Chapter 55

Chapter 55 Extreme Courage Part 11 5

After a pause, Wei Wuxian said, "But even if it's hibernation, does it really need to sleep for four hundred years? You said this Tortoise of Slaughter likes to eat humans. How many has it actually eaten?"

Lan Wangji replied, "According to the books, every time it appeared, it consumed anywhere from two to three hundred people, and at most, entire cities and villages. After several rampages, it has eaten at least over five thousand alive."

Wei Wuxian said, "Oh. It must be stuffed."

This beast seems to like to drag people entirely into its shell, perhaps to store them for later consumption. Maybe four hundred years ago, it hoarded too much food in its shell and still hasn't digested it.

Lan Wangji ignored him. Wei Wuxian continued, "Speaking of eating, have you ever practiced fasting meditation (a form of spiritual discipline where one abstains from food)?"

Lan Wangji didn’t respond. Wei Wuxian added, "For people like us, not eating or drinking for three to four days is probably the limit. But if no one comes to rescue us after those three or four days, our physical strength, energy, and spiritual power will start to decline."

If Wen Chao and his group fled and chose to ignore them, help might arrive in about three or four days, brought by other clans. The real concern is that the Wen family might not only refuse to help but also worsen our situation. The "other clans" would only include the Gusu Lan family and the Yunmeng Jiang family. If the Wen family interferes, the "three to four days" could easily double.

Wei Wuxian withdrew a branch and roughly drew a map on the ground, connecting a few lines, and said, "Moxi Mountain is closer to Gusu than to Yunmeng, so your family should arrive first. We’ll wait. Even if they don’t come, Jiang Cheng should return to Lotus Pier in a day or two. He’s smart enough to evade the Wen family. There’s nothing to worry about."

Lan Wangji lowered his eyes, looking dispirited, and said softly, "We won’t be able to wait that long."

Wei Wuxian said, "Hmm?"

Lan Wangji said, "Cloud Recesses has already been burned down."

Wei Wuxian tentatively said, "…But everyone is still safe, right? Your uncle, your brother."

He had assumed that even though Lan Wangji's father, the head of the Lan family, was seriously injured, there was still Lan Qiren and Lan Xichen to manage things. However, Lan Wangji, expressionlessly, said, "My father is almost gone. My brother is missing."

The branch Wei Wuxian had been idly drawing with stopped.

One of the young nobles had mentioned on the way up the mountain that the head of the Lan family was seriously injured. But he hadn’t expected it to be to the point of "almost gone." Perhaps Lan Wangji had just received the latest news that his father was not going to make it.

Although the head of the Lan family had long been in seclusion and uninvolved in worldly affairs, a father is still a father. Additionally, Lan Xichen was missing. No wonder Lan Wangji had been especially gloomy and short-tempered today. Wei Wuxian felt a little awkward, unsure of what to say.

Suddenly, he turned his head in confusion and froze.

The firelight made Lan Wangji's face glow like warm ivory, and it also clearly illuminated a tear track on his cheek.

Wei Wuxian was stunned and thought, "This is bad!"

Lan Wangji was the type of person who might only cry a few times in his life, and Wei Wuxian had just happened to witness one of those moments. Wei Wuxian couldn’t bear to see others cry. He couldn’t stand seeing women cry; when he did, he always wanted to comfort and tease them until they smiled through their tears. Seeing a man cry was even worse. He had always thought that seeing a usually strong man cry was more terrifying than accidentally seeing a virtuous woman bathing, and he couldn’t even offer any comfort.

With the destruction of his family's estate, the oppression of his clan, his father's critical condition, his brother's disappearance, and his own injuries, any attempt at comfort would be futile.

Wei Wuxian didn’t know where to put his hands and feet, turned his head away, and after a long while, said, "Uh, Lan Zhan."

Lan Wangji coldly said, "Shut up."

Wei Wuxian fell silent.

The firewood crackled loudly.

Lan Wangji quietly said, "Wei Ying, you are really annoying."

