Chapter 68 Tenderness—Part Six

Wei WuXian left the donkey at the foot of the mountain. He stepped over the remains of the wall and walked along the mountain path. Soon, he saw a headless stone statue of a beast. The statue weighed thousands of pounds. It had guarded the mountain path for years. Vines clung to it, and moss gathered in its crevices. The beast’s head had been chopped off with an axe and thrown somewhere nearby. As if to demonstrate its power, the head had been smashed into small pieces. The cuts were still fresh, revealing the white inside. Furthermore, similarly, the next statue they saw had been cut in half, from head to toe.

Wei WuXian immediately knew that these were stone beasts that the sects had placed at acupuncture points on the battlefield to guard the mountain after their deaths. These stone beasts were capable of exorcism. They required considerable skill and were quite expensive to produce. Now, they had most likely all been destroyed. What a waste.

Side by side, Wei WuXian and Lan WangJi walked a few more steps. Involuntarily looking back, they saw Wen Ning had already appeared.

He stood beside the stone beast, his head bowed and motionless. Wei WuXian asked, “Wen Ning? What are you looking at?”

Wen Ning pointed to the base of the stone beast.

The stone beast was perched on a short, thick tree trunk. Near it were three smaller, shorter tree trunks. All three appeared to be charred, completely black.

Wen Ning knelt on the ground with both knees. His fingers dug deep into the ground, grabbing a handful of black soil, and holding it tightly in his palm, “…Sister.”

Wei WuXian didn’t know what to say. He walked over and patted him hard on the shoulder.

Throughout Wei WuXian’s life, there had been two incredibly difficult periods. Both of them happened here. He never intended to visit a place like that again.

And, for Wen Ning, Burial Mound is an unforgettable place.

A cold breeze blew. The sea of ​​trees rustled as if tens of thousands of voices were whispering. Wei WuXian listened intently. Kneeling on one knee, he bent down and muttered something to the ground beneath him. Suddenly, a bulge formed beneath the surface.

As if a pale flower grew from the black soil, a skeletal arm slowly emerged from behind the ground.

The skeleton’s arm hung limply in the air. Wei WuXian reached out and grabbed it. He bent down even lower. His long hair fell over his shoulders, covering half of his face.

She pressed her lips to the skeletal hand and whispered something. Then she fell silent, as if listening for something. A moment later, she gave a small nod. The hand reshaped into a flower bud and sank into the ground.

Wei WuXian stood up and brushed off the dust on his body. “They’ve brought over a hundred people here recently. They’re all at the summit, still alive. But the people who brought them have already descended the mountain. I don’t know what they’re planning to do. Anyway, we have to be careful.”

The three of them continued climbing. They came to several rickety huts that stood along the mountain trail.

The houses varied in size. Their structures were simple, even crude. At a glance, it was clear that they had been hastily constructed. Some had burned to the ground, leaving only bare frames, while others had collapsed completely to one side. Even the most complete houses were half-destroyed. After more than a decade of rain and wind, with no one to tend them, each one looked like a dying ghost in tattered clothes, staring silently at those climbing the mountain.

Ever since they climbed the mountain, Wen Ning’s footsteps had felt very heavy. Now, standing in front of one of the houses, once again, she could no longer walk. 

This was one of the houses he built himself. Before he left, the house was still good. Although simple, the house was a shelter from the weather, but still accommodated the people he knew; the people he loved.

As the saying goes, ‘things remain, but people don’t’, at least the ‘things’ remained. With such a sight before him, nothing even reminded him of the people he missed.

Wei WuXian, “Don’t look again.”

Wen Ning, “… I knew it would be like this a long time ago. I just wanted to see if there was anything left…”

Before his voice died away, a shadow suddenly appeared from inside one of the collapsed houses.

The shadow staggered out of the house, its half-decomposed face dimmed in the thin daylight. Wei WuXian clapped his hands. The walking corpse seemed oblivious to anything and continued walking toward them. Wei WuXian calmly took two steps back, “It’s being controlled by the Tiger Seal.”

Corpse puppets that have submitted to him will not be controlled by the Tiger Seal. Likewise, corpse puppets that have submitted to the Tiger Seal will not listen to his commands. The rules are simple: first come, first served.

Wen Ning shot forward. With a roar, he tore the creature’s head off. Soon, low roars rang out from all around them. From the depths of the black forest, nearly fifty corpses slowly emerged. Regardless of gender or age, most of them were still fresh, dressed in burial garb. They were likely the bodies of those who had disappeared from various regions. 

