Companionship And Fears

Wei Ying

"I'm sorry he fainted like that." Qingfeng said, having Huaisang resting his head on his lap, while using his fan to give his Master some fresh air. He knew his Master wasn't the bravest, much to his older brother annoyance, but he meant well.

"Don't worry about that, he not the first one to faint anyway." Jiang Cheng said, as he looked at Wuxian.

"Hey, I'm not the only one who fainted, Zixuan was the first one." Wei said to defend himself.

"He was took down, he didn't fainted. By the way, Lady Qing, that was awesome." Jiang Cheng said as he slightly blushed and Wei Ying arched his eyebrow. That guy was so damn bold.

"Talking about Zixuan, what happen to him? We left him in the Inn, shouldn't we go back to town and bring him back?" Song Lan asked.

"No need for that, he is here. All the swords spirits are inside the islands. Any of us can sense that." Suibian said and Yanli sighed with relief.

"Let's go, Chilie, we need to find him and explain to him what happen and why he was left behind." She said turning to leave.

"Yanli, wait! I will go with you." Her brother told her, a bit worry for how Zixuan could take his awesome defeat.

"My Lady that will not be necessary. He is heading this way." Chilie said, pointing at the four men walking toward them. Obviously Lord Zheng wanted them all there, perhaps to test them and see just how they had integrate or set apart.

"And so is the rude one, who call us broke country pumpkins." Wei said, looking at the other man dressed in white. Was his imagination or his appearance resemble that of the Lan Clan? Usually, Clans try to distinguish from each other with different colors, so it was unusual for two Clans to wear the same one.

"Lan Zhan, is there a reason why that guy also wears white? Isn't that the color of your Clan?" Wuxian asked, as he saw the four approaching.

"Yes." He simply said, but as Wuxian look at him and saw him frown, he knew there was more story to it. The way he had silence him the day before spoke high volumes of the fracture between the Clans.

"Jiang Cheng, do you know?" Wuxian asked, as his partner remained silent.

"The Moling Su Clan creators were once members of the Lan Clan, but detached from them after an incident to create their own, or so the rumor says." Cheng told him.

"Ah... imitators, then..." Wei said.

"Bad ones, apparently..." Jiang added.

"You're wrong. They were expelled." Lan Wangji corrected and Wei smirked.

"Poor Huaisang... he gets to pair with the haughty imitation." Wei whisper and Xiao sighed.

"We are going to the most dangerous place in our country together, so please, let's get along well with them too." Xiao said and Song Lan agree.

"A shame he wasn't paired with Wen Qing." Wuxian added.

"I heard that, Wuxian." She reply, giving him a look that make him shudder.

"So scary... Jiang Cheng, she is all yours..." Wuxian said, slightly tapping Jiang's back for good luck. Jiang Cheng ignore him and watched as his sister greeted her fiancé, who give her a cold glance, but at least didn't said anything.

Out of courtesy, both Zixuan and his sword spirit Suihua bowed to the others, who also returned the courtesy, but the atmosphere became tense, mostly because they were expecting for him to say something about what happen yesterday. However, to their surprise, Suihua joined the rest of the spirits, who stood behind the group.

"I was told you were teleported back to the town and carry me to an Inn, then run into an unexpected dangerous mission that ended with you losing your sense of time. Is that correct?" Zixuan asked, mostly looking at Yanli.

"Yes. We encounter a dragon that teleport us to his lair. We didn't know we spent the day and night inside it, my apologies." Yanli told him with a gentle smile.

"As if... there are no more dragons in this era. You most had encounter a poisonous plant and hallucinate the whole thing." Su said and Lan Wangji narrow his eyes, quite temped to shut him up again.

"Lady Yanli is not a liar." Zixuan said with a hint of irritation in his voice and the others looked at one another a bit surprised that the guy at least had some decorum with his fiancé.

