they did not belong to any sect. Among the eleven of them, there was one that immediately drew the Sect Leader Jiang´s attention, because he knew those silver locks, and they did not belong to a simple rogue cultivator.
Before Jiang Cheng could so much as said something about what was going on, the silver haired male, Lei Longwei, stepped forward and single-handedly defeated the people trying to get the infamous murderer and demonic cultivator, who upon seeing himself realised, promptly run to the Sect Leader in purple robes and situated himself next to the other as everyone looked on stunted silence.
Just as everyone was about to protest and demand an explanation, the screen seemed to light up from within. It was as if lilac and silver cobwebs expanded from the center to the furthest parts of it, until the screen was completely illuminated, revealing an ominous message.
"You've been in the shadows for far too long.
Always enduring in silence.
Giving your all for people that never realized your true worth.
It is time for you to show your true colours,
My dear Wild Lotus.
The cultivation world should know who its master is.
They should know who to respect, fear and beg to…
They've been ignorant for far too long.
It is time for them to realize your mercy.
After all, they should realize...
That the only reason they are alive is because you let them.
So rise, my dear Wild Lotus.
It is time to show them who is the superior one."
The screen turned black again, and then started showing the seasons one by one in quick succession. But in a backwards order.
The immense heat of the radiant sun in Summer. The blossoming of beautiful flowers on Spring. The cold and frozen rivers in Winter. And the foliage of the trees falling to the floor in all their vibrant colours during the Autumn.
No one knew what was going on, and yet everyone had the same thought.
Whatever was going to happen or be shown, it sure as hell was not going to be something good.
16 years ago.
“Wei Wuxian is dead! This calls for a celebration!”
“It´s good that he is dead. So satisfying.”
“If not because the Jiang Clan of Yunmeng betrayed their own family for the cause of justice, colluded with the Lan Clan of Gusu, the Jin Clan of Lanling, and the Nie Clan of Qinghe, the scourge, Wei Wuxian of Yiling, wouldn´t have been killed.”
“Agree. The Jiang Clan of Yunmeng was kind to take him in before, but they didn´t imagine they would be raising a tiger who would bring disaster.”
“He openly rebelled and became the enemy of everyone. It caused the Jiang family to almost be annihilated.”
Suddenly, the face of Wei Wuxian´s former body appeared on screen, followed by the scene of cultivators from various sects fighting each other in hopes of obtaining the Stygian Seal. All the while, the voices kept on.
“If I were Jiang Cheng, I would have killed him a long time ago”
People fighting. Blood everywhere. Screaming, stabbing, blood and death. So much death.
“I´ve obtained the Stygian Seal!” said a Jin cultivator, only to be backstabbed by Sect Leader Yao.
“What…What is this?” Said a Lan junior.
“The Siege of Nightless City, where the Yiling Patriarch fell” Answered another from the Jiang clan.
“But how?!” Exclaimed a senior cultivator from a minor clan.
The screen kept on showing more and more blood and death. Screaming and slashing each other. Killing each other for an object that would dance around them as if enjoying their greed and violence. Always so close and yet out of their reach.
Tears fell down Wei Wuxian´s cheeks, although he didn´t seem to notice. Looking at the destruction around him and feeling nothing. His light… His beautiful and innocent Shijie was gone. She was gone.
“Because of me…”
He advanced to the end of the cliff without hesitation.
He just wanted the pain to go away.
He went as far away from the other cultivators as he could, distracting them with fierce corpses and took the Stygian Seal away, with only one goal in mind.
He was going to destroy it for once and for all. Creating that damned thing took his light from him, and if she couldn’t live, then neither should it remain.
Wei Wuxian took a deep breath and called upon the resentful energy and aiming it all to the Seal. He knew what was going to happen, but he simply didn´t care anymore.
“Wei Wuxian!” Exclaimed the Sect Leader of Yunmeng Jiang.
The man opened his eyes abruptly in surprise, “Jiang Cheng…”
But it was too late. Half of the Seal got destroyed and the backlash would kill them both.
As the fierce corpses turn on them to attack (-following the Stygian Seal´s command-), Wei Wuxian pushed his younger brother out of the way and put some talismans around him, letting the fierce corpses attack only him.
Before Jiang Cheng could react, the first fierce corpse that got to him had already pierced his shoulder and a small part of his throat, being closely followed by others who went for his others limbs. The blood chilling screamed the feared Yiling Patriarch emitted could be heard everywhere.