Lan WangJi strummed his guqin. With a single strum, the notes flowed out like ripples. The group of corpses that had just surrounded them immediately knelt down in a circle. With both hands, Wen Ning lifted a large male corpse and threw it far away. Its chest was pierced by a sharp branch, and the corpse struggled, clinging to the branch. 

Wei WuXian shouted, “Don’t bother them, just go up the mountain!”

He didn’t know how many walking corpses Jin GuangYao had frantically summoned over the past few days using the Tiger Seal. Waves of attacks followed one after another. The three of them managed to stun the corpses while retreating up the mountain. The closer they got to the top of Burial Mound, the denser the horde of corpses became. The sound of zithers echoed in the sky above the black forest as crows flew away. Nearly two hours later, they finally had time to rest.

Sitting on one of the shattered stone beasts, Wei WuXian sighed mockingly to himself, “I’ve always used this to deal with others. Today, it’s finally my turn to let someone else use it against me. Now I know how annoying those Tiger Seals are. If I were them, I’d definitely want to kill the person who created this damn thing, too.”

Lan WangJi put away his guqin. He took out a sword from under his sleeve and gave it to WangJi, “To protect yourself.”

Wei WuXian took it. It was Suibian. After using it for a day to cut melons, Wei WuXian had tossed it aside. Lan WangJi put it away. He drew the sword and stared at the snow-white blade for a moment before quickly sheathing it back in his sheath, smiling, “Thank you.” 

He hung the sword around his waist and didn’t seem to have any intention of using it. Seeing Lan WangJi’s gaze, he ruffled his hair and explained, “I haven’t used a sword in years. I’m not used to it.” As he spoke, he sighed again, “Alright. The real reason is that my body currently has low spiritual energy. Even if there was a high-grade sword, it wouldn’t be able to utilize it well. So, HanGuang-Jun will be the one to protect me, this fragile man.”

Lan WangJi, “…”

After the frail man sat for a moment, he finally stood up, propping a gd on his knees. The three of them walked further and finally, at the end of the path, they saw a cave with a dark hole.

The cave entrance was about fifty feet high and wide. Even before they approached, they could feel the cold wind ahead. They could almost hear the faint sound of human groans.

This is the legendary lair where the YiLing Patriarch transformed his corpse into a human and committed deeds that even the Heavens could not tolerate—the Demon Slaying Cave.

The cave ceiling was wide. The three of them held their breath and slipped inside. No one made a sound, but the human voices coming from deeper within the cave grew louder.

Wei WuXian knew the cave terrain like the back of his hand. He walked in front. Every now and then, he signaled for them to stop.

The main area of ​​the cave was just a wall away from them. Through the holes in the wall, they could see an area large enough to accommodate a thousand people. In the center stood around a hundred people. Their hands and feet were tightly bound with divine ropes. These hundred people were also quite young. Judging by the color of their robes and swords, they were likely high-ranking disciples or direct disciples of the clan.

Wei WuXian exchanged glances with Lan WangJi. Before they could begin their discussion, a boy sitting on the ground suddenly said, “I think you shouldn’t have stabbed him just once. Why didn’t you just slit his throat?”

His voice wasn’t loud, but the cave was rather empty. Echoes echoed as he spoke. So, even though they weren’t listening, they could hear his words clearly. As soon as the boy spoke, Wei WuXian felt that he looked and sounded familiar. He only remembered after a moment. Wasn’t this Jin Chan who fought with Jin Ling yesterday?

And he looked again—who was the cold-faced boy sitting next to this student, if not Jin Ling?

Jin Ling didn’t even look at him, remaining silent. A loud rumbling sound came from the stomach of a boy beside him, “They’ve been gone for days. What do they want? If they want to kill us, let them. I’d rather be eaten by a monster during a night hunt than starve to death here!”

The boy continued to babble. It was Lan JingYi. Jin Chan said, “What could he do? He’ll definitely do what he did to those Wen dogs during the Sunshot Campaign, turning us into his corpse puppets, then using us against our families, so they can’t attack and his enemies can fight each other.” He gritted his teeth, “That filthy, inhumane Wei dog!”

Suddenly, Jin Ling spoke in a cold voice, “Shut up.”

Jin Chan was shocked, “You want me to shut up? What do you mean?”

Jin Ling, “What do I mean? Are you deaf or mute? You don’t understand human language? Shut up, I mean, stop making noise!”

Having been tied up for so long, Jin Chan became irritable. He grumbled, “Why do you have to tell me to shut up?!”

Jin Ling, “What’s the point of talking rubbish like that? If you keep going, the rope will break because of you, right? How annoying.”

“You!!!”

