Chapter 78

Chapter 78: Night Run Part 18 (3)

These people originally thought they would surely die at the hands of the Yiling Patriarch and then become his manipulated walking dead. They were all terrified, but unexpectedly, Wei Wuxian had no interest in further entanglement with them. After reading the notice, he left them on the ground and walked away with his hands behind his back.

He did not withdraw those spirits. Those who were in pain continued to moan in agony, and those who were writhing continued to squirm, all unable to get up.

After an unknown period of time, suddenly a blue sword light flashed by, and everyone felt a lightness on their backs. Someone exclaimed, "I can move!"

A few people struggled to get up first, only to see that the blue sword light flew back and was sheathed by someone.

That person was an extremely young and elegant man, clad in a white robe with a forehead ribbon, his face cold and stern, a hint of suppressed worry etched between his brows. He moved very quickly but did not show any haste, not even a flutter of his sleeves.

The cultivator who had broken his legs endured the pain and said, "Han... Hanguang Jun!"

Lan Wangji walked to his side, crouched down, and pressed on his legs to assess the injury. It was not very serious. He stood up without speaking, and the cultivator added, "Hanguang Jun, you came late, Wei Wuxian just left!"

Many people knew that in recent days, Hanguang Jun of the Gusu Lan Clan had been tracking Wei Wuxian's whereabouts, likely to settle accounts with him and avenge the dozens of lives lost in vain from the Gusu Lan Clan. They hurriedly said, "Yes, he left less than half an hour ago!"

Lan Wangji asked, "What did he do? Where did he go?"

Everyone quickly complained, "He attacked us without discrimination, nearly killing us all on the spot!"

Lan Wangji's fingers hidden under his wide white sleeves twitched slightly, as if wanting to form a fist, but he quickly released them.

The cultivator quickly added, "But he declared that he is now going to the Nightless City, to the Oath Conference to settle accounts with the four great families!"

After the fall of the Wen family of Qishan, the main palace complex of Nightless City became a magnificent yet hollow ruin.

In front of the Sunshot Palace, perched at the highest point of Nightless City, lay an expansive square. Previously, there were three towering flagpoles at the forefront of the square, but now, two of them had been broken, and the remaining one bore a tattered and blood-stained Sunshot flag.

That night, the square was densely packed with formations of various families, large and small, each family's embroidered banners fluttering in the night wind. In front of the broken flagpole was a temporary altar, where the family heads stood before their respective formations, each receiving a cup of wine from Jin Guangyao. After all had taken their cups, the family heads raised them high and then poured the wine onto the ground.

As the wine soaked into the earth, Jin Guangshan solemnly said, "Regardless of clan or surname, this cup of wine is to honor the fallen heroes of our families."

Nie Mingjue said, "May their heroic souls endure."

Lan Xichen said, "May they rest in peace."

Jiang Cheng, however, remained silent, his face dark as he poured out the wine.

Next, Jin Guangyao stepped out from the Jin family of Lanling's formation, presenting a black square iron box with both hands. Jin Guangshan took the iron box with one hand, raised it high, and shouted, "Here are the ashes of the Wen remnants!"

After saying this, he channeled his spiritual power and shattered the iron box with his bare hands. The black iron box broke into several pieces, and countless white ashes scattered into the cold night wind.

Scattering their ashes to the wind!

The crowd burst into cheers and applause. Jin Guangshan raised his hands, signaling for everyone to quiet down and listen to his speech. As the cheers gradually subsided, he loudly declared, "Tonight, the ones reduced to ashes are two of the leading remnants of the Wen faction. And tomorrow! It will be the rest of the Wen dogs, and—the Yiling Patriarch, Wei Wuxian!"

Suddenly, a low laugh interrupted his impassioned speech.

The timing of this low laugh was most inappropriate, abrupt and jarring. Everyone immediately turned their heads toward the source of the sound.

