A Battle Royale

🔥Lan Wangji🔥

"Mother... mom..." Wei Ying whisper into his mother's arms and Wangji was glad for his lover to have that wanted reunion he had wait for the last seven years. He was glad that Wei Ying had been blessed with such caring parents that will do anything for each other, so unlike his own that had die tragically.

However, sixteen years was still a long time and although it did hurt not having a parents support, he had his brother Xichen and that was in itself all he needed, because Xichen cared for him as much as Wei's parents, even going as far as to allowing him to love not only another man, but a man from another Clan and grant him freedom to stay with him for as long as he lived, if that was his desire.

"Ah, you brat, you have grown to be such a handsome young man and not only that, quite powerful too... you did well, my dear husband." Sanren said as she got a better look at her son, taking his hands and even making him turn, to have a full look.

"It wasn't easy, I tell you, now it will be your turn to deal with his unruliness. He is quite the untamed." Lord Wei told her.

"I hear that. Mom... please don't listen to him." Wei Ying said with a pout that Wangji loved and Sanren laughed.

"Dear husband, how can you said that? He brought home the handsome personification of rules." Sanren said as she looked at Lan Wangji with approval and happiness.

"That he did, the Lan boy must had been enchanted." Lord Wei insisted.

"I told you I didn't!" Wei told him for who knows how many times.

"Wei Lao! How can you doubt your own son charm like that?! Don't worry, my Wuxian, you take after the beauty of your mother." She affirmed and Wangji arched an eyebrow, thinking that his lover had inherited not only the good looks from her, but also her personality too and apparently the others thought the same, as a few of them laughed including Lord Zheng, making the Wei family focus back on the present problem.

"Oh how rude of me. Jin Zixuan, if your only worry is for Madam Jin safety, there is no need for you to go. In two days, Madam Yu will have an extended visit in the Golden Tower and help her in this trouble times, for as long as is needed. Madam Yu, of course, will not tolerate neither wicked rumors nor actions against Madam Jin. She had already make her intention known, as she had send a message directly to your cousin as a warning." Sanren told him.

"How do you know? It's not like she sent the message to you." Zixuan told her, as he stood, no longer under Lord Zheng's pressure.

"You insolent brat!" Lord Wei yelled, yet Sanren simply winked at her husband.

"Information is what I manage best and she did sent Lord Wei here a message, demanding him to take care of her son and daughter for her, while she stays in the Golden Tower." Sanren said softly.

"Thus you will stay here whatever you want it or not, brat. This is my Clan boy and you better remember it, because you will stay here for a while. Now go back to your rooms, tomorrow your training resumes and it's not going to be pretty." Lord Wei told them as he turned to leave.

"Wait... mother..." Wei Ying begin to protest and Sanren sighed.

"We will talk later, my son. I will not go anywhere anytime soon." And after she gave Wei Ying a peck on his cheek.

"By the way, I approve your relationship with the young Master Lan. I welcome you to the Wei Clan, Lan Wangji." She told Lan Zhan, who bowed respectfully.

"Thank you." Lan Zhan said and then, after smiling at both of her sons, she followed her grumpy husband back to their pavilion. After their departure, Yanli finally convince her fiancé to go back to his room and everyone follow his example, to Sandu's relief.

The last thing he wanted was a confrontation of swords spirits against Masters and for Senlin to be at the center of it. He liked her bravery, but it was not always a good thing, even when she had been provoked by a jerk. However, if the worst would had happen, he will had taken her side without hesitation and he was sure Senlin knew it, because she winked at him before she departed with Wen Qing.

Now that both of Wei Ying's parents were there, it was safe to assume that Sanren will keep her eye on her sons and Zilin presence, along with another one he didn't recognize, were not too far. Those two were far stronger than any of the juniors spirits, so he rather go back to his Master and have some rest from the chaos, as Lord Wei had declared the next training to be a hard one and thus, he was soon gone.

Once back to their room, Wangji closed the door behind him and guide Wei Ying back to the sit on the bed. He pulled Wei's boots out, then pull off his own and both of them lay on the bed. Wangji knew that Wei Ying was too excited to go back to sleep immediately, for wish he simply held him.

"Lan Zhan, I can't sleep, will you kiss me?" Wangji smirked and did as he was told, kissing his lover a few times.

"Mmmn, more?" Wei demanded, but Wangli simply kissed his nose.

"You need to rest." He told him.

"But I'm too happy to go to sleep right now." Wei protested.