Wei Wuxian said, "Oh..."

He thought, "With so much happening, Lan Zhan is probably extremely frustrated, and here I am, bothering him. No wonder he’s so angry. His leg is injured, and he can’t hit me, so he bit me instead... Maybe I should give him some peace and quiet."

After holding it in for a while, he still said, "Actually, I didn’t mean to annoy you... I just wanted to ask if you’re cold. My clothes are dry now. Here, take the inner garment, and I’ll keep the outer one." The inner garment was his personal clothing, which wasn’t really appropriate to give to Lan Wangji, but his outer garment was too dirty to be presentable. People from the Gusu Lan family were naturally inclined toward cleanliness, so giving Lan Wangji such a dirty garment seemed a bit disrespectful. Lan Wangji didn’t say anything or look at him. Wei Wuxian threw the dried white inner garment next to him, wrapped himself in the outer robe, and moved away quietly.

The two of them waited for three days.

Inside the cave, it was impossible to tell the passage of time, but they relied on the Lan family’s notoriously strict schedule. They would fall asleep and wake up at set times, so they could tell how much time had passed by counting how many times Lan Wangji had slept.

With these three days of rest, Lan Wangji's leg injury didn't worsen and began to heal slowly. Before long, he resumed his meditation practice.

During these days, Wei Wuxian kept a low profile, staying out of Lan Wangji's sight. Only when Lan Wangji had regained his composure and returned to his usual stoic self did Wei Wuxian casually come back, pretending that he hadn’t seen or heard anything that night. He had the decency not to provoke Lan Wangji for fun anymore. Their interactions remained lukewarm but peaceful.

In the meantime, the two of them spied near the black pond several times. The Tortoise of Slaughter had dragged all the corpses into its massive shell. The dark shell floated on the water’s surface like an indestructible giant warship. Initially, they heard heavy chewing noises from inside, but these were soon replaced by snoring that sounded like distant thunder.

They had considered trying to sneak into the water and find an escape route while the beast was asleep. However, they could only stay underwater for the time it took a stick of incense to burn before the beast detected them. Despite multiple attempts, they couldn’t locate the cave Jiang Cheng had described. Wei Wuxian suspected that the beast’s body might be blocking it. They tried to lure the creature to the surface again, but it seemed tired after its earlier rampage and didn’t want to move much.

They collected the scattered arrows, longbows, and branding irons on the shore and counted them back at their location. There were over a hundred arrows, more than thirty longbows, and about a dozen branding irons.

By now, it was the fourth day.

Lan Wangji picked up a longbow with his left hand and examined its material intently. With his right hand, he plucked the bowstring, producing a metallic sound.

These were bows and arrows crafted from extraordinary materials, used by prestigious clans for night hunting. Lan Wangji dismantled all the bowstrings, connected them end to end, forming a long string. He tightened the string with both hands and then flung it out. A white flash shot through the air, shattering a rock three zhang away into pieces.

Lan Wangji retracted the string, which let out a sharp whistling sound in the air.

Wei Wuxian asked, "Is this the String Killing Technique?"

The String Killing Technique was one of the secret skills of the Gusu Lan Family, created and passed down by Lan Yi, the granddaughter of the founding ancestor Lan An and the third family head. Lan Yi was the only female family head of the Gusu Lan Family. She played the guqin, which had seven strings that could be detached and reassembled. The seven strings, gradually thinning from thick to thin, could play noble tunes under her snow-white, delicate fingers, but in an instant, they could slice through bone and flesh, becoming deadly weapons in her hands.

Lan Yi developed the String Killing Technique for assassinations, a practice that drew criticism. The Gusu Lan Family had mixed opinions about her, but there was no denying that the String Killing Technique was one of the family’s most powerful combat techniques, effective at both long and short ranges.

Lan Wangji said, “Breaking from the inside.”

The tortoise shell was as hard as a fortress, seemingly impossible to break through. But the more it was, the more vulnerable the parts of its body hidden inside the shell might be. Wei Wuxian had considered this over the past few days and understood it clearly.

