Sinister

Who would have thought, he had only stepped back once when his foot twisted, looking as if he might nearly fall to his knees. Lan Wangji's expression changed; he rushed forward, seizing his wrist tightly just like last time on Mount Dafan, steadying him, and dropping to one knee to examine his leg. Wei Wuxian was quite startled and hurriedly said, 'No, no, no, Hanguang-jun, you don't need to do this.'

Lan Wangji tilted his head up slightly, his pale eyes fixed on him for a moment, then lowered his head and continued to roll up his trouser leg. Wei Wuxian's hand was still held by him, so he had no choice but to look up at the sky.

On his leg was an expanse of black, bruise-like Curse Mark.

Lan Wangji looked at it for a long moment before saying in a strained voice, '...I only left for a few hours.'

Wei Wuxian spread his hands and said, 'A few hours is a long time; anything could happen. Come, come, rise.'

He pulled Lan Wangji up by the backhand, saying, 'Just an ordinary Curse Mark. When it comes for me, I'll disperse it. Hanguang-jun, you have to help me; I can't handle it without you. Did you catch the person? Was it him? Where is he now?'

Lan Wangji cast his gaze toward a shop sign at the far end of the long street. Wei Wuxian said, 'Let's settle the matter of the Stone Fortress first.' And so he walked toward that shop. Just now he hadn't noticed, but now he felt his legs tingling and numb, probably from being jolted by Zidian. Fortunately, Jiang Cheng still knew to control Zidian's intensity and didn't electrocute him into a charred corpse struck by lightning.

Lan Wangji stood behind him and suddenly called out, 'Wei Ying.'

Wei Wuxian paused for a moment, then, as if he hadn't heard that name, responded, 'What is it?'

Lan Wangji said, 'Did you transfer it from Jin Ling?'

It was not a question, but a statement.

Wei Wuxian neither confirmed nor denied. Lan Wangji spoke again: 'You encountered Jiang Wanyin.'

The Curse Mark still bore the imprint of Zidian; it was not hard to deduce. Wei Wuxian turned around and said, 'As long as both of us are alive in this world, we are bound to meet sooner or later.'

Lan Wangji said, 'Don't walk anymore.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'If I don't walk, will you carry me on your back?'

Lan Wangji stared quietly at him. Wei Wuxian's smile froze on his lips; a shadow of unease passed through his heart.

If it were the old Lan Zhan, that remark would have choked him, and he would either walk away with a cold face or ignore him altogether. But with this current one, it was hard to say how he would respond. Sure enough, upon hearing this, Lan Wangji stepped in front of him, seemingly about to stoop down, bend his knees, and condescend to carry him on his back. Wei Wuxian was startled again and hurriedly said, 'Stop, stop, I was just saying it offhand. Just a bit numb from Zidian striking a couple of times, not like my leg is broken. A grown man needing a piggyback is too unsightly.'

Lan Wangji said, 'Is it very unsightly?'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Is it very sightly?'

After a moment of silence, Lan Wangji said, 'But you have carried me on your back before.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Did such a thing happen? I don't remember.'

Lan Wangji said flatly, 'You never remember these things.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Everyone says my memory is poor. Fine, so be it. Anyway, no piggyback.'

Lan Wangji asked, 'You really don't want a piggyback?'

Wei Wuxian said decisively, 'No piggyback.'

The two stood face to face, deadlocked for a moment. Suddenly, Lan Wangji wrapped one arm around his back, bent slightly forward, and with his other hand scooped under his knees.

Wei Wuxian was shorter and lighter than him, and was instantly scooped up, his whole body suspended in a pair of sturdy arms. Wei Wuxian had never imagined that the consequence of 'no piggyback' would be this; whether in his past life or this one, it was the first time he had been treated like this. Terrified, he cried, 'Lan Zhan!!!'

Lan Wangji carried him, walking very steadily, and answered just as steadily, 'You said you didn't want a piggyback.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'That doesn't mean you should carry me like this?'

Fortunately, it was already night, and there were no pedestrians on the street, so it wasn't too embarrassing. Wei Wuxian was not thin-skinned; after being carried a few steps, he relaxed, toyed with the collar tie on Lan Wangji's chest, made as if to pull it, and laughed, 'You want a contest to see who's thicker-skinned, huh?'

That clean, chilly sandalwood fragrance lingered around him. Lan Wangji did not look at him, gazing straight ahead, unshaken by all winds, still wearing that extremely upright, extremely stern, aloof expression. Seeing him impervious and unmoved, Wei Wuxian continued to fiddle with his collar tie while thinking: 'I never knew Lan Zhan had such a strong vengeful streak. All the times I teased him before, he's repaying one by one now, making me lose face. He's really matured. Not just his cultivation, but his skin has thickened too.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Lan Zhan, did you recognize me back on Mount Dafan?'

Lan Wangji said, 'Mm.'

Wei Wuxian, curious: 'How did you recognize me?'

Lan Wangji lowered his lashes and glanced at him: 'You want to know?'

Wei Wuxian affirmed: 'Mm.'

Lan Wangji said, 'You told me yourself.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'Myself? Because of Jin Ling? Because I summoned Wen Ning? None of those, right?'