All the juniors tried to close their eyes and cover their eyes to try to block that image from their minds, but it was already stuck in there. Even some senior cultivator were wincing in sympathy for what they were seeing. They had all heard that the Sect Leader of Yunmeng Jiang had killed his brother, but what they were seeing told a completely different story.
“Jiujiu, what…” Jin Ling couldn´t even finish his sentence. He simply didn´t understand. Although it was true that his Jiujiu always let people speculate whatever they wanted without actually confirming that he was the one to kill Wei Wuxian. “Why didn´t he tell me?” he thought while looking at his uncle as discreetly as he could.
“Lan Zhan, it´s ok. I´m here now”, said the resurrected master of demonic cultivation. He could feel his husband tightening the grip on his hand. And even though he knew his Lan Zhan would never hurt him, the Lan´s monstrous arm strength was making it uncomfortable, almost in the edge of turning a little too painful.
Despite the lack of response of his partner, he continue to repeat small comforting sentences under his breath, trying to calm him down without drawing unwanted attention to them.
“What is the meaning of this, Sect Leader Jiang?” asked Sect Leader Yao. Being automatically backed up by others Sect Leaders and senior cultivators of minor clans.
Jiang Cheng didn´t even spared them a glare, nor did he made an attempt to answer them. He just kept on watching at the screen intently. And tried to ignore his nephew´s insistent glare. That boy didn´t have a subtle bone in his body, seriously. Where had he gone wrong with him?
Besides, he sure as fuck didn´t like where all this was going. It was fortunate enough that no one had connected the dots about the “Wild Lotus” thing before. Right now it wasn´t a matter of “if” anymore but of “when”.
~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~
This time the place had changed. It was no longer in the outskirts of the cliff, but a teahouse where an old man was telling his tale, surrounded with common people and some Lan cultivators in their white robes.
Some cultivators started speculating by themselves about what was going on, while the more “respected noble men” feigned indifference while keeping an ear attuned to any and every word that was uttered. In the middle of all the gossip, a barely audible “Is that not..?!” from Ouyang Zizhen had all the juniors in disarray, because there-keeping their distance from everyone else- were the beautiful maiden they had seen in Yi City, along with two older men, the prestigious duo that everyone in the cultivation had heard about at least once in their lives, the "distant snow and cold frost", Song Zichen, and the "cool moon and gentle breeze", Xiao Xingchen.
Lan Qiren stroked his beard thoughtfully while observing the chaos around him. He couldn´t tell what actually had him more surprised, the fact that the cultivation world was integrated by pure gossips, or the fact that his younger nephew´s infamous husband was not apparently related to the bizarre commotion. As some Sect Leaders from minor sect along with other cultivators form the main ones (-and to Lan Qiren´s great shame, some disciples from the Lan sect were also part of it. It seemed that once that -whatever this was- was over, some people would have much to atone for-), the Grandmaster of Gusu Lan discreetly looked at the silver haired individual that was situated near the young Sect Leader of the rebuilt Yunmeng Jiang, along the black haired one. He knew the black haired one, Xue Yang. A demonic cultivator known for his wicked and brutal proclivities, and the sole culprit for the Chang clan´s extermination.
Although he couldn’t understand how his former student (-who had made his stand against demonic cultivators known in multiples occasions-) allowed such a man to be near him, what intrigued him the most was the presence of silver haired one. After all, in all his years, he had never seen someone like that.
The silver haired individual was pale as a jade, with a delicate face and kind yet strong eyes the colour of the night sky. His clothes though… they were similar in their form fitting aspect to that of the Jiang sect, and yet… that was all. Hard dark leather over reddish robes, with accentuated shoulders that looked like dragon horns and clawed gloves that looked too sharp even from such a distance.
“The perfect attire for a heavenly soldier to charge into war…Just like him”, his mind unhelpfully supplied, along with a glimpse of ruby eyes and a smug smirked directed his way.
It was because Lan Qiren had been looking at him that he noticed the change at all. Between one blink and the next, the silver haired man in dark clothes ceased to exist, and in his place, a dark haired male in rich and luxurious white robes, and a white fan decorated with bamboos over half of it on his right hand, remained. He almost draw attention to it, but decided against it at the last minute.
He would not draw conclusions to precipitately this time.
He would not make the same mistake.
Not again.
Not after him.
~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~
“Story teller, based on what you said, did the Yiling Patriarch, Wei Wuxian, die or not?” asked Lan Jingyi.