Another young voice interrupted, “Now, we’re stuck here and none of us know when the walking corpses on the mountain will come charging in. Even under these circumstances, you two have to argue?”

The calmest voice was Lan SiZhui’s. Jin Chan protested, “He was the one who got angry first! What, you can call him names, but not others?! Jin Ling, huh, who do you think you are? Do you think that because LianFang-Zun is a master cultivator, you will be one too? I won’t keep quiet. I think you…”

With  a thud  , Jin Ling’s head suddenly hit. Jin Chan cried out in pain. He cursed, “You want to fight? I’ll fight you! I want to fight. You useless child!”

Hearing this, Jin Ling became even more unstoppable. He was tied up and couldn’t move his arms, so he used his elbows and knees, slamming them so hard that his opponent screamed in pain. However, he was alone, and Jin Chan was always surrounded by people. 

When the boys saw that he was in a disadvantageous position, they all shouted, “Let me help you!” They all crowded around him. 

Lan SiZhui sat nearby. He couldn’t help but get dragged into their fight. At first, he managed to coax, “Everyone calm down, calm down,” but after receiving a few elbows, he winced in pain, his face turning pale. Finally, after a few screams, he joined in the fray.

The three people outside couldn’t bear to see this anymore. Wei WuXian jumped onto the stairs leading to the cave first, “Hey! Everyone, look here!”

His scream echoed through the empty cave, almost thunderous. The children entangled in the ropes looked up. Lan SiZhui saw a familiar figure beside him and grinned widely, “HanGuang-Jun!”

Lan JingYi screamed even louder, “HanGuang-Jun ahhhhhhhh!”

Jin Chan was terrified, “What are you happy about? They… They’re on the same side!”

Wei WuXian stepped into the cave. He drew Suibian and casually threw it back. A shadow appeared and caught the sword. It was Wen Ning. The disciples started shouting again, “Ghost General GGG!”

Wen Ning lifted Suibian and swung it towards Jin Ling. Jin Ling gritted his teeth and closed his eyes. However, he felt his body loosen. The divine binding rope had been cut by Suibian’s sword glare. After that, Wen Ning walked around the cave, cutting the divine binding rope. The disciples he had released could neither escape nor defend. Inside the cave were the YiLing Patriarch, the Ghost General, and the traitor of the righteous side, HanGuang-Jun, while outside were countless walking corpses waiting to be fed. However, everything looked bright on Lan SiZhui’s side. “Senior Mo… Senior Wei. Are you here to save us? You weren’t the one who had us brought here, were you?”

Despite it being a question, his face was full of confidence and excitement. Wei WuXian felt his heart pounding. He crouched down and stroked Lan SiZhui’s head, messing up the hair that had somehow remained neat for the past few days. “Me? You know how broke I am. How could I possibly have enough money to hire anyone?”

Lan SiZhui nodded quickly, “Yes. I knew it! I knew it, Senior, you’re really broke!”

“…”

Wei WuXian, “Good boy. How many people are there? Is there an ambush around here?”

Lan JingYi released the rope that bound her and tried to answer, “They have so many people! Their faces are all covered in black mist so we can’t see who they are. They didn’t do anything after throwing us here, as if they didn’t care whether we were alive or dead. Oh, oh, oh, and there are so many corpses walking around outside! They keep howling!”

Bichen drew his sword and cut the divine rope that bound them. Lan WangJi immediately put his sword back into its sheath and turned to Lan SiZhui, “Very good.”

That meant Lan SiZhui had done well, remaining calm and trusting in them. Lan SiZhui hurried over, standing straight facing Lan WangJi. Before he could smile, Wei WuXian grinned, “Yes, very good, SiZhui, you even know how to fight now.”

Lan SiZhui’s cheeks immediately turned red, “T-That… I acted on impulse…”

Suddenly, Wei WuXian sensed someone approaching. Turning around, he saw Jin Ling standing behind them, his body frozen.

Lan WangJi immediately stood in front of Wei WuXian, while Lan SiZhui stood in front of Lan WangJi, speaking carefully, “Young Master Jin.”

Wei WuXian walked out from behind the two of them, “What are you doing? It looks like you’re making a human pyramid.”

Jin Ling’s face looked a little strange. His palms loosened and clenched, clenched and unclenched. It was as if he wanted to say something, but couldn’t open his mouth. He could only use his eyes to stare at the spot on Wei WuXian’s stomach where he had stabbed him. Lan JingYi looked extremely frightened, “Y-You! You don’t want to stab him again, do you?”

Wajah Jin Ling membeku. Lan SiZhui bergegas, “JingYi!”

