Past is set in stone, only your feelings may change

Stabbed

Wei Wuxian was staring at Jin Ling and he felt as if he had just been stabbed. Not literally of course, for some reason, Jin Ling seemed to know Mo Xuanyu and if what Wei Wuxian had just learned about the previous owner of this body, they were actually uncle and nephew so it was making sense. No, he was stabbed by guilt because of what he had said before Jiang Cheng had appeared.

"Such a rude kid, did your mother not teach you any good manners?"

He wanted to slap himself. Of course Jin Ling's mother could not teach him anything, nor his father. It had been Wei Wuxian himself who had killed the both of them before Jin Ling was even one year old. The child would not even be able to remember them.

Wei Wuxian's eyes filled with tears despite himself. He had done the one thing he had sworn never to do in his last lifetime. He had not protected his family; he had even killed them himself! And Jin Ling was the living proof of how much it had hurt everyone to lose Jiang Yanli and Jin Zixuan. Jiang Cheng was another one. Wei Wuxian was sure that if his former brother knew who he was right now, he would have already been killed on the spot.

And he would have deserved it for everything he had done. He was the one to blame for the deaths of everyone in the Yunmeng Jiang clan, he was guilty for everything that Jiang Cheng had to go through while mourning his whole family. All that was left to him was Jin Ling and Wei Wuxian could see that he was very protective of him.

And now he had hurt him perhaps in the worst way. He knew from his own experience just how much it hurt to lose his parents; and he could at least remember them a little bit! Jin Ling did not have any memories to fall back on. Wei Wuxian wondered if he had been bullied as a child for not having his parents with him during the most important moments of his life. And even if he had not been, it would still hurt to know they were not there whenever he needed them.

He should have stayed dead, at least in that way he would not remind Jin Ling and Jiang Cheng about what they had lost forever. He tried to leave and get out of their sight.

"Stop!" it was Jiang Cheng's angry voice which made him freeze on the spot.

By all means, Wei Wuxian should have felt something – rage, happiness, sorrow, fear – but there was only that all-crushing and overwhelming guilt which stabbed his heart and refused to go away. He just stood there, unsure if his identity had already been discovered. He had used a talisman fuelled with resentful energy to defeat Jin Ling, it must have been clear as day who he was.

He wondered what would happen to him now. Then again, it did not really matter either way. It was not his place to oppose anything Jiang Cheng or Jin Ling decided to do with him. And if they would want to kill him again, good, hopefully they would feel better after that.

"I will break your legs!" shouted Jin Ling angrily at him once Jiang Cheng had freed him from the talisman.

"Break his legs?" Wei Wuxian shuddered at hearing just how full of rage and hatred his former brother's voice was. "Did I not tell you what should be done about demonic cultivators? They should be killed and fed to dogs."

This made Wei Wuxian shudder again, cold sweat covered his entire back in a matter of a single heartbeat. The simple mention of dogs was enough to remind him of his past on the streets of Yiling. But he knew he deserved it for everything he had done. So he stood unmoving even as he felt a sword approaching his back, hopefully it would be quick and he would not feel anything when being thrown to the beasts.

In this way, he would be able to pay for his crimes. And perhaps Jin Ling would learn about his identity afterwards and he would be able to feel at least a little better that he had avenged his parents. Wei Wuxian closed his eyes and awaited the inevitable. He had died already once, he was not afraid of dying again, especially not by the hands of his family who had the full right to his life.