Chapter 20 Satisfaction—Part Two

When cultivators from prominent clans went hunting at night, there would usually be a crowd surrounding them, looking like a parade. However, Lan WangJi had always preferred to be alone. This arm was quite strange, and could possibly injure others if not handled carefully. Therefore, he didn’t bring any other sect disciples with him, and only took Wei WuXian with him, observing him as closely as possible.

Wei WuXian had originally wanted to sneak away during their expedition down the mountain. However, despite his numerous attempts to escape, he always ended up with Lan WangJi carrying him back with one hand holding his collar. He changed his strategy, clinging to Lan WangJi with all his might. Especially at night, he would constantly climb into Lan WangJi’s bed, intending for Lan WangJi to be disgusted and use his sword to chase him away. However, no matter how much he messed around, Lan WangJi remained steadfast. Every time Wei WuXian wriggled into his blanket, he would use a light slap to stiffen Wei WuXian’s body, then tuck him into another blanket in the proper position, where he would remain until dawn. Wei WuXian suffered many losses and complained about his aching body after he woke up. He couldn’t help but think,  Now that he’s grown up, he’s also become less lovable than before. In the past, he would be shy whenever he was teased, especially when he did it in such a cute way. But now, not only does she remain strong no matter what, she’s even learned how to fight back. How is that possible?!

Following the left hand’s guidance, the two headed northwest. They sparred with Rest daily, temporarily quelling his anger and murderous intent. As they approached Qinghe, the hand gesture suddenly changed. His index finger curled back, forming a fist.

This means that what the hand is pointing to is only in the area around it.

They investigated the matter as they traveled, arriving at a small town in Qinghe. It was midday. The streets were bustling with people rushing about. Wei WuXian was jogging behind Lan WangJi when, suddenly, he was overcome by the pungent scent of cosmetics.

As he grew accustomed to Lan WangJi’s mild sandalwood scent, Wei WuXian immediately cringed. He exclaimed, “What are you selling? How can it smell like this?”

The scent came from a shaman dressed in a cultivator’s robe and with the word “fraud” written all over his face. He was carrying a chest filled with goods for sale to passersby. Seeing someone ask, he smiled broadly, “I sell everything! The blush and powder here are cheap and of good quality. Young Master, come take a look?”

Wei WuXian, “Sure, I’ll take a look.”

The conman said, “For your wife?”

Wei WuXian grinned at him, “For myself.”

“…” The conman’s smile froze, he thought to himself,  Are you kidding me?

Before he could lose his temper, another young man turned and approached him. He said with a straight face, “Don’t bother anyone else if you don’t want to buy it.”

This man was extremely handsome, his robes and forehead ribbon as white as snow. His eyes were bright, and he had a long sword hanging from his waist. Because the impostor was a fake cultivator, he knew little about the cultivation world. After recognizing the Lan Sect’s motives, he didn’t dare cause any trouble and fled with his chest in his hands. Wei WuXian called out to him, “What are you running for? I really want to buy it!”

Lan WangJi said, “Do you have money?”

Wei WuXian replied, “Or you can give me some money.” As he spoke, he reached out to search. He didn’t expect to find anything, but after a while, he found a thin, heavy pouch filled with money.

This wasn’t something Lan WangJi would have brought with him at all. However, over the past few days, Lan WangJi had done many things he had never imagined. Wei WuXian didn’t even find it strange anymore and immediately took the pouch. As expected, he could take anything from Lan WangJi if he wanted, without causing Lan WangJi any dissatisfaction. If he hadn’t known a bit about Lan WangJi’s personal integrity and HanGuang-Jun’s reputation, he would have almost doubted that Lan WangJi and Mo XuanYu were involved in such a complicated and helpless relationship.

Or, why was Lan WangJi still able to endure, after he had put in so much effort?!

After walking for a while, Wei WuXian accidentally turned around and looked. Lan WangJi was behind him, still standing in the same spot, staring at him.

Wei WuXian couldn’t help but slow down his steps.

He didn’t know why, but he faintly felt that perhaps he shouldn’t have walked so fast, leaving Lan WangJi like this.

At this moment, someone beside him shouted, “Patriarch YiLing, five coins for one, ten coins for three!”

Wei WuXian, “Siapa?!”

She hurried to see who was selling it, only to realize it was a fake cultivator. She put away the low-quality rouge and powder, then held up a stack of paper with a picture of someone even more evil than  the door god  . She babbled, “Five coins for one, ten coins for three—such a low price won’t hurt you! I suggest three. One for the door, one for the hallway, and stick the last one on the wall of your room. With its strong and dense evil energy, it uses poison to cure poison, ensuring no evil beings can get near you!”

Wei WuXian said, “Shameless boasting! If it were that effective, would you still sell it for five coins?!”

The con artist replied, “Why are you here again? If you want to buy, just buy; if you don’t want to buy, just leave. If you want to spend fifty coins on each of these, that’s fine with me.”

Wei WuXian flipped through the stack of “YiLing Ancestor Evil-Suppressing Portraits.” He simply couldn’t believe that the man with the scary, muscular face was himself.

He tried to deny the facts, “Wei WuXian is a man renowned for his handsomeness. What are you drawing?! If you haven’t seen him, don’t draw anything. You’ll mislead the younger generation.”

Just as the impostor was about to answer, Wei WuXian suddenly felt a gust of wind from behind. He dodged to the side.