JinYi on the left and SiZhui on the right, Wei WuXian hugged the two children, “Okay, let’s get out of here quickly.”

Lan SiZhui, “Ya!”

The other children were still huddled in the corner, not daring to move. Lan JingYi, “You don’t want to go? Do you want to stay here a little longer?”

One of the boys craned his neck, “There are so many walking corpses outside. Do you want us to go out… to meet our doom?!”

Wen Ning, “Young Master, I will go out and chase them away.”

Wei WuXian nodded. Like a gust of wind, Wen Ning immediately dashed out. Lan SiZhui said, “The divine binding ropes have been loosened. If things get worse, we can fight our way out together. If you don’t leave, what if after we get out, corpses flood in? With the shape of this cave, isn’t it a foolproof trap?”

After finishing, he grabbed Lan JingYi. Along with several Lan Sect juniors, the two of them left first, following Wen Ning. The rest of the group exchanged glances.

Soon, one of the boys said, “SiZhui-xiong, wait for me!” He followed him and left.

This boy was the little ‘seed of sentiment’ who burned paper money and cried bitterly for A-Qing in Yi City. Others called him ZiZhen. He seemed to be the only son of the BalingOuYang Sect clan. Soon, several other boys followed suit, all familiar faces from the Yi City incident. The other boys hesitated. However, as they looked around, they saw Wei WuXian and Lan WangJi staring at them. They felt nervous no matter which of them was staring at them, and they could only pass by them and leave as well, the back of their heads tingling. The last one was Jin Ling.

As the group of boys, pulling and dragging, nearly reached the mouth of the cave, a shadow suddenly cast itself inside, creating a deep, human-shaped indentation in the wall. 

Dust and rocks fell. The shouts of several junior soldiers could be heard from the front, “Ghost General!”

Wei WuXian, “Wen Ning? What happened?!”

Wen Ning replied, “… Nothing.”

He fell from the dent, stood up, and calmly but roughly reattached his broken arm to his body. As Wei WuXian looked, he saw a youth in purple standing in front of the cave, his arm dangling. Zidian hissed and sparked under his hand. It was this whip that had thrown Wen Ning into the cave.

Jiang Cheng.

So that’s why Wen Ning had no intention of attacking.

Jin Ling, “Paman!”

Jiang Cheng ordered coldly, “Jin Ling, come here.”

From the dark forest behind him, a group of cultivators from various sects, dressed in colorful uniforms, slowly emerged. The group grew larger, estimated to number nearly two thousand, like a large black blanket covering the cave. These cultivators, including Jiang Cheng, were all drenched in blood, their faces weary. All the boys rushed out of the cave, shouting, “Father!” “Mother!” “Brother!” They scattered into the crowd.

Jin Ling looked left and right, as if still undecided. Jiang Cheng’s voice was hoarse, “Jin Ling, why are you so slow? Do you want to die?!”

Lan QiRen stood before the crowd. He looked much older. White strands were even starting to grow at his temples. He called out, “WangJi.”

Lan WangJi answered in a low voice, “Uncle.”

But he still didn’t stand by her side.

Lan QiRen understood better than anyone. That was Lan WangJi’s answer, firm and determined. With a disappointed expression, he shook his head. He didn’t try to persuade him any further.

A woman in a white robe stood up, her eyes glistening with tears. “HanGuang-Jun, what’s wrong with you? You… You’re not yourself anymore. Back then, you clearly couldn’t stand the YiLing Patriarch. What technique did Wei WuXian use to bewitch you into standing on our side?”

Lan WangJi ignored her. Receiving no response, she could only add pityingly, “Then how unbecoming of your name!”

Wei WuXian, “You guys are here again.”

Jiang Cheng’s voice was cold, “Of course we want to.”

Su She carried his seven-stringed zither on his back. He also stood in the middle of the crowd, his tone indifferent, “If it weren’t for how the YiLing Patriarch was so blatantly digging up corpses and arresting people as soon as he returned, as if he was almost afraid the world wouldn’t welcome him, I don’t think we would have needed to come to your lair so quickly either.”

Wei WuXian, “I clearly saved these students. Why don’t you thank me instead of accusing me?”

Many people giggled. Some even shouted outright, “The thief summoned another thief.” Wei WuXian knew all his arguments would be futile. He wasn’t in a hurry. With a faint grin, he said, “But your size seems a bit small this time. Two important people don’t seem to be present. Let me ask you, everyone, why aren’t LianFang-Zun and ZeWu-Jun coming to such a big event?”