In Lan Wangji's eyes, a ripple seemed to have arisen. Yet this almost imperceptible ripple passed in an instant, and his eyes reverted to a deep, tranquil pool.

He said sternly, 'Figure it out yourself.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'I asked you exactly because I can't figure it out.'

This time, no matter how much he pressed, Lan Wangji kept his mouth shut. He carried Wei Wuxian into the inn, and aside from the clerk at the front desk spraying a mouthful of water, no onlooker made any overly outrageous move. They reached the door of their room, and Wei Wuxian said, 'Alright, we're here, it's time to put me down. You don't have a third hand to open the door...'

Before the words had even finished, Lan Wangji committed a very discourteous act. It was perhaps the first time in his life so far that he had made such a rude motion.

He kicked the door open while carrying Wei Wuxian.

The two door panels swung open, and the person sitting inside, all fidgety, immediately wailed, 'Hanguang-jun, I don't know, I don't know, I...'

After clearly seeing the posture in which the two outside had entered, he stared blankly and managed to finish the last sentence: '... I really don't know.'

Truly, a case of knowing absolutely nothing.

Lan Wangji, as if seeing nothing, carried Wei Wuxian inside and set him down on the mat. Nie Huaisang wore an expression of unbearable distress and immediately unfurled his folding fan to shield his face. Wei Wuxian looked past the fan and appraised him. This former schoolmate of his hadn't changed much over all these years. He looked just as he had back then. Though he had a face of literary elegance and grace, he bore a malleable, easily pushed-around expression. His attire was of fine taste, stylish and refined; clearly much thought had been put into it. To call him a leader of The Mystic Gate would be less apt than calling him a wealthy idler. He would not look like a crown prince even in dragon robes, nor a cultivator chief even with a long sword.

As he stubbornly refused to admit it, Lan Wangji placed the piece of fabric that the black-maned spirit dog had torn off onto the table. Nie Huaisang touched the torn part of his sleeve and said gloomily, 'I just happened to be passing by. I really don't know anything.'

Wei Wuxian said, 'You don't know? Then let me speak, and see if by listening you come to know something.'

Nie Huaisang stammered, not knowing how to respond. Wei Wuxian then said, 'In the area around Wayfarer's Ridge in Qinghe, there are rumors of a “Man-Eating Ridge” and a “Man-Eating Fortress,” yet there are no actual victims, so these are rumors. And rumors keep ordinary people away from Wayfarer's Ridge, so their true function is actually a line of defense. And merely the first line.'

‘Where there’s a first, there’s a second. The second line of defense is the Walking Corpse on Wayfarer's Ridge. Even if ordinary people unafraid of the Man-Eating Fortress rumors venture onto the ridge or accidentally wander in, upon seeing walking dead they will flee in panic. But these Walking Corpse are few in number and low in lethality, so they cannot cause real harm.’

‘The third line of defense is the illusion array near the Stone Fortress. The first two defend against ordinary people; only this one targets The Mystic Gate cultivators. However, its effective scope is limited to average cultivators. If it encounters a cultivator bearing a spiritual tool or spirit dog specifically specialized in breaking arrays, or a renowned personage of Hanguang-jun's caliber, this defense can only be broken.’

‘These three layers of defense are meant to prevent the Stone Fortress on Wayfarer's Ridge from being discovered. It’s all too clear who built the Stone Fortress. This is the territory of the Qinghe Nie Sect; besides the Nie family, no one else could easily set up these three barriers in Qinghe. Moreover, you happened to appear near the Stone Fortress and left evidence behind.’

‘What exactly is the purpose of the Qinghe Nie Sect building a Man-Eating Fortress on Wayfarer's Ridge? Where do the corpses in the walls come from? Did it eat them? Sect Leader Nie, if you don’t explain clearly here and now, I’m afraid once this gets out, the many houses of The Mystic Gate will jointly denounce and interrogate you. By then, even if you want to speak, no one will be willing to listen or believe what you say.’

Nie Huaisang said in a tone of self-abandonment, ‘...That is no Man-Eating Fortress at all. It... it’s just my family’s ancestral tomb!’

Wei Wuxian said, ‘Ancestral tomb? Whose ancestral tomb stores sabers in coffins instead of corpses?’

Nie Huaisang said with a mournful face, ‘Hanguang-jun, before I speak, can you swear an oath, considering our families’ long-standing friendship and that my eldest brother was sworn brothers with your elder brother, that no matter what I say next, you... and this one beside you will absolutely not spread a word. Should it ever get out, you two will also speak a few words for me and bear witness. You have always been the most trustworthy; if you swear, I will believe you.’

Lan Wangji said, ‘As you wish.’

Wei Wuxian said, ‘You say it’s no Man-Eating Fortress at all, then has it never eaten people?’

Nie Huaisang gritted his teeth and said honestly, ‘...It has.’

Wei Wuxian said, ‘Wow.’

Nie Huaisang immediately added, ‘But it was only once! And the main fault doesn’t lie with our family, and it was decades ago already! The rumor of the Man-Eating Fortress on Wayfarer's Ridge began spreading from then. I... I just fanned the flames, amplifying the rumor several times over.’