What he understood even better was the current situation. After three days of rest, they were just reaching their peak state. If they waited longer, they would gradually decline. The fourth day had passed, and no rescuers had come.

Instead of sitting around waiting to die, they might as well give it their all. If the two of them could work together to slay the Tortoise of Slaughter, they could escape through the underwater cave in the black pond.

Wei Wuxian said, “I agree. We should break from the inside. But I’ve heard about your family’s String Killing Technique—it’s quite powerful, isn’t it? The inside of the shell is cramped, not suitable for use, and with your leg injury not fully healed, using it might be compromised, right?”

This was the truth, and Lan Wangji understood it. They both knew that overestimating their abilities and trying to do something beyond their capacity would only hold them back.

Wei Wuxian said, “Listen to me.”

A small part of the Tortoise of Slaughter’s shell was still floating on the surface of the black pond.

Its four legs, head, and tail were all retracted inside, leaving a large hole in the front and five smaller holes on the sides and back. It resembled an island or a small mountain, its surface dark, uneven, covered in moss, and draped with greenish-black, long waterweeds.

Silently, Wei Wuxian, carrying a bundle of arrows and branding irons, slipped into the water like a thin silver fish and swam to the front of the Tortoise of Slaughter’s head opening.

Part of the opening was submerged in the black pond water, and Wei Wuxian swam in with the current. After passing through the head opening, he flipped into the shell’s interior. As Wei Wuxian’s feet touched the “ground,” it was as if he had stepped into a thick layer of mud. The “mud” was mixed with water, and an overwhelming stench hit him, almost making him curse out loud.

The stench was a mix of rot and sweet decay, reminding Wei Wuxian of a fat dead rat he had seen by a lake in Yunmeng. Pinching his nose, he thought, “This hellish place... Luckily, I didn’t let Lan Wangji come in. With his delicate nature, he would’ve vomited or passed out from the smell.”

The Tortoise of Slaughter let out a steady snore. Wei Wuxian moved quietly, holding his breath. His feet sank deeper with each step. After three steps, the pile of mud reached his knees. In the mud and pond water, there were also some hard lumps. Wei Wuxian crouched slightly and felt around. Suddenly, his hand touched something furry.

It felt like human hair.

Wei Wuxian pulled his hand back, knowing it was one of the people dragged in by the Tortoise of Slaughter. Feeling further, he touched a boot. Half of the leg inside the boot had rotted to the point of being half flesh and half bone.

It seemed the beast was very unhygienic. The leftovers it hadn’t finished, or perhaps hadn’t gotten to eat yet, were spat into the shell, accumulating over a hundred years into a thick layer. At that moment, Wei Wuxian was standing in a pile of corpse mud made from dismembered bodies.

These past few days of crawling and rolling around had left Wei Wuxian filthy beyond recognition, but he didn’t care about getting any dirtier. He casually wiped his hands on his pants and continued walking forward.

The beast’s snoring grew louder, the airwaves heavier, and the layer of corpse mud under his feet thicker. Finally, his hand gently touched the beast’s uneven skin. He slowly felt his way further in, and as expected, the head and neck were covered in scales, while the further down he went, the harder and more brittle the skin became. The deeper he went, the thinner and more vulnerable it became.

By now, the corpse mud had risen to Wei Wuxian’s waist. Most of the bodies here were untouched, remaining in large chunks. This wasn’t really mud anymore; it was more like a pile of corpses. Wei Wuxian reached behind to unfasten his arrows and branding irons, but found the iron brand was stuck and wouldn’t budge.

He gripped the long handle of the branding iron and yanked it out. As he did, something was pulled out from the pile of corpses along with the tip of the branding iron, making a soft “clang” sound.

Wei Wuxian froze on the spot.

After a moment, there was no movement around him, and the beast didn’t attack. He silently sighed in relief and thought, "Just now, it seems the branding iron was stuck on something, and from the sound, it was iron? It was quite long too. Let’s see if it’s useful. A high-grade immortal sword would be perfect right now!"