"I know." Wangji whisper, caressing his face with a gently touch that melted Wei Ying's heart. The young man hand was strong and hard, for the many years of training and carrying Bichen since childhood, yet his touch was soft and tender, only intended to please and care.

"Ah, Lan Zhan... I wonder, are you happy? I promise your brother I will free you from sadness, but..." Lan Zhan quiet him with a soft kiss.

"I am." Wangji assure him and Wei smiled.

"Then show me." Lan Zhan then kiss him for long minutes, only separating for dear air.

"So good... you are melting me bit by bit and I'm unable to resist it." Wei whisper and Wangji smirked.

"Then don't." Wangji suggested and Wei laughed.

"As if I can. I just hope to give that sense of family you lost. Mother seems to like you, so does father even if he doesn't say it, not to mention our son, that even wants to become a Lan..."

"Wei Ying, about that..." Wangji begin saying, but paused, unsure of what to tell him.

"Yes, I don't mind him becoming a Lan, nor that you teach him playing the zither, as if he were an official member of your Clan." Wei Ying told him, practically guessing his thoughts. He faintly smiled.

"I will like that." He confessed.

"Then, it's settle. In our spare time, you can teach him the basic of becoming a Lan, but I hope you had your own zither, because you won't find one in this part of the country." Wei advise him.

"That's not a problem." Wangji said before he kiss him good once again.

"Then, I may practice playing Chenqing once more." Wei added.

"That can be dangerous." Wangji said worriedly. The east was full of dark energy and he kind of attract it like moths to a flame.

"Lord Zheng can supervise it, as he did before. That's also part of my training." Wei said.

"Mn." Wangji simply reply.

"You need to express yourself more Lan Zhan and even more so when in bed." Wangji's ears were on fire instantly, which make Wei Ying laugh, then he pressed himself closer to his lover.

"You are cute when blushing... want another round?" Wei asked as he kiss him slowly and rub him right where he was the most sensitive to those mischievous hands, making his lover blood boil.

"Aren't you sore?" Wangji asked even when he was already on fire and Wei smiled.

"Don't you have that ointment Wen Qing gave you last time? The one that you use on my back?" Wangji assented.

"Well, it's oily and better yet, it relief pain..." Wangji smirked, despite himself, because his lover was quite the pervert and he love it. Thus, under Wei Ying's suggestion, he took the ointment he had carefully placed in his traveling pouch and after they kissed, touched and undressing one another, he make Ying lay on his stomach, all exited.

The ointment was luckily odorless, and it felt a bit cold, but when Lan Zhan put some at the entrance it felt nice and soothing. Ah, Wen Qing was the best. She had just not only prepare a remedy for his sore back after he was almost killed, but also an amazing oil for love making among men.

"Is it fine?" Wangji asked.

"Mmm, yes... much better. Now, let me put it on that big thing and come get me." Lan Zhan smiled and watch as his Wei Ying put some of the oil on his hand and then carefully rubbed his arousal. He keep the rubbing until it cover it all and make him wet a little too, then he lay on the bed again and urge him with his arms to come close.

"Lan Zhan, the nights here are cold and I need your warm very much. Come here..." Wei Ying said as he parted his legs, ready for him. The oil felt a bit cold and odd, but if it ease Wei Ying's pain, then it was just fine and after going in without Wei's showing a hint of pain or discomfort, the rest was history, as this time he really lose himself in him, more than the previous two times.

Under the soothing effect of the ointment, Wei's initial pain was almost tuned down to nothing and that make him even more exited, making them had a blissful long time in bed, while they went all out this time. Later, Wei Ying will make sure to ask for more of that miracle ointment that worked wonders in more than one way.

After they satisfy their desire, they fall asleep for what was left on the night, until next morning both of them were wake up by Zilin and Lianmei. They were going to train that day in the mud pound, which meant his father was serious when he said their training was not going to be pretty, but it was going to be fun.

Wei Ying

Once they were all gather, they follow Zilin and Lianmei toward another part of their Clan, into a huge pound of... mud. Ah yes, it was like a small lake of mud that had several trunks around a waist tall sticking out of it. Over the trunks there were two kinds of colors with two different talismans pasted to one side. There were yellow and red and they were all mixed, making the trunk pound quite colorful.

Lord Zheng joined them shortly, as most of the team were wondering what kind of training was done over a pound of mud. There was nothing really challenging there, despite the two different colors over the top of the trunks and the talismans. However, Wei Ying knew better and started to laugh.

