The Nine-Tailed Fox is a vicious murderer

A look of staid resolve descends on Lan Tian's face. He turns to Lu Meng and says quietly, "Maybe you should wait outside."

Lu Meng who has no idea of what's happening in the room, and doesn't care to find out, is quick to agree.

"Maybe I should go with him," Wu Yun says, before Lian Feng's sword stops him.

"You stay right where you are."

"Ling Yan, aren't you happy to see me?" Shu Luan asks, looking up at Wu Yun with a dejected look.

The truth is that Wu Yun isn't happy to see him. When he looks into his dark eyes, nothing sparks any recognition, or awakes any of the feelings that compelled him to piece together his soul over four hundred years. Those dark eyes mean nothing to Wu Yun. He doesn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed.

"My name is Wu Yun," he says, saying the words as much to himself as to Shu Luan. "And I don't know you."

That's the truth. Nothing about Shu Luan's current appearance resembles the face he's seen in his sleep. The dark eyes staring up at him bear no resemblance to the golden sea of his dreams.

"Can you tell me, why this beast says you're our sect's outcast and the killer of one of our members?" Lian Feng says, ignoring everything Wu Yun has said.

"He's clearly confused," Lan Tian says. "Besides, he's a beast, and so is Wu Yun, how are either of them connected to anything that happened in an Immortal cultivation sect?"

"Why don't we take him to Kunlun? Lu Jiao should have a better idea of what to do with him," Wu Yun says, trying to slip under the edge of Lian Feng's sword. 

"You must think me really foolish. You ask about Ling Yan, and shortly after, this beasts shows up saying you are him." Lian Feng's upper lip curls up in a scornful sneer. "That's too much of a coincidence, the universe doesn't work in ways so mysterious."

Wu Yun doesn't think she's foolish, but he does think she has the terrible habit of believing herself the smartest person in the room.

"If I was Ling Yan, why would I be asking about him? Wouldn't I know what he did, and know better than to ask you about it?" 

Lian Feng sputters for a moment, still firm in her conviction that Wu Yun is Ling Yan but unsure of what to say next, other than accuse him of having purposefully goaded her because he enjoys getting slapped.

"He was asking about Ling Yan because he's a vicious murderer who killed off Wu Yun's entire clan," Lan Tian says, his tone deadpan.

"That's right, and I want to kill him with my bare hands, for all he has done," Wu Yun says, nodding along to Lan Tian's timely argument.

"But you are Ling Yan, I know it," Shu Luan says, from the platform, the apple of his dark throat bobbing up and down in consternation.

His robes slip in his struggle to get free, and Wu Yun notices that what he thought was solid black around his neck, hands and forearms, actually shimmers like the feathers on a bird in flight, although his skin is completely smooth. The deep black blends in an even gradient with the paleness of the rest of the skin above his collarbones, and beneath his elbows.

He looks worried,on the verge of panic, and once again Wu Yun sees nothing of the confident man who chased Ling Yan around the Jade Palace halls, and said he would kill his own brother for him.

"Another victim of Ling Yan's terrible crimes," Wu Yun says, pointing at Shu Luan.

"Don't think for a second, that I don't know the two of you are up to something." Lian Feng's hold on her already tenuous composure is beginning to slip, and she looks as if she might be considering stabbing Wu Yun and deal with the consequences later.

That's when Zou Qiao appears at the door, wringing his hand, his tails curled protectively around him like a cloak. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but Master Lu Jiao is here to take us back to Kunlun."

Lian Feng smirks. "Good, maybe she can confirm the tales these two are spinning."

She extends her palm over Shu Luan and disarms the talismans keeping him restrained. He stands up with a groan and rubs his sore wrists and neck.

Lian Feng throws them one last glare, before leaving the room, her sword at the ready in her fist.

Wu Yun exchanges a worried look with Lan Tian. Lu Jiao can't confirm anything, because she has no idea about any of it. He worries after Lian Feng hoping he can somehow still leave Immortal Mountain with his head attached to his neck.

Shu Luan immediately tries to run after him, but Lan Tian stops him with a hand on his chest. "You'll talk with him when he wants to talk with you."

He cocks his head to the side and gives Lan Tian a puzzled look. "You don't like me." It's not a question.

"I don't need to like you. But if you are aware of even a third of all he has done for you, you'll keep quiet and stay out of the way until we leave here."

Shu Luan watches Lan Tian's retreating back with a pensive expression. 

---

Outside Lian Feng's private rooms, Lu Jiao is inspecting her nails with an expression of utter boredom while Wan Mi almost vibrates with excitement at her side.

Wan Mi's face opens up in a smile as soon as she sees Wu Yun. "Master let me enter the sect grounds this time!"

Wu Yun would normally tease her, but he's more worried about the killing aura emanating off of Lian Feng in dark waves.

"Can Master Lu explain to me why one of the guests we have warmly received into our midst is being accused of being the murderer and scourge of our sect, Ling Yan?"

Lu Jiao looks up from her nails to blink quizzically at Lian Feng's enraged face. "I'm shocked that sect leader Lian thinks I know who that is, and even more so, that she thinks I care about what happens in her sect."

Lu Jiao's composed tone and dismissive words only fuel Lian Feng's rage, she lets out a roar and advances towards Wu Yun with her sword raised. 