He reached out and touched the object. It was long, blunt, and covered in rust.

The instant he grabbed it, a scream pierced Wei Wuxian’s ears.

The scream was like the heart-wrenching cries of thousands of people. A chill crawled up his arm and spread throughout his body. Startled, Wei Wuxian yanked his hand back and thought, "What is this? Such strong resentment!"

At that moment, the surroundings suddenly lit up, and a faint yellowish glow cast Wei Wuxian’s shadow, illuminating a black iron sword in front of him. The sword was slanted in the shadow's heart area.

How could there be light inside the Tortoise of Slaughter’s shell?

Wei Wuxian spun around, and sure enough, a pair of large golden eyes were right in front of him.

He realized that the thunderous snoring had disappeared. The faint yellow glow had come from the Tortoise of Slaughter’s eyes!

The Tortoise of Slaughter bared its black and yellow fangs and roared.

Wei Wuxian stood directly in front of its fangs, hit full-force by the roar’s sound waves, which nearly burst his eardrums and made his whole body ache. Seeing the beast’s jaws snap shut, he quickly wedged the bundle of branding irons between its jaws, perfectly timed and positioned to keep them open!

While the beast couldn’t close its mouth, Wei Wuxian forcefully stabbed the bundle of arrows into its most vulnerable patch of skin. Though the arrows were thin, Wei Wuxian bundled five together, driving them deep into the beast’s flesh until the fletching vanished. It was like driving in a poisoned needle. In intense pain, the Tortoise of Slaughter bent the branding irons that were wedged in its mouth into hooks with its powerful bite. Wei Wuxian stabbed several more bundles of arrows into the soft skin, and the beast, which had never suffered such a loss since its birth, went mad with pain. Its snake-like body thrashed violently inside the shell, its snake head banging around, causing the pile of corpses to churn like a landslide. Wei Wuxian was almost submerged in the foul-smelling remains. The Tortoise of Slaughter opened its large, fierce yellow eyes and gaping jaws, as if it intended to devour the world in one bite. The pile of corpses, like a torrent, slid toward its mouth. Wei Wuxian struggled desperately against the current and suddenly grabbed an iron sword, his heart sinking as the ear-piercing screams echoed again in his ears.

Wei Wuxian’s body had been sucked into the Tortoise of Slaughter’s mouth, and just as the beast was about to close its jaws, he grabbed the iron sword and, using the same trick, wedged it between the beast’s upper and lower jaws.

The internal organs of this century-old beast were mostly corrosive. Anyone swallowed by it would instantly be reduced to a wisp of smoke!

Wei Wuxian clung to the iron sword like a thorn lodged in the beast’s mouth, preventing it from closing its jaws. Frightened by Wei Wuxian’s attacks, the Tortoise of Slaughter tried desperately to escape its shell, forcing its body out and exposing the tender flesh that had been hidden under the layer of armor. Lan Wangji had already set the line over its head and had been waiting for a long time. As soon as the Tortoise of Slaughter rushed out, he pulled the string, and the bowstring vibrated, cutting into the flesh!

The beast was forced into a stalemate by the two of them. It was a deformed beast, not a true divine creature, and its intelligence was limited. The pain drove it completely mad, causing it to thrash its head and tail, rolling and splashing in the black pond, creating enormous waves. But no matter how mad it went, one person was firmly stuck in its mouth, preventing it from biting down, while the other tightly pulled the string, cutting into its thin-skinned vital areas. The wounds deepened, and the blood flowed more freely!

Lan Wangji gripped the bowstring tightly, never letting go, holding on for three hours.

Only after three hours did the Tortoise of Slaughter gradually stop moving.

The beast’s vital area had been nearly severed from its body by Lan Wangji’s bowstring. His palms were already covered in blood and wounds from the exertion. The massive tortoise shell floated on the water, and the water in the black pond had turned a visible purplish-red, the stench of blood as thick as a hellish battlefield.