"What's wrong with you?" Jiang Cheng ask him.

"You will see soon enough. Lord Zheng, can we at least spare the ladies?" Wei Ying asked, not wanting for either his sister or Mianmian to get dirty. The mud pound was not deep, only around the knees, but it will definitely ruin robes and dresses all the same.

"Then what will be the point of the training? Alright, this training is a bit different than the ones before. It will test your spiritual energy skills, your balance and sense of danger. This will be a battle royal between Masters and swords spirits and at the end, only one will remain standing." Lord Zheng said, as most of them looked at the mud with distaste.

"What do you mean? Are we supposed to throw our swords spirits down to the mud?" Mianmian asked.

"Yes and no. The trunks painted yellow are safe to stand on by cultivators, while the red ones by spirits. If a cultivator step in one trunk painted red, it will be rejected by a barrier and thrown into the mud if you are unlucky or into a cultivator one, if you have the skill." And just when he finish saying that, a small group of cultivators showed up and bowed respectfully to Lord Zheng.

Then, they went and jumped into the trunks that could barely had enough circumference for a foot and half of the other and Zilin also jumped in. There were more than hundred trunks with at least a meter of space between them in every direction. The place was once a big lake, but after the dark energy changed the climate, it dried up, only leaving mud when rained that they maintained by a special array, for that training.

"The guys there along with their spirits, will make sure to try to get all of you down the mud, only spiritual energy will be used and just enough to thrown an opponent, not to cause harm. For this training, you are to act as individual, not as a team. A sword spirit will be expected to act against a Master, I'm sure they will had their fun and so a Master to the spirits. Zilin will make sure to break any kind of teamwork, so will be the cultivators already waiting for you. Wei Ying and the Wen siblings can tell the rest of you that those Wei Clan members are no joke, so good luck! Jump in and show just how far you had progressed in the last weeks. Zilin is expected to be the last one standing, so go ahead and prove him wrong." At that Zilin humped.

"He is no joke either. Last time he did threw me down. It's time for revenge now." Wei said as he jumped into a trunk and then into another and another, until he reached the desired position.

Lan Zhan did follow his initiative, then Jiang Cheng and the rest, including the spirits. Only Zixuan was unwilling, but when he saw that Lord Wei was coming, he reluctantly jumped in the battle field. Once all of the participants were in, Lord Wei activate the array of the talisman and they saw a yellowish array covering the mud and activating the repelling talismans in each trunk.

"Alright, let's the battle royal begin!" Lord Zheng said and the guys from the Wei Clan smiled widely. Instantly, the first one who was attacked was Huaisang, who yelled, as he saw the spiritual energy coming his way and the closer trunk was a spiritual one, but luckily, his sword spirit Qingfeng block the attack with one his own.

"Go Master, I will help you as much as I can." Qingfeng said, as he blocked more attacks coming their way and thus, Huaisang jumped further away, but as he moved, so did the other all around the big pound, forcing him to finally step into a red trunk, that activate instantly, sending him back, thus falling into the mud ungracefully, as he landed on his butt, petty much getting fully cover in mud.

The ones from the Wei Clan laughed, while the team simply sighed, as they defend themselves and jumped away, carefully choosing the yellow ones or the red ones for the spirits. However, Zilin was set into causing troubles, thus targeting the team member's one after the other.

Unconsciously, the juniors did worked as a team, regardless of the instructions, because it came quite natural for them to act as a group, while they were 'outsiders' targeting them first. Thus the sword spirits kept Zilin busy, while the Masters got rid of the 'outsiders' first.

At that Lord Zheng and Lord Wei saw the potential of the juniors, moving in unison, even without the need of words, guided almost by instincts. It was rare to find teens so in tune with each other. Usually their individual egos always got on the way, but for them that came in second when they were focus on a task. However, that was not an easy task as the other were familiar with the training and more skilled as they jumped over the yellow ones and avoiding the reds.

Most of the ones who had offered to join the training, knew the trunks colors by heart, which make it easier for them to put out off-balance at those who needed to memorize the complicated array of colors first. Soon, Qingfeng follow his Master's fate, although he fell on his feet and went out, to be greeted by a smiling Lianmei who guide him to a teleporting circle, that went to a river in which they could bathe and change clothes from those provided by the Clan. The rest try their best to fight back under the new less fortunate circumstances. Little by little and around an hour later, they manage to throw away half the 'outsiders' that had laugh at Huaisang.