Although he avoided the attack, the con man was sent flying and crashed into a windmill by the roadside. Some people helped him up, while others picked up the fallen items—the scene was chaotic. The con man wanted to curse, but when he saw that the person who kicked him was a glittering young master, looking like someone rich or noble, his imposing manner immediately faded. When he turned around, he saw the white peony “Snow Sparks in the Snow” sewn onto his chest, and he immediately lost his spirit. Nevertheless, he couldn’t bear to receive such a kick for no reason, so he asked weakly, “Why did you kick me?”

The young master happened to be Jin Ling. Crossing his arms, he said coldly, “Kick you? Anyone who dares to mention the words ‘Wei WuXian’ in front of me should kneel down in gratitude if I don’t kill them. But you’re shouting in the middle of the street. Do you want to die?!”

Wei WuXian hadn’t expected Jin Ling to appear here at all, let alone how arrogant he was. He thought, ”  I wonder how this kid’s personality could have changed like this, with such a bad temper and such strong hostility.” He’d learned all of his uncle and father’s flaws, but not his mother’s strengths. If I don’t fix this, he’ll definitely suffer a great loss in the future.  Seeing Jin Ling still looking angry and taking a few more steps toward the man lying on the ground, Wei WuXian interrupted, “Jin Ling!”

The deceiver didn’t dare to speak, but his eyes were full of admiration. Jin Ling turned to Wei WuXian, his words full of contempt, “You still haven’t run away? Well, you’d better stay.”

Wei WuXian laughed, “Hah. Who else is lying on the ground and can’t get up?”

Jin Ling sneered and blew a short whistle. Wei WuXian didn’t understand why, but after a while, he heard the deep snorting of some kind of beast in the distance.

As he turned to look, a  waist-high, black-furred spirit dog  came out from around the corner, charging straight at him. The terrified cries in the street grew closer and louder, “A mad dog is on the loose!”

With a sudden change in his face, Wei WuXian ran away as fast as he could.

It was always hard for him to talk about it, but, even though the YiLing Patriarch was known for his invincibility, he became a coward whenever he faced dogs. However, this was inevitable. When he was young, before Jiang FengMian brought him home, he had grown up on the streets, often having to fight with vicious dogs for food. After being bitten and chased several times, he gradually became extremely afraid of all dogs, regardless of their size. Jiang Cheng often laughed at him for this. If he told anyone else, it would not only be embarrassing, but also only be believed by a select few, so practically no one knew. Wei WuXian was almost scared to death. When he saw the tall, fair-skinned figure, he immediately shouted at the top of his lungs, “Lan Zhan, save me!”

After chasing this far, Jin Ling was shocked to find Lan WangJi.  Why had this madman appeared with him again?!  Lan WangJi had a serious personality and never chattered or joked. Even some of his fellow students felt nervous when they saw him, let alone these juniors. His intimidation level was even worse than Lan QiRen’s back then. The dog had undergone rigorous training. Unlike most dogs, it was quite intelligent. As if it knew it shouldn’t be rude in front of this person, it howled a few times, then hid behind Jin Ling with its tail between its legs.

This black-haired spiritual dog was a rare species given to Jin Ling by Jin GuangYao. When most people heard that it was a gift from LianFang-Zun, they didn’t dare offend him. However, Lan WangJi was different from most people. He didn’t care who gave it to him or who owned it, disciplining them all equally strictly. When Jin Ling used his dog to chase Wei WuXian through the streets and happened to be caught by Lan WangJi, his heart sank, ”  It’s all over. He’ll definitely kill the spiritual dog I’ve trained so painstakingly and beat me to death!”

However, Wei WuXian ducked under Lan WangJi’s arm and went behind him, as if trying to climb up like a pole. Feeling a pair of arms encircle him, Lan WangJi froze for a moment. Seizing this opportunity, Jin Ling blew two more whistles, then ran off with his black-haired spiritual dog.

The imposter beside him struggled to his feet, still in shock, “The world’s moral decline is getting worse by the day. How terrifying are the disciples of the prominent clans these days! How terrifying!”

When Wei WuXian heard the barking gradually fade away, he finally emerged from behind Lan WangJi. He placed his hand on Lan WangJi’s back and agreed as if nothing had happened, “Yes, things are getting worse by the day. Men aren’t what they used to be.”

The shaman looked at him as if he were looking at his savior, then hurriedly threw a stack of “YiLing Ancestor Evil-Suppressing Portraits” into Wei WuXian’s hands like hot potatoes, “Brother, thank you so much for what happened just now! This is a gift for you. If you cut the price and sell one for three coins, you can still get at least three hundred.”

Lan WangJi stared at the scary-looking man in the painting and didn’t comment. Wei WuXian, seeing the price drop, couldn’t decide whether to frown or laugh. “Is this to thank me? If you really wanted to thank me, you could have drawn it more beautifully! …Stop, don’t go yet. I have something to ask you. By the way, have you heard of any strange incidents? Or seen any strange things?”

The shaman replied, “Strange occurrences? Good thing you asked me. I live here most of the year, known as the know-it-all of Qinghe. What kind of strange occurrences are you looking for?”

Wei WuXian, “For example, the wandering evil spirits, the dismembered corpse case, the incident where the entire clan was destroyed…”

The conman: “It’s not here, but if you walk less than three kilometers ahead, there’s a mountain ridge called Xinglu Ridge. You’d better not go there.”

Wei WuXian asked, “Why is that?”

The swindler, “Xinglu Ridge is also called Man-Eating Ridge. Why do you think that is?”

Translator’s Notes

Door Gods  : These are a type of deity said to protect the household. During Chinese New Year, people often place their portraits on their doors to ward off evil spirits.

Spiritual dogs  : Spiritual dogs are dogs that have been trained to acquire near-human intelligence.