The Sunshot Palace was a grand hall with twelve ridges, each ridge adorned with eight divine beasts at its end. At this moment, everyone noticed that on one of the ridges, there were actually nine beasts. The low laugh had come from there!

The extra ridge beast shifted slightly, and in the next moment, a boot and the edge of a black robe dangled from the eaves, swaying gently.

Everyone's hands pressed against their sword hilts, Jiang Cheng's pupils contracted, and the veins on the back of his hand bulged. Jin Guangshan, his voice thick with shock and hatred, exclaimed, "Wei Ying! How dare you show your face here!"

The person spoke, and indeed, it was Wei Wuxian's voice, sounding quite strange, "Why wouldn't I dare to appear here? Do you all number three thousand? Don't forget, during the Sunshot Campaign, I single-handedly faced not just three thousand, but five thousand people. And isn't my appearance here exactly what you all wanted? Saves you the trouble of hunting me down tomorrow to scatter my ashes."

The Nie family of Qinghe also lost several disciples to the frenzied Wen Ning. Nie Mingjue coldly said, "That brat is too arrogant."

Wei Wuxian replied, "Haven't I always been this arrogant? Family Head Jin, how does it feel to contradict yourself? Who was it that promised to let it go if the Wen siblings came to Jin Lingtai to apologize? And who was it that just declared they would crush me and the remaining Wen remnants to ashes tomorrow?"

Jin Guangshan said, "One thing at a time! The ambush at Qiongqi Path where you slaughtered over a hundred of my Jin family's disciples is one matter. You allowing Wen Ning to wreak havoc at Jin Lingtai is another..."

Wei Wuxian retorted, "Then may I ask, Family Head Jin, who was targeted at Qiongqi Path? Who was killed? Who was the mastermind? Who fell into the trap? In the end, who was it that provoked me first?!"

The disciples standing in the formation, hidden among the crowd and feeling secure, mustered their courage and shouted from a distance, "Even if Jin Zixun set up the ambush to kill you, you still shouldn't have gone so far as to take so many lives!"

"Oh," Wei Wuxian analyzed for them, "He can try to kill me without restraint, and if I die, it's just my tough luck. But when I defend myself, I have to be careful not to hurt this one or that one, not even a single hair on his head? So, it's okay for you all to gang up on me, but I can't fight back, is that it?"

Sect Leader Yao raised his voice, "Fight back? Those hundred-plus people and the thirty-some at Jin Lingtai were innocent. Why did you have to drag them into your retaliation?"

Wei Wuxian countered, "What about the fifty-some Wen family cultivators at the Burial Mounds? They were innocent too. Why did you have to drag them into it?"

Another person spat, "What great favor did those Wen curs do for you? Why are you so biased towards those scum?"

"I don't think there was any great favor. He just fancies himself a hero standing against the world, performing some righteous act, and feels proud for daring to defy the norm!"

Hearing this, Wei Wuxian fell silent.

The crowd below took his silence as a sign of retreat and said, "In the end, wasn't it you who first cast that vile and sinister curse on Jin Zixun?"

Wei Wuxian asked, "May I ask what evidence you have to prove that I cast the curse?"

The questioner was left speechless, stuttering, "Then what evidence do you have to prove it wasn't you?"

Wei Wuxian laughed, "Then let me ask you, why isn't it you? Don't you also lack evidence to prove it wasn't you who cast the curse?"

The man was both shocked and angry, "Me? How could I be like you? Don't distort the truth and mix up right and wrong! You're the most suspicious. Do you think we don't know? You and Jin Zixun had a grudge over a year ago!"

Wei Wuxian said coldly, "Who's twisting the truth? Right, if I wanted to kill him, I would have done it over a year ago. I wouldn't have waited until now. Otherwise, someone like him, I would have forgotten in three days, not a year."

Sect Leader Yao was shocked, "...Wei Wuxian, Wei Wuxian, today I've truly learned something. I've never seen such an unreasonable villain like you... After killing someone, you still insult and curse them. Don't you have any sympathy or remorse at all?"