At one time, most of the team had been surprised when Yanli was target by another female cultivator of the Wei Clan and was close to fall. The one who had block the attack on her was not her sword spirit who had his hands busy with Zilin, nor her brothers who were also busy trying to stay clean, but Zixuan that didn't want her to get dirty. Her lavender clothes really suited her and he would hate to see them ruin, not to mention fall into mud will be any woman's nightmare.

So, in the end, the man did have some feelings for her after all, but a few minutes after Zixuan had save her from falling, he had become a target too and with no near yellow trunks, other than the one Yanli was standing, his doom was pretty much set. However, Yanli didn't care about dresses as much as Zixuan thought and seen that Zixuan was going to fall for saving her, she voluntarily jumped toward him as he begin to go down and fall along with him, practically with him falling on her arms. The splash of their fall stained some other cultivator's clothes, but the battle was still on, so no one cared and the pair went out helping each other, while covered in mud from head to toes.

Inspired by the love sacrifice of his sister, Jiang Cheng pushed himself harder, but after throwing a few more Wei Clan members down, Zilin got him good in one shoulder and make him fall, then it was Mianmian who manage to fall on her feet, only with Wen Ning's own sacrifice for her sake and she thank him and hold his hand as he help her out of the mud. Wen Ning smiled happily as he blushed. He liked Mianmian and didn't mind go down along with her, as Yanli had done before.

Then Fuxue lost to Zilin, then Chilie, Shuanghua, Suihua, Yingyu and Huanying, along with their Masters, all gone down by the powerful old spirit that new no mercy. Soon, there was only Sandu, Senlin, Wei Ying, Lan Zhan, Suibian, Bichen, Wen Qing, Zilie and two others Wei Clan members.

"I give you credit for lasting this long, but now it will be over." Zilin warned them all and already testing that power, Wei Ying knew was coming, so he embrace himself for it.

"Brace yourself Lan Zhan! He can get more than one target at once!" Wei Ying yell at him at the time Zilin sent a relative powerful spiritual wave their way that sent Sandu back, taken off ward. Instinctively, Senlin try to grab his robes as she was next to him, but he weighed more than her and make her fall too with her over him. Also Bichen stepped back by the force, but landing on the wrong trunk, she was repelled, making her also fall in disgrace as much as Yanli.

When Suibian saw her fall, he went down on his own accord and help her stand and clean her face. Her white dress was all ruined and cover with the mud, but he didn't care. He smiled at her, telling her that she still looked stunning, making her blush and smile, as they went out. Then Wen Qing jumped down too, that way at least her clothes will only stain by half and she could still keep her dignity, walking out with a straight back.

At the end, only three remained and the final battle was an outstanding one, they jumped from one trunk to the other in fast moves. By then, Wangji already new the arrangement of the colors by memory and although he almost got Zilin once, the old spirit was as strong as Lord Zheng when alive, whit several centuries of cultivation and experience, so after fifteen minutes of trying to get Zilin, both of them lost, falling down almost at the same time.

Lan Zhan's white clothes were beyond saving, so he didn't bother with staining them even more as he helped Wei Ying up and then out of the mud pound. Lianmei offer them a towel and new black clothes, which make Wei Ying smile at the end. It was going to be amusing seen Lan Zhan in black instead of white and he was honestly dying to see it.

They used the teleporting circle to the lake a bit further away and he hurry Lan Zhan to get in the water and clean himself as he did too. The others were there too, so he didn't try to take advantage of his shy Lan Zhan, but when he saw him dress in black and change his hair style, he was simply speechless. In a way he needed to thank Zilin for making such miracle happen, even if it was for a short time, as Lan Zhan had spare white clothes back in their room, but just seen him out of those mourning clothes was win for him. Then Lan Zhan took off his ribbon and thoroughly clean it and even use his spirit energy to make it almost shine white.

As the lake was in the middle of a bamboo forest, they decide to stay in the Wei Clan branch located there to rest and curse Zilin for been so merciless on everyone. Ah Yuan was brought to them a little after they clean themselves and Wangji decided that was a good place to introduce the kid to the Lan's specialty, the zither and the others watched as the young Jade introduce his kid to the hardships of his Clan.

AN: I know, it was veerryy long one, my bad, but I didn't want to cut it in the middle, when things were getting fun. Did you imagine Lan Zhan cover in mud? 😂 That would be an amazing sight, but even more so for him been dressed in all black. Thanks for reading and I hope it still okay. Please take care my darlings, stay safe and stay home as much as you can. Until next time, stay healthy.