With a splash, Lan Wangji jumped into the water and swam to the snake-head area. The Tortoise of Slaughter’s eyes were still wide open, but its pupils were dilated. Its fangs were still tightly clenched.

Lan Wangji called out, “Wei Ying!”

No sound came from the beast’s mouth.

Lan Wangji reached out and forcefully pried open the upper and lower jaws. Struggling with no leverage in the water, it took him a while to pry them apart. He saw a black iron sword stuck in the Tortoise of Slaughter’s mouth, the hilt and tip of the sword deeply embedded in its oral cavity, the blade bent into an arc.

Wei Wuxian was curled up like a shrimp, his head lowered, both hands still tightly gripping the dull blade of the sword, about to slide into the Tortoise of Slaughter’s throat. Lan Wangji immediately grabbed his collar and pulled him out. As the Tortoise of Slaughter’s jaws opened, the iron sword slid into the pond, sinking to the bottom.

Wei Wuxian’s eyes were tightly shut, limp in Lan Wangji’s arms, one arm draped over his shoulder. Lan Wangji held his waist, keeping him afloat in the blood-water, and called out, “Wei Ying!”

His hand trembled slightly as he reached out to touch Wei Wuxian's face, but Wei Wuxian suddenly jerked awake, saying, "What happened? What happened? Is it dead? Is it dead?!?"

He flailed, causing both of their bodies to sink a little in the water. Lan Wangji tightened his grip around Wei Ying’s waist and said, "It's dead!"

Wei Wuxian looked confused for a moment, struggling to process what had happened. After a moment of thought, he said, "Dead? Dead... Good! It's dead. It was screaming and thrashing, and it knocked me out. Oh right, the hole! The underwater hole, let's go. We need to get out through the water hole."

Lan Wangji noticed his abnormal behavior and said, "What's wrong with you?"

Wei Wuxian perked up and said, "Nothing! We need to get out of here—there's no time to lose!"

Indeed, there was no time to waste. Lan Wangji nodded and said, "I'll take you."

Wei Wuxian said, "No need..." but Lan Wangji's right hand remained like an iron band around his waist, and he said, "Breathe in."

Going underwater in this dazed state could be dangerous. Wei Wuxian, not one to show off, nodded, and despite the blood-stained water, they both took a deep breath and dived under.

After a while, two splashes broke the purplish-red surface of the water as they emerged again.

Wei Wuxian spat out a mouthful of blood-tainted water, wiped his face, and ended up smearing it with more purplish-red, making him look even more disheveled. He said, "What the hell?! Why is there no hole?!"

Jiang Cheng had indeed mentioned that there was an underwater hole beneath the black pond that could accommodate five to six people passing through at the same time, and other young nobles had escaped through that hole. Wei Wuxian had originally thought that the body of the Tortoise of Slaughter had blocked the hole, but now that the corpse had been moved, there was still no water hole where the tortoise had been stationed.

Lan Wangji's wet hair dripped water. He didn't say anything. They exchanged a worried glance, both realizing the same grim possibility.

Perhaps... in its agony, the Tortoise of Slaughter, with its claws, had furiously clawed the underwater rocks, or kicked something, just enough to block the only escape hole.

Wei Wuxian pulled away from Lan Zhan and dove back into the water. Lan Wangji followed suit. After a thorough search, they still couldn't find any hole, not even one big enough for a single person to pass through.

Wei Wuxian said, "Now what?"

After a moment of silence, Lan Wangji said, "Let's go up first."

Wei Wuxian waved his hand and said, "...Let's go up."

Exhausted, they slowly swam to the shore, emerging with blood-stained purplish-red bodies. Wei Wuxian stripped off his clothes, wrung them out, and shook them vigorously, cursing under his breath, "Are we being toyed with here? I was thinking if no one came to rescue us, we wouldn't even have the energy to kill anymore, so we went to fight that thing. And now that we've finally killed it, that damned tortoise blocked the hole. Damn it!"