Amidst the curses, Wei Wuxian remained calm.

Only anger could suppress the other emotions in his heart.

A cultivator standing at the front of the formation said with deep disappointment, "Wei Ying, you've let me down so much. I once admired and respected you, even said you were a figure who founded a sect. Now, thinking about it, it makes me want to vomit. From this moment on, I am irreconcilable with you!"

Hearing this, Wei Wuxian was first stunned, then burst into wild laughter, "Hahahaha..."

He laughed so hard he could barely breathe, saying, "You admired me? You say you admired me, but why didn't I see you when you admired me? And now that I'm being hunted by everyone, you jump out to cheer?"

Tears of laughter streamed from Wei Wuxian's eyes, "Your admiration is worthless. You say you're irreconcilable with me from now on, fine. Does your irreconcilability or enmity have any effect on me? Your admiration and hatred are so insignificant, how dare you flaunt them?"

Before he could finish, his throat suddenly choked, and a sudden dull pain struck his chest.

Looking down, he saw an arrow embedded in his chest, the arrowhead buried between two ribs.

He looked in the direction the arrow came from. The one who shot it was a young, handsome cultivator standing in a small family's formation, still maintaining his posture, the bowstring still trembling.

Wei Wuxian could tell that this arrow was originally aimed straight at his heart, a fatal shot. But the archer's skill was lacking, and the arrow's momentum weakened mid-air, causing it to miss the heart and hit the ribs instead.

The people around the archer looked at their fellow disciple who had made such a reckless move with shock and even fear. Wei Wuxian raised his head, his face showing a murderous aura, and with a backhand motion, he pulled out the arrow and threw it back with force. A scream followed as the young cultivator who had sneakily shot him was hit in the chest by the arrow he had thrown back with his bare hands!

Another youth beside him threw himself over, wailing, "Brother! Brother!"

The formation of the Yunmeng Jiang family instantly fell into chaos. The family head pointed a trembling finger at Wei Wuxian and said, "You... you... you are so vicious!"

Wei Wuxian casually pressed his right hand against the wound on his chest to temporarily stop the bleeding. He indifferently replied, "What’s so vicious about that? Since he dared to ambush me with an arrow, he should have expected the consequences if he missed. Since you all call me a demonic heretic, surely you don't expect me to be magnanimous and let it slide."

Jin Guangshan shouted, "Form the formation, form the formation! We must not let him leave here alive today!"

With that command, the standoff was finally broken. Several disciples, wielding swords and bows, began to close in on the upper hall.

They finally made the first move!

Wei Wuxian smirked as he took Chenqing from his waist and raised it to his lips. As the flute emitted a sharp, piercing sound, pale arms began to emerge from the ground in the square of Nightless City!

Corpses broke through the finely paved white stone ground, crawling out from beneath the ground. Those who had just taken off on their swords were immediately dragged down. Wei Wuxian stood on the roof of the Blazing Sun Hall, the bamboo flute held horizontally, his eyes gleaming coldly in the night. Looking down, the various family groups resembled a boiling, multicolored liquid, churning and scattering, then gathering again. Except for the Yunmeng Jiang family's formation, which remained unscathed, the other families were in complete disarray. The family heads were busy protecting their disciples, unable to spare the time to attack Wei Wuxian.

At that moment, a clear, cold sound of a zither disrupted the melody of Chenqing.

Wei Wuxian lowered Chenqing and turned to look. He saw a figure sitting on another rooftop, a zither laid across his lap, his snow-white robes strikingly bright in the darkness.

Wei Wuxian coldly said, "Ah, Lan Wangji."

After greeting him, he raised the flute to his lips again and said, "You should have known long ago that the Cleansing Tune has no effect on me!"

Lan Wangji flipped the zither onto his back and instead drew Bichen, charging straight at Chenqing, aiming to sever the demonic flute that was summoning these dark forces. Wei Wuxian spun around, bursting into laughter, "Good, good! I knew that one day we would have to fight like this, with real swords and real intent. After all, you've always disliked me. Come on!"