In a single blink Lu Jiao's phoenix wings sprout out from her back and she lifts from the ground, unfurling a leather whip from her wrist that she cracks towards Lian Feng, hitting her hand and making her drop her sword.

"I would remind sect leader Lian that my clan and her sect have had a friendly trading relationship for centuries, but I'm not opposed to severing all ties." Her red eyes light up with internal fire and the length of the whip wrapped around her wrist is set ablaze. "It would be a shame for it to happen during sect leader Lian's rule, but I have a personal rule not to suffer any disrespect."

Lian Feng clutches her wrist to her chest, as she eyes the flames coming out of Lu Jiao's whip. There's no doubt in Wu Yun's mind that she is a powerful cultivator, and must be capable of some impressive feats as well, but her keen eyes are accessing the situation and recalculating. 

"I apologize to Master Lu for my conduct," Lian Feng says finally, picking up her sword and sheathing it. "If Master would allow it, I would like to keep him here, for further questioning," she says, pointing at Wu Yun.

Wan Mi comes up behind Lu Jiao's flowing robes to stare at Wu Yun. "What have you done this time?"

Wu Yun shushes her with a glare, and turns to Lu Jiao. "I would really rather not."

Lu Jiao looks at Wu Yun's pleading look and sighs. "No one is staying. In fact, seeing as we have overstayed our welcome, we'll be leaving now."

"We have someone else to take with us," Lan Tian says, dragging Shu Luan by the sleeve towards Lu Jiao.

"Who is this?" she asks quirking her eyebrow.

"Someone who says he knows Wu Yun," Lan Tian says simply. "He might have some information about the matter we requested Master's help with."

Lu Jiao nods, and turns her back on him. She starts glowing and her human form is replaced with a majestic phoenix, with tail feathers several zheng long, and a curved beak that shines like gold under the early morning sun. She flaps her powerful wings twice and take flight, soaring into the blue sky.

"Isn't Master going to help me? There's five of them now," Wan Mi asks her retreating figure, having switched to her phoenix form already.

"I can help," Shu Luan says, without anyone's prompting.

He closes his eyes, and the same internal glow that enveloped Lu Jiao takes over him, until the radiance blinds them all. When the bloom of light disappears Shu Luan is a large crane, with long legs, and a slender neck. His neck, and the lower half of his wings are a shimmering black. 

He turns his graceful head towards Wu Yun and lowers it, showing the red circle crown above his eyes. "Ling Yan can fly with me," he says, lowering his body to the ground.

Wu Yun hesitates but Lan Tian pushes him forward. "You should go with him."

"Only if you come with me," Wu Yun says, holding on to Lan Tian's sleeve, preventing him from walking away.

Lan Tian's amber eyes reveal nothing as he gazes down into the depths of Wu Yun's eyes, searching for something that Wu Yun fervently hopes he finds.

"Ling Yan's friend is welcome to come too," Shu Luan says, turning his slender neck towards Lan Tian.

Wu Yun thinks he's going to ignore him, but Lan Tian walks towards Shu Luan and climbs up on his torso with far more grace than Wu Yun could ever manage. He looks behind and extends one arm towards Wu Yun.

Wu Yun takes it, and climbs up after him. Wrapping his arms around his waist when he's seated.

"Follow me," Wan Mi says, fixing one huge emerald eye on Shu Luan.

"Don't think this is over!" Wu Yun hears Lian Feng's voice shout after them, but it grows distant as Shu Luan gains altitude.

The flight his much smoother this time, Shu Luan goes long periods of times without beating his wings, just gliding on air currents until he's soaring above Wan Mi.

"I don't know what's happening." Wu Yun presses his face against Lan Tian's back and whispers out the words. "He says he's Shu Luan but I don't recognize him."

Lan Tian curls his hand over Wu Yun's laced fingers on his waist, but says nothing.

They reach Kunlun without issue, and when they land Lu Jiao is already waiting for them in her mixed form. She's massaging the feathers around her temples, like she's got an headache coming.

Wu Yun dismounts from Shu Luan's back, who switches to his half-human appearance,, and walks towards Lu Jiao.

"Thank you, for helping u-" 

She raises one hand in front of his face, and closes her eyes. "I don't want to hear it, please. We'll talk about whatever happened tomorrow. I'm going to take an ash bath, and I don't want to be disturbed for the next 24 hours."

There's not much Wu Yun can say to that. "Uh, sure."

A man is standing next to Lu Jiao, and he smiles at the confused look in Wu Yun's face. "Master Lu has told me you want to talk with me, I'm Cang Chuxi."

Wu Yun is confused for a moment, before remembering Lu Jiao said he and Lan Tian should talk with a Master Cang who will be able to help them, regarding whatever is keeping their beast natures suppressed.

Cang Chuxi has slender green jade horns sprouting from the crown of his head, their bases hidden by the artful arrangement of his long sleek hair. There's a trail of green shimmering scales coming down from his fingertips, all the way to his knuckles, where they become less dense and dot the back of his hand at sporadic intervals. A similar scattering of tiny scales comes down from his temples all the way to his sharp cheekbones.

Wu Yun doesn't need to ask to know he's a dragon.

Lan Tian and Shu Luan approach him and Master Cang.

Cang Chuxi's keen eyes barely stop over Lan Tian, but his oddly colored grey pupils shrink when they rest over Shu Luan.

"What has been done to you?" His tone carries as much concern as it does revulsion.