Hearing that "damn it," Lan Wangji's brow twitched, as if he wanted to say something but held back.

Wei Wuxian forcefully shook his clothes while cursing. Suddenly, his legs gave out. Lan Wangji quickly moved forward and supported him. Wei Wuxian said, "It's nothing, nothing. I've just used up all my strength. Oh right, Lan Zhan, did you see that sword I grabbed in its mouth? Where's the sword?"

Lan Wangji said, "It sank to the bottom of the water. Why?"

Wei Wuxian said, "It sank? Never mind then."

When he held that sword tightly, he heard deafening screams, felt a chill all over, and became dizzy. That iron sword must have been something extraordinary. This Tortoise of Slaughter must have eaten at least five thousand people, and many of them were probably still alive when they were dragged into the tortoise's shell. This heavy sword might have been the relic of a devoured cultivator. It had been hidden in the pile of corpses in the shell for at least four hundred years, soaked in the deep resentment and suffering of countless living and dead people, hearing their screams.

Wei Wuxian had wanted to keep the sword to examine it, but since it had sunk and they were trapped, he decided to let it go for now. If he mentioned it too much and Lan Wangji sensed something was off, it might just lead to unnecessary conflict. Wei Wuxian waved his hand and thought, "Nothing good ever happens!"

He dragged his feet forward, and Lan Wangji quietly followed behind him. After just a couple of steps, Wei Wuxian's legs gave out again.

Lan Wangji supported him again, this time placing a hand on his forehead, and after a moment of thought, said, "Wei Ying, you... are very hot."

Wei Wuxian placed his hand on Lan Wangji's forehead and said, "You're very hot too."

Lan Wangji removed his hand and said with a calm expression, "It's because your hands are cold."

Wei Wuxian said, "I do feel a bit dizzy."

A few days ago, he had thrown the crushed herbs on Lan Zhan’s legs, and the burn on his chest had only been roughly treated. These past few days, he hadn't rested well, and after thrashing in the pond water full of corpses earlier, it had finally worsened.

Wei Wuxian had a fever.

After stumbling forward for a while, Wei Wuxian became dizzier and could walk no more. He simply sat down where he was and confused, he said, "How did I get a fever so easily? I haven't had a fever for years."

Lan Wangji had no desire to comment on his "so easily" and said, "Lie down."

Wei Wuxian complied and lay down. Lan Wangji held his hand and started to channel spiritual power into him.

After lying there for a bit, Wei Wuxian sat back up. Lan Wangji said, "Lie still."

Wei Wuxian pulled his hand back and said, "You don’t need to give me your energy; you barely have any left yourself."

Lan Wangji grabbed his hand again and repeated, "Lie still."

A few days ago, Lan Wangji was too weak, and Wei Wuxian had teased and tormented him. Today, it was Wei Wuxian's turn to be weak and at the mercy of Lan Wangji's actions.

But Wei Wuxian, even when lying down, couldn't stand being quiet. After a short while, he started complaining, "It’s uncomfortable. It’s poking me."

Lan Wangji said, "What do you want to do?"

Wei Wuxian said, "Can we find another spot to lie down?"

Lan Wangji said, "Where else do you want to lie at a time like this?"

Wei Wuxian said, "Can I lie on your legs?"

Lan Wangji said expressionlessly, "Stop messing around."

Wei Wuxian said, "I'm serious. My head is so dizzy. You're not a girl, so what's the harm in letting me lie on your legs?"

Lan Wangji said, "Just because you’re not a girl doesn’t mean you can lie wherever you want."

Seeing Lan Wangji frown, Wei Wuxian said, "I'm not messing around, you're the one being difficult. I don't get it, Lan Zhan. Tell me, why is this? Everyone else may say they hate me but secretly like me. Why is it that with you, you're always giving me a hard time? We've been through life-and-death situations together. Is it too much to ask to rest my head on your legs? Are you seventy or eighty?"

Lan Wangji said in a calm tone, "You're delirious from the fever."

