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Wuxian tried to convince Wangji the next morning to tell him about what's happening in Cloud Recesses. He knows something is not normal from the amount of people surrounding their room and the way Wangji was trying too hard to come up with a plausible excuse as to why he's ignoring his duties to sit and guard him. Wangji frowned when he suggested that they take a stroll outside.
Wangji: "You are supposed to be resting."
Wuxian: "I'm fine. It's sunny outside, the weather is beautiful! I have one day left before the next healing session. Besides, winter is coming and we won't have a chance to walk outdoors with my weakened body by then. I'm not suggesting we leave Cloud Recesses. I don't understand what the problem is?"
Wangji purses his lips like he's struggling between fessing up and coming up with a plausible lie.
Wuxian frowns: "Are you hiding something from me? Did something happen in Cloud Recesses?"
Wangji avoids eye contact which makes Wuxian more suspicious.
Wuxian steps into Wangji's space and asks in a low voice: "Does this have anything to do with the person who visited Zewu Jun yesterday?"
Wangji's eyes widen, which confirms his assumption.
Wuxian: "We heard the disciples talking while searching for the bunnies. Are we in danger?"
Wangji places his hands at Wuxian's sides and smiles reassuringly at him: "It's nothing we cannot handle. All you need to do is stay here where it's safe."
Wuxian looks sadly at him: "Can we at least go outside, near the door for a bit? It feels stuffy in here."
Wangji was reminded of the comment Kai said yesterday and it struck a nerve. He couldn't keep Wuxian locked up, especially when he asks for something trivial as a walk just outside their room. He nods, which earned him a wide smile from Wuxian.
Wuxian seemed energetic this morning. Even Da Ziran was active to the point where it chose to slither next to them on the ground rather than around Wuxian's body. The smaller man was skipping around Wangji, talking a mile a minute about trivial things. Wangji was watching him, filled with content. His soul-bond was happy, he was happy.
They hear loud voices on the other side of their fence. Wuxian halts while Wangji unsheathes Bichen and Wen Ning summons his chains. They both cover Wuxian's front and back in a split second. A figure in green robes jumps over their fence, followed by a bleeding Zewu Jun, ragged Yuxio with her fire lit sword, a breathless Ran and an army of Lan clan disciples. Shenhua Kai lands in front of Wangji, who's blocking Wuxian, and kneels. A few more Shenhua followers fought their way in, only to kneel just like their leader. Kai places Feng on the ground as a sign of surrender and bows his head: "Divine Oracle, we meet at last."
Wuxian peeks at him from behind his soul-bond and asks: ".. and you are?"
Zewu Jun, who looks pissed and clutching an abdominal wound, says: "This is Shenhua Clan's first master: Shenhua Kai, and his disciples."
Wuxian's eyes widen when he sees the blood oozing out of his brother-in-bond: "Zewu Jun! What happened?"
Zewu Jun glares at the kneeling man and says with clenched teeth: "He stabbed me while I was pouring him tea. Apparently he was done talking and wouldn't take no for an answer."
Lan Ran grabbed Yuxio when she launched to attack the kneeling man: "THIS JERK THINKS HE CAN WALTZ IN HERE.." Ran covers her mouth to stop the yelling.
Wuxian grabs Wangji's arm when he tries to push him behind and stands beside him. He looks down at the kneeling man and asks: "First Master Shenhua, what do you want?"
Kai looks around, then looks up to address Wuxian: "May I request a private setting for what I'm about to share with you?"
Wuxian shrugs: "They're my family. Talk or leave."
Shenhua Kai: "I, Shenhua Kai, am here on the behalf of my clan, the guardians of the holy deities. I have come to escort you to your freedom and protect you while you fulfill your divine duties."
Wuxian scratches his head in confusion: "What?"
Ran loses her grip on Yuxio for a few seconds: "YOU WILL DIE TODAY.. YOU PIECE OF.."
Shenhua Kai ignores her and continues: "A hundred years ago, the founder of our clan was blessed with a vision of the future for doing a good deed. He saw a man with golden hair and pale skin that is destined to save mankind. He was honored to have received this vision and vowed to create a sect to serve as guardians for the blessed man. He built our cultivator ways to serve that purpose: we exist in secret, we purge our emotions at a young age and we are well versed in wards and uncovering deception. We have been waiting for many years to serve you, Divine Oracle."
Wuxian turns to look at Wangji: "Is this the same clan that tried to rob us and drugged me?"
Wangji nods.
Wuxian looks at Kai: "So.. you're here to what? Kidnap me?"
Kai: "We are here to free you from Gusu Lan Clan's clutches. You don't have to be a hostage under their care. We can serve you better. We were trained for it."
Wuxian laughs out loud and couldn't seem to be able to stop. He tried to say some words between the heavy laughter: ".. hostage.. serve..FREE?" He clutches his sides and leans on Wangji while breathing hard after the long laugh: "That was so funny. I haven't laughed this hard in years. The powerful bull crap coming out of your mouth made me almost burst a kidney."
