If Wen Ning had any blood on his face, he would’ve been blushing so hard the bleed seeped out. At this point, Wei WuXian didn’t know what to say either, “You… Ugh!” He sat down beside the corner of the wall and sighed, “I want alcohol.”
Wen Ning immediately replied, “I’ll go buy some.”
Wei WuXian, “Come back! What are you running for?”
Wen Ning came back again, “Searching for alcohol…”
Wei WuXian, “You… I was only saying that, and you really went to search. You’re not really my servant, are you?”
Wen Ning, “I know.”
Wei WuXian, “Besides, do you have money?”
Wen Ning, “No…”
Wei WuXian, “You see?! I knew it!”
Wen Ning envied, “But Young Master Lan has a lot… a lot of money… It’s so nice.”
“Ugh.” Wei WuXian slammed the back of his head onto the wall a few times, sighing a bunch, “Nevermind. I won’t drink ever again.”
Wen Ning was surprised, “Why?”
Wei WuXian, “Alcohol makes things go wrong. I’m gonna go abstinent.”
Wen Ning’s lips twitched. Wei WuXian, “What do you mean by this? You don’t believe me?”
Wen Ning mumbled, “No, no… But back then, didn’t Sister fail to get you off alcohol, even after trying everything she could…”
“Haha, haha.” Wei WuXian recalled, “She just poked holes into my body with her needles every other day or so, didn’t she?”
After he laughed for enough, Wei WuXian suddenly spoke up, “Wen Ning, have you ever thought about what you want to do, after this whole mess has ended?”
Wen Ning paused in surprise, “What I want to do?”
Right now, in this world, Wen Ning didn’t have many close friends left. In fact, he didn’t even know many of the people. Since long ago, he hadn’t been good at thinking for himself, much less making decisions. He was either following Wen Qing or Wei WuXian. Apart from this, he likely didn’t know where he should go or where he could go for that matter. But Wei WuXian had always hoped that he could find his own path. Saying it like this, though, seemed as if he was chasing him away.
He thought about it some more. Wen Ning didn’t know where he was going, but he didn’t know either, did he? In the beginning, when he was with Lan WangJi, he never thought about this problem at all. He took it as granted that they’d continue like this without change. But after tonight, maybe he and Lan WangJi wouldn’t go back to how they were ever again. Without Lan WangJi, it seemed as if it wasn’t too impossible for him to roam the world on his own.
But a voice in Wei WuXian’s heart told him with clarity, No, you can’t.
The words he said back on Koi Tower really proved to be true. The current Wei WuXian couldn’t do without Lan WangJi.
Wei WuXian let out a long sigh, despairing, “I want to drink.” The more he thought about it, the more dispirited he felt. The anxiety that had nowhere to go finally became a raging fire. He leaped up, “Fuck. Wen Ning, let’s go!”
Wen Ning, “Where are we going?”
Wei WuXian, “Looking for trouble!”
Chapter 98: Hatred (Part One)
Translated by K of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Bringing Wen Ning with him, Wei WuXian dashed straight towards the Guanyin Temple inside the city. During the day, he and Lan WangJi had already searched the area. They’d originally planned to examine the place more carefully and break the array in the temple to see which creature was sealed there, whether it’d help in dealing with Jin GuangYao or not. However, he slept all the way until seven in the evening, and that kind of thing happened afterwards. Naturally, the plan fell through.
Currently, Wei WuXian felt discontent in every way possible, which was why he came to search for trouble with Jin GuangYao in the middle of the night.
All was quiet. The household lights had already been blown out, and the doors of the Guanyin Temple were shut tightly as well. From outside of the tall walls, the courtyard seemed to be pitch black, but as Wei WuXian leaped up the wall, before he even reached the roof, he suddenly paused, Something’s wrong.
Wen Ning froze as well, whispering, “There’s a barrier.”
Wei WuXian gestured with his hand. The two landed soundlessly and left the main entrance. They went to a corner on the other side of the Guanyin Temple and carefully climbed up. After hiding behind a rooftop gargoyle statue, they finally peeked into the courtyard.
And both of the two gaped in shock.
Inside the Guanyin Temple was full of both people and candlelight. Half were monks, and the other half were cultivators wearing robes of Sparks Amidst Snow. The two groups stood mixed, all of people carrying bows and arrows on their backs and swords in their hands as if they were guarding something, ready to fight at any moment. Once in a while there would be whispers. But due to the special camouflaging barriers that had been set up on all four sides of the Guanyin Temple, from the streets outside the walls, all seemed to be dark and silent inside. None of the sounds and lights leaked out.
But what gave Wei WuXian the shock wasn’t the barrier. It wasn’t the cultivators and fake monks either. Instead, it was the white-robed person standing in the center of the courtyard.
Lan XiChen.
Lan XiChen wasn’t restrained by anything. Even his sword and his xiao, Liebing, were worn at his waist. He stood amid the crowd so gently, and these monks and cultivator regarded him with respect as well, even answering all of his requests.
Wei WuXian observed for a while before turning to Wen Ning, his voice low, “Go back to the inn immediately. Bring HanGuang-Jun here as fast as possible!”
Wen Ning nodded and disappeared. Wei WuXian didn’t see Jin GuangYao. He didn’t know if he was here or if he had the Tiger Seal in his hand. After some thought, he bit his finger and moved his bleeding fingertip towards the Spirit-locking Pouch at his waist. He wanted use the few small ghosts to quietly summon a couple of dark creatures for him. Yet, at this point, a string of barks came from an end of the street outside the Guanyin Temple.
Wei WuXian immediately felt his soul fly away.
Almost petrified, he held back the urge to get the hell out of there, trembling as he hugged the sculpture on the roof tightly. Listening as the barks moved closer and closer, his chest was filled with fear, involuntarily chanting is his heart, Help me, Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan, help me!
After this, it seemed as if he got some courage from the name, and so he kept on trembling as he forced himself to calm down. Wei WuXian prayed with all he had that the dog was a wild one without an owner so that it’d get lost as soon as possible. But fate clearly wasn’t on his side.
Amid the barks sounded the clear voice of a young man, who scolded, “Fairy, shut up! Do you want to wake up everyone living on this street in the middle of the night?!”
Jin Ling!
Lan XiChen’s expression changed. Most of the LanlingJin Sect’s cultivators knew their young master’s voice. They exchanged a look with one another and nocked arrows on their bows.
Jin Ling’s voice came rather quickly. It arrived at the doors of the Guanyin Temple soon afterwards, “Shh! Shh! I’ll cook you if you keep on barking! … Just where do you want me to go?”