Before answering the story teller looked behind him, where the silhouette of a man with a fan could be seen behind a curtain. After not receiving an answer from his apparent benefactor, the old man decided to respond with, “He had surely fallen of that overhanging cliff. But for the past 16 years, despite the numerous times the young Sect Leader Jiang searched the area below the cliff, he couldn´t find a corpse. Legend says the Yilling Patriarch had the ability to turn the world upside down and destroy it, move mountains and drain the seas. Thus, even though it has been a peaceful sixteen years, who can be sure that the Yilling Patriarch, Wei Wuxian, wouldn´t come back to life today?”
“Crazy old man, sayi-”, thought the Lan disciple only to be interrupted, when not long after the old man´s words were uttered, an ominous darkness and wind reached the teahouse.
In the outside, a man that seemed drunk wouldn´t stop repeating “The soul has returned. Not going down into the underworld. The soul has returned. Not going down into the underworld. The soul has returned”, while carrying a flag with an array drawn in it.
“I´m sorry, Master, I will receive my punishment when we go back” Lan Jingyi bowed repeatedly, completely frightened by Lan Qiren´s righteous glare.
“Does this mean that everyone´s thoughts will be exposed?” asked a Nie junior, which caused another commotion around the adults.
“Could it be…?” said a cultivator in a breathy whisper without anyone noticing.
“…A-Yu…”
The screen showed a messy room with talismans and blood everywhere. An array was drawn with blood in the middle of the room, and inside it was a young man in white robes. His hair covered his face, and an ominous voice could be heard. Possibly calling for him.
“Mo XuanYu” called the voce time and time again.
“I saved you, I did it with all my heart”
“From now on, you are Mo XuanYu.”
“I didn´t want to use the spell and offer my body.”
“But…what could I do?”
“He said he found a way, and yet…”
“I can´t take it anymore.”
“Kill them all for me.”
“Kill them all.”
“Wei Wuxian.”
The newly resurrected Yilling Patriarch tried to make sense of his surroundings when the door of the place he was in was abruptly pull open and someone kicked him on the chest, making him fall on the bloody floor.
“Who are you? How do you dare kick me? How reckless!!” he thought while remaining on the floor.
“How do you dare report me?” said a chubby man with expensive robes that screamed Young Master at the first glance. “Do you think I´m afraid of that? Remember! You are in my house, eating my food and spending my money! You think I can´t take things from you? Your things are mine!” he screamed at the downed man, kicking him on the back and watching his cronies trash the place in the meantime.
“Young Mastered, everything´s been checked.”
“How quick. Have you found the cultivator´s item?”
“This are all we found in this shabby room, Master” he said while pointing at the talismans around them and handing him a stack with some of them that were hidden in one of the once barely usable furniture in the room.
“You hide this pieces of paper like treasure. You think you are somebody just because you´ve spent several years in Lanling? They will never accept you, a bastard. You´ve finally been kicked out like a dog.” He hit him with the stack of papers for every sentence he said. “As your cousin, I´m reminding you. A lowlife will always be one. You will never be associated with the influential Jin Clan. Don´t daydream.”
Before he could continue with his speech, a servant came to let him know that some cultivators had arrived to do a cleansing of the place. Since his mother was looking for him, he needed to go back immediately.
After a few more words and insults were said, the chubby man went away, taking his group of “loyal” dogs with him. While some of the juniors expressed their sympathy towards the mistreated male, other couldn´t contain their excitement towards their apparent incoming appearance in the screen-play as they had all dubbed it moments prior, and among the various emotions running through the cave, there was one person whose murderous rage could put even the former Yilling Patriarch to shame.
“That son of a bitch… I should have killed you myself, you unworthy pig-” he thought venomously. All the ways he could have maimed and killed that man that had dared to treat him like that filled his mind… oh, how he wished he could make that dirty dog pay for daring to touch one of his hairs. Dismembering his body until he died of blood loss and fed him to the beast would had been too much of a kindness-… “You should be thankful that I couldn´t get my hands on you, or I would have-”
“Sect Leader Nie…?”, Nie Guoliang, his right hand, asked him hesitantly, after seeing the younger Nie brother looking so serious and…murderous.
It was that hesitation what brought him abruptly out of his rather dark thoughts. Nie Guoliang had long gotten used to what was what his carefree persona, so for him to hesitate, Nie Huaisang had slipped quite a bit then.
Taking into account his surroundings, Nie Huaisang schooled his facial expressions once more and tried to get into his dumb and airheaded persona again, successfully fooling the people around him. Or at least, the majority of them, if the occasional glances from his Dage´s former best friend, Lan Xichen, and his own Shixiong, Jiang Wanyin, were any indication.
Who would had thought that feigning stupidity could be more difficult than showing one´s brilliance? Not Huaisang, for sure.