Perhaps he really was delirious from the fever, because soon enough, Wei Wuxian drifted off to sleep.

In his sleep, he felt quite comfortable, as if he were actually resting his head on someone’s lap. A cool hand was on his forehead, which felt very nice, and he happily rolled around without anyone scolding him. When he rolled onto the ground, someone gently stroked his head and lifted him back up, allowing him to continue resting his head on their lap.

But when he woke up, he was still lying on the ground, with his head cushioned by a pile of leaves, making it only slightly more comfortable. Lan Wangji was sitting far away from him, having started a fire. The firelight cast a warm, elegant glow on his face, making it look like polished jade.

Wei Wuxian thought to himself, "It was just a dream after all."

Their path of escape had been cut off, trapping them in the cave. They could only wait for a rescue from the Yunmeng Jiang family. Another two days passed. During those two days, Wei Wuxian had an ongoing low fever, waking and dozing off sporadically. It was only thanks to Lan Wangji intermittently channeling spiritual power to him that his condition didn't worsen.

Wei Wuxian said, "Ah. This is boring."

Wei Wuxian: "It's really boring."

Wei Wuxian: "It's too quiet."

Wei Wuxian: "Ah—"

Wei Wuxian: "I’m starving. Lan Zhan, get up and cook something. How about some turtle stew?"

Wei Wuxian: "Forget it, I'm not eating. The meat from a man-eating monster must be rotten. You shouldn't move either."

Wei Wuxian: "Lan Zhan, why are you like this? It's so boring. You keep your mouth and eyes closed, not speaking to me or looking at me. Are you meditating or something? Did you become a monk? Come to think of it, your ancestors were monks. I forgot."

Lan Wangji: "Quiet. You're still feverish. Don't talk. Conserve your energy."

Wei Wuxian: "You finally responded. How many days have we been waiting? Why hasn't anyone come to rescue us yet?"

Lan Wangji: "It hasn't even been a full day yet."

Wei Wuxian covered his face: "Why does this feel so unbearable? It must be because I'm with you. It would've been better if Jiang Cheng were here. Even arguing with him would be more fun than being stuck with you like this. Jiang Cheng! Where the hell are you?! It's been almost seven days!!!"

Lan Wangji stabbed a branch into the fire, and the move unexpectedly carried a hint of sword intent. The sparks flew in all directions. He said coldly, "Rest."

Wei Wuxian curled up again like a shrimp, facing him, and said: "Did you get that wrong? I just woke up, and you're telling me to rest again? Do you really not want to see me awake?"

Withdrawing the branch, Lan Wangji said serenely: "You're overthinking."

Wei Wuxian thought: "Stubborn and unmovable. He's not as interesting as the Lan Zhan from a few days back, who had a face as dark as an old pot, spoke with tone, and even bit people when he was anxious. But such a Lan Zhan is a rare sight; I'm afraid I won't have the chance to see him again."

He said: "I'm bored. Lan Zhan, let's chat. You start."

Lan Wangji: "When do you usually rest?"

Wei Wuxian: "That's a boring start, so dry that it's hard to continue. But I'll give you face and continue. I'll tell you, at Lotus Pier, I never slept before the ugly hour. I often pulled all-nighters."

Lan Wangji: "That's improper. It's a bad habit."

Wei Wuxian covered his ears and said: "I'm sick. I'm feverish, Lan Er Gege. Can you say something nice? Cheer up this poor me?"

Lan Wangji remained silent. Wei Wuxian said: "Can't speak? Well, I knew it. If you can't speak, can you sing? Will you sing?"

He was just speaking casually, trying to pass the time with Lan Wangji, not really expecting him to agree. After a brief silence, a low and gentle song began to echo in the empty cave.

Lan Wangji actually started singing.

Wei Wuxian closed his eyes, turned over, stretched out his limbs, and said: "That's nice."

He asked: "What's the name of the song?"

Lan Wangji seemed to murmur something, and Wei Wuxian opened his eyes, asking: "What name?"