Su She sneered, “Hah, yesterday LianFang-Zun was attacked by unknown people at Koi Tower. He was seriously injured. ZeW-Jun is still working hard to heal him. Why do you ask if you know?”

Hearing Jin GuangYao was ‘seriously injured’, Wei WuXian suddenly remembered how great he was when he pretended to commit suicide while sneaking up on Nie MingJue. He couldn’t help but shout  pfft  . Su She’s brows furrowed, “What are you laughing at?”

Wei WuXian, “It’s nothing. I just feel like LianFang-Zun gets injured often.”

At this moment, a small voice suddenly spoke, “Father, I feel like maybe he really didn’t do it. Last time, in Yi City, he was the one who saved us. This time, it seems like he’s here to save us too…”

He followed the voice. The person speaking was OuYang ZiZhen. However, the father immediately scolded his son, “Children shouldn’t talk so carelessly! Do you know what situation we’re in? Do you know who he is?!”

Averting his gaze, Wei WuXian spoke calmly, “Now I understand.”

He knew from the start that no matter what he said, no one would listen. What he denied could be forced; what he admitted could be twisted.

Lan WangJi was originally quite influential in his speech. However, now that he was with Jin GuangYao, he was likely being targeted as well. He had thought that with at least Lan XiChen among the sects, they could have a brief discussion, but Lan XiChen and Jin GuangYao weren’t even present.

Back then, during the first siege of Burial Mound, Jin GuangShan led the LanlingJin Sect, while Jiang Cheng led the YunmengJiang Sect; Lan QiRen led the GusuLan Sect, while Nie MingJue led the QingheNie Sect. The first two were the main forces, the latter two could have been absent. Now, the LanlingJin Sect leader had not arrived, only sending people to lead the GusuLan Sect; the GusuLan Sect was still led by Lan QiRen; Nie HuaiSang took his brother’s place, shrinking among the crowd, his face still full of expressions of ‘I don’t know anything’, ‘I don’t want to do anything’, and ‘I’m only here for numbers’.

Only Jiang Cheng was still surrounded by hostile energy, his face dangerous, staring straight at him.

But… Wei WuXian turned his head slightly to the side. He saw Lan WangJi, who was standing beside him, without the slightest hesitation, without any intention of backing down.

But this time he was not alone anymore.

Under the hungry gazes of thousands of cultivators, a middle-aged man finally couldn’t hold himself back. He jumped out and shouted, “Wei WuXian! Do you still remember me?”

Wei WuXian answered honestly, “No.”

The middle-aged cultivator laughed coldly, “You can’t, but my legs can!”

He lifted the hem of his robe, revealing a wooden prosthetic leg, “This leg of mine was destroyed by you, that night in Nightless City. I’m showing this to you so you’ll understand that, among the people currently besieged, there’s also my strength, Yi WeiChun. With the workings of karma, it’s never too late to take revenge!”

As if inspired by him, a young cultivator also stood up. His voice was clear, “Wei WuXian, I won’t ask whether you remember or not. Both of my parents died at your hands. You owe too much to others. You definitely won’t remember them either. But, I, Fang MengChen, will never forget! And I will never forgive you!”

Soon after, a third person stepped forward. He was a middle-aged cultivator with a slender build and sparkling eyes. This time, Wei WuXian was the first to ask, “Did I cause you to lose a limb?”

The man shook his head. Wei WuXian asked again, “Did I kill your parents or destroy your entire sect?”

The man shook his head again. Wei WuXian pondered, “Then why did you come here?”

The man said, “I have no grudges to avenge. I am here to fight for you to understand—as someone who defies the world, who deserves to be punished by everyone, no matter how lowly you are, no matter how many times you crawl out of your grave, we will send you back to your grave. Just for the sake of the word ‘justice’!”

Hearing this, everyone cheered with joy, their voices thundering, “Sect Leader Yao, how great!”

Sect Leader Yao stepped back with a smile. After being encouraged, the others stood up one by one, loudly declaring their determination.

“In the fight at Qiongqi Pass, my son was strangled to death by your dog, Wen Ning!”

“My Shixiong died from poison, his whole body is covered in festering because of your cruel curse!”

“Not for anything, just to prove that there is still justice in this world, that evil will not be tolerated!”

“There is still justice in this world, evil will not be tolerated!”

Every face was boiling with hot blood, every word was spoken without guilt, every person was heroic, passionate, filled with anger and pride.

Everyone was convinced without a doubt that what they were doing was an act of chivalry, an act of honor.

This will go down in history and receive millions of praise. It’s a crusade between the ‘right’ and the ‘wrong’!