"It's not a lie if you hallucinate it. It becomes real when you get them and those country pumpkins are nothing but..." However, Lan Zhan had enough of Su She talking, using his muting spell on him once more, but his sword spirit Nanping, who was out of its blade this time, held his vessel and point it in the direction of Lan Zhan, which trigger an instant reaction from Bichen, Suibian, Sandu, Senlin, Chilie, Fuxue and Shuanghua without their blindfold, Huanying, Yingyu and even Qingfeng, which all moved in front of Lan Wangji protectively, making a perfect shield around him.

"Back off Nanping... you are obviously outnumbered and he insulted our Masters first." Suibian said, with a hint of a threat in his voice, which pleased Bichen internally.

In the back, been the only sword spirit that didn't join, Suihua was impressed by the display of protection around a lone Master. It was unusual for spirits to develop such strong companionship in such short amount of time, which only proved what Lord Xichen had told them, about the rest of the group taking a dangerous mission was indeed true.

"Wangji, please release him." Lan Xichen calmly said to his brother, who obeyed without a question, releasing Su She from his muting spell. He had just come back with some herbs for Huaisang, when he saw the unusual deploy of the spirits around his brother.

Seen the display of hostility, She turned to go back to the main island by teleporting talisman, it was not like Lord Zheng was going to teach them that day anyways and so Nanping returned to his Master blade, unconcerned about the ten swords joining forces. Once Su was out of the picture, the sword spirit back off, bowing to Xichen, respectfully.

"I must said, that was an impressive sight. I honestly had never seen so many spirits protecting another Master. Lord Zheng will be quite proud." Xichen said as he approach them. He was glad that Wangji had found a group of talented cultivators of his age that already had a bond with him, especially Wei Wuxian.

"We pass through quite the hassle, while in the Cold Cave, no kidding." Wuxian said.

"Yes, you all did... here, use this. He will wake up again in no time." Xichen said as he passed Qingfeng a bottle for Huaisang to inhale. The sword spirit did as he was told and soon enough, Huaisang was moaning and complaining he had a big headache.

"Qingfeng? Huh? What happen to..." But as soon as he saw Wuxian, he remember about the east, thus the Burial Mounds he feared the most, yet he was expected to go there in search of a woman who was supposed to had gone mad. He paled in seconds.

"Master, are you okay?" Qingfeng asked worriedly.

"Please kill me now... no matter how much I can train, going to the Burial Mounds means death anyways." Huaisang whisper in dismay.

"Burial Mounds? What do you mean?" Zixuan asked, not knowing what he was talking about.

"We had another mission to complete soon. Lord Zheng want us to go looking for Yin, the one responsible for the dark energy, inside the Burial Mounds, where she is suspected to be." Yanli explained and Zixuan was taken aback for the news and implications, grabbing Yanli's hand, pulling her closer.

"Did you agree? You can't possibly had agree to that. That place is hell, even with your skills!" He shouted, making Chilie move closer, just in case he try something, but Yanli knew Zixuan better than even his brother and she knew he was worry about her, which showed he cared, as she had always known.

"Zixuan... if we find her, then the balance of the energies can be fully restored..." Yanli said softly.

"I don't care. If we most go and risk the life for the restoration of the balance, I will go, you will stay." Zixuan told her a bit softer now, aware of the presence of her brother and the others. He was not the kind of man who hit women, but he wasn't going to let his fiancé get kill in a hellish place away from home and those she loved.

"So he does care after all..." Wen Qing said to Wuxian, who sighed.

"Apparently he is not a full jerk." Wei said back.

"Well, I wouldn't want her to go either. The chances of all of us retuning home is quite low, especially for us who had not reach level nine yet. If something happen to her, both my parents will suffer a great deal." Jiang whisper.

"All our loved ones will, if we never return." Song Lang said.

"My brother will kill me if I chicken out of this... I'm as good as dead anyways." Huaisang said in dismay and Qingfeng gently rubbed his back in understanding.

"Had any of you go close to the Burial Mounds?" Mianmian asked to the ones of the east.

"It's forbidden for us to go there." Wen Ning said shyly.

"I did go close once... trust me, the dark energy coming from there, even miles away is overwhelming." Wei Ying said.

