Gold Blood Eyes ||Mo Dao Zu Shi||

Chapter 17: To Everything Revealed

Its like cold water had been dropped over everyone in the room. The words were screamed with such emotion that it was almost as deafening as the actual statement.

Almost.

Wei WuXian's eyes widened for a moment, the red fading into silver. He stares directly at Lan WangJi, who looks like he had been hit. His golden eyes are wide, lips slightly parted in shock. He is staring, just silently staring, at Wei WuXian, the earlier thrashing nowhere to be found.

Wen Qing softly tightens her grip and grounds him, Wei WuXian closing his eyes and lowering his head, the defeated whisper sounding like a gong in the silent room, "..damn it,"

He turns away, avoiding the eyes as Wen Qing moves forward to check him. Her expression is hard but she glances up at the defeated expression on her brother now and again. The silence breaks with the sound of a sword flying through the air and returning to its sheathe. Wen Qing glances over to where Lan WangJi had freed himself of the restraints with Bichen, slowly rising to his feet with his brother's help, despite the frozen expression on the sect leader's face.

Jiang Cheng's shock fades and he gets out a word laced with confusion, pain, and rage, breaking the silence, "What?!"

Wei WuXian closes his eyes, jaw clenching for a brief moment. He looks up at the ceiling for a moment and then down at Wen Qing. She speaks softly, but she knows they've all heard her, "My answer has always been the same,"

Wei WuXian sighs and then repeats softer, "I...don't have a golden core,"

Lan WangJi's voice ensures another silence does not follow, "No..."

Wei WuXian turns to him, finally making eye contact with someone, "Lan Zhan..."

"No, no, that's not true..." Lan WangJi shakes his head, but he's taking small steps forward, "I would know...I would...How have I..."

Wei WuXian winces, choking painfully, "Lan Zhan..."

Lan WangJi suddenly quickens forward and Wei WuXian tries not to flinch as his wrist is grabbed and he is pulled forward. For a moment, the two of them freeze, glancing at the white ribbon around Wei WuXian's forearm. Lan WangJi then resumes his goal, finding the right point on the wrist and raising his eyes to the silver ones. The two stare at one another with expressions of pain. Lan WangJi sends spiritual energy into the younger's merdians and Wei WuXian steels himself to not flood his meridians with resentment to hide the gaping hole in his dantain.

And so he watches. Watches as the realization hits Lan WangJi. Watches as the man senses how the spiritual energy has no where to go. That it does nothing in Wei WuXian's broken body. The Second Jade of Lan chokes, "No..."

Wei WuXian's other wrist is grabbed and the same thing happens once more. Lan WangJi's golden eyes are wide with unshed tears and a whimper escapes him, "Wei Ying..."

And just like that, the rest of the room is hit with the conformation of the awful truth. Wei WuXian had no golden core. Wei WuXian was a common man.

Nie MingJue speaks, voice shaky, "...no wonder,"

Everyone glances at Nie MingJue, except the the light bearer and demonic cultivator, "...no wonder you never carried your sword, you can't use it,"

Jiang Cheng inhaled sharply, "thats why you used resentment to fly it..."

"...no wonder you fainted when WangJi had pulled out all that resentment or why Lady Wen said you would die if we had treated you here instead. Resentment is keeping your wounds closed..."

Jiang Yanli falls slightly into her husband, who holds her quickly, yet the two are incredibly pale.

Nie Huaisang suddenly chokes, "I thought you looked different, you know, but I thought it was because we hadn't seen you for so long. Its not that...you look different because...because..."