Hearing this, Lan Wangji's movements paused, and he called out, "Wei Ying!"

Though the call was sharp, anyone with a clear mind would have noticed the tremor in Lan Wangji's voice. However, Wei Wuxian was no longer in a state to judge. He was half-mad, half-delirious, and all malice was amplified in his mind. He felt that everyone in the world hated him, and he hated everyone in return. He feared no one, and to him, everyone was the same—nothing more than that.

Suddenly, amidst the chaos of battle, Wei Wuxian heard a faint voice.

The voice was calling, "A-Xian!"

The sound was like a bucket of cold water, dousing the raging fire of evil in his heart.

Jiang Yanli?

When had she come to the rally?!

Wei Wuxian was instantly terrified, forgetting his fight with Lan Wangji, and lowered Chenqing, calling out, "Shijie?!"

Jiang Cheng also heard the voice, and his face turned pale in an instant. He shouted, "Jie? Jie! Where are you? Where are you?"

Wei Wuxian jumped down from the roof of the Blazing Sun Hall, shouting hoarsely like Jiang Cheng, "Shijie? Shijie? Where are you? Where are you? I can't see you!"

He ignored the numerous blades and swords closing in on him, pushing and punching his way through the chaotic crowd, desperately trying to move forward. Suddenly, he saw Jiang Yanli's white figure being swallowed by the crowd. Wei Wuxian struggled to push aside those blocking his path, but there was still a considerable distance between them, separated by countless people. Neither Wei Wuxian nor Jiang Cheng could reach her quickly. To make matters worse, at that very moment, both of them suddenly noticed a corpse rising unsteadily behind Jiang Yanli.

The corpse was half-rotted, dragging a rusted longsword, and was slowly approaching Jiang Yanli.

Seeing this horrifying scene, Wei Wuxian screamed, "Get away! Get away from her! Don't touch her!"

Jiang Cheng also roared, "Make it leave!"

He threw out Three Poisons, the purple sword light flying toward the corpse, but the light was deflected by the sword lights of other cultivators, veering off course. The more chaotic Wei Wuxian's mind became, the worse his control over the corpse grew. The corpse ignored his command and instead raised its sword, slashing toward Jiang Yanli!

Wei Wuxian lost his mind, shouting as he charged forward, "Stop! Stop! Stop it now!"

Everyone was busy dealing with the corpses entangled around them, and no one had the attention to spare for others in mortal danger. The corpse's sword came down, slicing open Jiang Yanli's back!

Jiang Yanli collapsed to the ground.

The corpse stood behind her, raising its long sword again. At that moment, a sword light sliced off half of its body!

Lan Wangji landed on the square, catching Bichen as it flew back to him. Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng rushed over, too frantic to even thank Lan Wangji. Jiang Cheng quickly scooped up Jiang Yanli, while Lan Wangji intercepted Wei Wuxian, grabbing his collar and yanking him close, shouting sternly, "Wei Ying! Stop controlling the corpses!"

Wei Wuxian, in that moment, couldn’t care about anything else. His eyes didn’t even register Lan Wangji’s face, nor the bloodshot eyes and reddened rims of his own. All he wanted was to see if Jiang Yanli was okay. With bloodshot eyes, he shoved Lan Wangji aside and threw himself to the ground. Lan Wangji staggered slightly from the push but steadied himself, watching Wei Wuxian. Before he could take any further action, he heard distant cries for help and, with a sharp gaze, flew off to assist.

Jiang Yanli’s back was drenched in blood, her eyes closed, but she was still breathing. Jiang Cheng’s hand trembled as he felt for her pulse, and he let out a sigh of relief. Suddenly, he punched Wei Wuxian in the face, shouting, "What happened? Didn’t you say you could control it? Didn’t you say everything was fine?"

Wei Wuxian sat on the ground, dazed, and muttered, "...I don’t know."