"And they expect us to go inside in search for the source of the dark energy? That's too much to ask from cultivators in training. A mission of such proportions and danger can be consider nothing but a suicide for us... Lady Yanli, you are not going." Zixuan said seriously.

"I think he is really in love..." Mianmian whisper to her sword spirit Yingyu, who smiled.

"That's cute... if he is not a jerk, she got herself a good husband." Chilie smiled looking at the two women.

"Good husband or not, is still yet to see if we can survive the Burial Mounds. So far, only Wuxian, Wen Qing, Wen Ning and Lan Wangji will be able to even get close. The rest of us, with so little experience facing the concentrated dark energy in the east, will be in serious troubles..." Cheng said.

"Don't said that. I'm sure Lord Zheng will only sent us there when we are all ready to go." Xingcheng said.

"Which will be in about ten years." Qingfeng whisper looking back at his Master and Wei Ying smirked.

"I can show you guys a few tricks. Want me to teach you a few Lan Zhan?" Wei asked eagerly and Zhan look at him, pondering about if he should take him seriously or not, but...

"Why ask him, we are the ones behind..." Jiang said.

"Come on, Lan Wangji is his partner and yours can definitely help you improve tenfold, you are in luck." Mianmian said giving Qing, a slight tap in her back, making Cheng blush and unable to look at Qing, which arched a brow in amusement. She wondered if she should help him increase his spiritual power with her pressure points.

Xichen by the other hand was amused for another reason. He was watching his brother slight reaction and he could tell, he was the happiest he had seen him in a while. That group was actually good for his shy brother and the Young Master Wei... well, time will tell what will happen there.

"Lord Xichen, is Lord Zheng really going to send us to the Burial Mounds?" Huaisang asked, although not with much hopes.

"Yes... finding Yin is the most important thing right now." Xichen answered seriously.

"But why not sent stronger people? Why us? If we go on our own..." Huaisang insisted, making his spirit sight.

"Please don't think you will go on your own..." A new voice said out of nowhere. Most of the present turned to look around, but saw no one.

"Look up Wuxian..." Xuanyu said to Wei and he did, seen a huge symbol shining gold, then it took the form of a man and right after it was gone, to reappear at Xichen's side.

"Lord Yang, you had wake up. Welcome home." Xichen said, then deeply bowed to him. Giving the fact that even the Yang energy of the world had regain consciousness after so long of been asleep, it meant that fate was working its way to correct the balance lost by human greed. Perhaps the gods were having pity on them. The rest aside from Lan Wangji, were utterly shocked to see the source of the white energy in the flesh.

A tall man with black half tied hair, dark eyes, pale skin and dressed in white and blue robes with the symbol of the Yin/Yang in the back stood there, turning to look at them with a kind smile. They all could sense a strange energy coming from him, yet it was so strong, even when most probably it was still suppressed to not overwhelm them.

Inside Wei Ying, Xuanyu felt a bit restless when Yang looked at his host. He could see that Yang was able to see through the seal and directly into him, as in a way, he was part of Yin, born from her dark energy. Maybe the white immortal felt nostalgia, because he missed his other half so dearly, thus giving Wei a sad stare. Then, to surprise them both...

"You are special... born from both white and dark energy at the same time. You are on your own, what Yin and I are separate. No wonder my dragon pull you in when he sensed your energy, you resemble us in perfect balance." Yang said right inside of Wei Ying's mind, but Xuanyu was even more restless, as white energy was his opposite and Yang was too used to control Yin's energy in the past.

"Back off..." Xuanyu said with Wei's voice, as he took possession of Wuxian in his panic, but Yang only smiled.

"There is no need to fear me, I will not harm your host nor you. Go back, I will help all these young cultivators to reach level ten in less than a month, then, you keep them safe for me and bring Yin back. Rest, for now." Yang said, putting his index fingers between Wei Ying's red eyes and a second later, he was on his way down, caught halfway by Wangji, as his world spin around him, to enter into a void of darkness.

AN: Until next time, take care. 😙😄💖💖💖🌷