Kai: "I don't know what they've been telling you, but a lot of people have been denied your blessing by Zewu Jun. He.. "
Wuxian puts his hand up to stop him: "I don't need to hear your excuses, especially if you're planning to implicate my brother in the process."
Kai: "Divine Oracle, you've been blessed to do good on this earth. It's not logical for you to be confined and manipulated by one clan."
Wuxian steps close to the kneeling man, feeling his anger welling up: "Who are you to tell me what I should and shouldn't be doing?"
Kai: "I am but one of your guardians. We have tested your followers many times and they've been deemed weak and unable to protect you. They stripped you from your sword and your free will, leaving you under their full control. Why do you insist on defending them?"
Wuxian smirks at him: "Who told you that I need protection?"
Kai suddenly grabs his spear and launches from his kneeling position to strike the young Oracle. The poor man thought he could prove a point by pretending to attack Wuxian. Before anyone could react, Wuxian puts his hand up with calmness none of the people present predicted and flicks his ring finger. A strong blue wave of energy pulses from his ring and slices everything within its vicinity. Wangji and Ran used their swords to block it from harming Wen Ning and Yuxio, knowing full well that Chord Assassination wouldn't harm those wearing the Lan headband. Kai and his followers were not so lucky. The force of the attack knocked them off their feet. Kai landed a few paces back while coughing blood and clutching his chest in pain. The rest of his clan members were either passed out or incapacitated.
Wuxian loomed over a weathering Kai, while Da Ziran slithered to wrap around the fallen man's neck. She tightened her hold enough to stop him from speaking but not enough to strangle him. Wuxian says with a calm, frightening low voice: "First Master Shenhua, you seem to have the wrong idea. I, Wei Wuxian, do not follow rules set by others. I am the master of my universe and the only thing I follow is my own judgment."
Da Ziran hisses and exposes her fangs at Kai's face. For the first time since he showed up in Cloud Recesses, he showed an expression of fear.
Wuxian glares at him: "I don't need a sword or my flute to put the likes of you back in their lane. I will let your misconceptions towards my ability to protect myself slide. But.."
He crouches to look closely into the terrified man's eyes: "If you think I will let you barge into my house, disrespect my family and accuse them unjustly then think again."
Da Ziran strikes and bites his arm, causing him to wince and let out a strangled moan.
Wuxian straightens up and looks impassively at the fallen man and his followers: "Be grateful that Gusu Lan Clan has strict rules: Do not kill lightly. If we were anywhere other than Cloud Recesses, then today would've been your last."
Wuxian turns to walk towards his soul-bond and says: "You have 10 minutes to evacuate our sect or I will truly be angry. Any member of Shenhua Clan who wants to meet me in the future will have to stand in line like everyone else and if Zewu Jun thinks you're worthy of my blessings then I would be happy to oblige."
The men in green scrambled to obey, carrying the wounded and crawling their way out in haste.
Wuxian watches them leave while holding Wangji's hand. In honesty, he wasn't expecting anyone to be bold enough to barge into Cloud Recesses and create chaos for his sake. He was pulled out of his musing when he heard Zewu Jun grunt while sitting on the ground to relieve some of the pain from his wound. Wuxian rushes to kneel by his side: "How bad is it?"
Zewu Jun shakes his head: "I cannot believe he got the drop on me."
Wuxian can see sweat running down his brow and hurriedly uses Zewu Jun's sword to write the marking on the ground to summon the golden leaf tree. When it grew, Wuxian handed it to his brother to chew on. Zewu Jun can feel his wound knitting itself and the pain ebb away leaving nothing but a bad memory in its wake.
Zewu Jun: "I've never appreciated your gifts as I do now."
They hear Ran grunt in pain and turn around to check what's going on. Yuxio kicked her in the shin so she would be freed. Wuxian was almost tackled to the ground if it wasn't for Wen Ning's fast reflexes. Wen Ning: "Lady Yu, we talked about this! He cannot handle roughhousing while his spiritual energy is sealed!"
Wuxian yells at Wen Ning: "That's not the point you should be emphasizing!"
Yuxio looks around Wen Ning to smile with pride at Wuxian: "Grandmaster Wei! That was EPIC! Did you see how they ran away like kicked puppies? Did you see his face when Da Ziran bit him?"
Wuxian sighs and shakes his head at her over excited babble: "I don't need the replay. I was there!"
Yuxio was dragged away by a limping Lan Ran while Zewu Jun excused himself to rest after healing. Wuxian looks around at the shattered fence, overturned vegetation and the overall destruction left by his attack. He turns to face his soul-bond and smiles sheepishly: "Sorry.."
Wangji sighs at him: "I don't know if I should be proud or vexed over how confident you were acting just now."
Wuxian looked offended: "Acting?"
Wangji pulled him close by his waist and looked down at him: "Your energy is sealed. A minor injury would have been devastating to your condition."
Wuxian raised an eyebrow: "My condition? I might look delicate but I assure you, I can still fight better than most."
Wangji sighs: "Just.. next time let us handle it please."
Wuxian smiles at him: "Since I took out the trash, can we go for a stroll now?"
Wangji intertwine their fingers and obliges.
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