He said despairingly, "...I can’t control it, I can’t control it..."

Just then, Jiang Yanli stirred. Jiang Cheng held her tightly, babbling incoherently, "Sister! It’s okay! It’s okay, how are you? It’s just a cut, it’s okay, I’ll get you out of here right away..."

As he was about to lift her, Jiang Yanli suddenly said, "...A-Xian."

Wei Wuxian shuddered and quickly replied, "Shijie, I... I’m here."

Jiang Yanli slowly opened her dark eyes, and Wei Wuxian felt a wave of panic.

Jiang Yanli struggled to speak, "...A-Xian. You... why did you run so fast earlier... I didn’t even get to see you, to say a word to you..."

As he listened, Wei Wuxian’s heart pounded wildly.

He still couldn’t face Jiang Yanli, especially now, when her face was covered in dust and blood, just like Jin Zixuan’s had been.

He didn’t dare to hear what she would say next.

Jiang Yanli said, "I... came to tell you..."

What?

It’s okay?

I don’t hate you?

Nothing happened?

I don’t blame you for killing Jin Zixuan?

Impossible.

But she couldn’t say the opposite either.

So, she didn’t know what to say to Wei Wuxian in this situation.

Yet, in her heart, she felt she had to see this younger brother one more time.

With a sigh, Jiang Yanli said, "A-Xian, you... you need to stop now. Don’t, don’t..."

Wei Wuxian quickly replied, "Okay, I’ll stop."

He picked up Chenqing, placed it to his lips, and began to play, his head bowed. It took immense effort to steady his mind, but this time, the corpses finally obeyed his command. One by one, they let out gurgling noises, as if complaining, and slowly knelt down.

Lan Wangji paused slightly, glancing from afar, then turned back to continue fighting, rescuing his fellow disciples and others still struggling.

Suddenly, Jiang Yanli’s eyes snapped open, and with a burst of strength from somewhere, she pushed Wei Wuxian away!

Wei Wuxian fell to the ground again from the push. When he looked up, he saw a gleaming long sword piercing through her throat.

The young man holding the sword was the same young cultivator who had just thrown himself onto the archer, weeping bitterly. He was still wailing, tears blurring his vision as he cried, "Wei Wuxian, you villain! This sword is for my brother!"

Wei Wuxian sat on the filthy ground, staring in disbelief at Jiang Yanli, whose head had slumped forward, her throat gushing blood.

He had been waiting for her to speak, as if she were about to pass her final judgment on him.

Jiang Cheng was also stunned, still holding his sister's body, unable to process what had just happened.

After a long moment, Wei Wuxian let out a piercing scream.

Lan Wangji thrust his sword forward, then abruptly turned his head.

The young man finally realized he had mistakenly killed the wrong person. He pulled out his sword, blood spraying from the blade, and backed away in panic, stammering, "No, no, it wasn't me... I was trying to kill Wei Wuxian, to avenge my brother... She stepped in the way!"

Wei Wuxian suddenly appeared in front of him, gripping his throat. Sect Leader Yao brandished his sword and shouted, "Demon, let him go!"

Lan Wangji threw all decorum to the wind. He pushed aside one person after another, rushing toward Wei Wuxian. However, before he could even cover half the distance, Wei Wuxian, in full view of everyone, snapped the young man's neck with his bare hands.

Another cultivator roared, "You! You caused the deaths of Jiang Fengmian and his wife, and now your sister too! You brought this upon yourself, yet you dare to vent your anger on others! Instead of repenting, you continue to take lives! Your sins are beyond forgiveness!"

But no amount of curses or reprimands could reach Wei Wuxian now.

As if possessed by another soul, he extended his hands and pulled out two objects from his sleeves. In front of everyone, he joined them together.

The two halves, one upper and one lower, merged into one, emitting a chilling, metallic clang.

Wei Wuxian held it in his palm and raised it high.

The Yin Tiger Tally!