WangXian Forever Book 9: The Flower Demon

Chapter 41 Awake

Wei Ying is fighting against his consciousness.

He knows something is terribly wrong and he knows he has to get up, he has to do something…but his limbs are heavier than lead and no matter how much he struggles, he cannot open his eyes.

A noise leaves his throat; it resembles that of a wounded animal and then, he feels a warmth unlike any other. His soul recognises this familiarity, and then before he can process more, a deep voice hums softly in his ear.

It is the song of their love, the melody composed by one half of their love, sung by the other to reunite them.

This song soothes like no other, giving them both a strength they didn't know they had. It gives a rare peace, a sanctuary when they have none left, a shelter in the storm.

As the notes wash over him, Wei Ying begins to really rest, a relaxation brought over him by his core fighting to beat the malady currently being expelled from his body.

He falls into a deep sleep, one no longer plagued by bad dreams and memories of the past.

Lan Zhan also closes his eyes.

This secondary cave houses only good memories for him and he can't help but think of the time when Wei Ying was brought back to good health in this very place, and soon afterwards, after having obtained the Grandmaster's blessing, Lan Zhan had asked Wei Ying to be his husband.

The happiest day of his life, soon to be matched in importance by their wedding day.

Lan Zhan consoles himself that everything is not lost yet; when Wei Ying wakes up, they will be able to face whatever adversity awaits them. For now, it is better to rest while they still can.

*************

Hui Gai was even more frustrated.

Both with himself and this sudden inability to find their children.

His powers had not failed him until now, and he was at a loss to explain why it was happening. This was such a crucial time for them…and right when he needed his abilities to locate the children as his first priority, he couldn't.

So when he saw Wei Ying was being looked after by Lan Zhan, he went unwillingly to find the Grandmaster.

She was sitting underneath the Immortal gift giving peach tree, just outside the outer cave.

Baoshan Sanren didn't look at him when he went to sit down beside her.

No one said anything for a while.

Hui Gai was by no means over his fear of her, but he didn't want to stay in the cave with the other two, and there was nowhere else to go. His helplessness was tying him down to be as close to his friends as possible, just in case anything changed.

He could feel waves of anger rolling off the immortal, and for once, he knew it wasn't directed at himself.

"When I find that bi-" He started saying.

"Join the queue." She interrupted him, giving him a side eye.

"Weren't you and your homies supposed to get rid of her?" Hui Gai says, unintentionally raising her hackles.

"If it was that easy, there'd be no reason for our existence." She snapped.

"Why is it so hard? Can't we put a tracker on her?" Hui Gai kicked a stone off the edge of the cliff in his frustration.

"Why don't you come up with something we haven't tried yet?" Her tone was dripping with sarcasm.

"It's such a shitty thing to do. Involve kids. What does she want, anyway?" Hui Gai grabbed his own tail, hoping it would soothe him like normal.

But he feared his peace was tied up with the children; he would only feel better when they were safely back in his arms.

"When my grandson wakes, we shall have some answers."

There was a sound and when Hui Gai looked at her, she had a grindstone in her delicate fingers, rubbing it along the edges of an arrow, sharpening it with the glint of determination in her purple eyes.

Wei Ying’s grandmother was just as frustrated as he was.

And this was the only way she could cope.

At least it made Hui Gai feel not so alone.

So he closed his mouth and simply watched, waiting for his friend to wake up.

*************

Wei Ying opened his eyes.

Golden ones looked back, uncertainly.

And then, to his horror, they were filled with tears.

Wei Ying was already panicking and this just threw him off kilter.

He reached for Lan Zhan at the same time as the Jade pulled him closer.

"I'm so sorry." Lan Zhan was saying. "It's my fault."

Wei Ying choked back sobs and shook his head when his words wouldn't come out.

"No…no…no…" As the worst of the pain washes over them, it is replaced with anger. "Lan Zhan…listen to me." He says, his voice powerful and strong. It seems to surprise him too.

Lan Zhan looks up, his eyes red and puffy. His tears are still falling.

"None of this is our fault." Wei Ying tells him, with a surety that comes from correctly assessing this terrible situation. "Not yours or mine. There's no way we could have predicted what that Demon would do. And by blaming ourselves, we're only making ourselves weaker, when we need to be even stronger than her. Possibly, even stronger than we've ever needed to be." He's staring into golden eyes, wanting his meaning to be heard and accepted.

This is no time for allocating blame; this is the time for action.

Lan Zhan wipes his eyes, and then Wei Ying’s face. They both sit up, hands still joined together. The moment Lan Zhan’s grief changes into a fiery rage, Wei Ying sees the difference and he smiles.

This smile is so drastically opposite to his normal happy, carefree one, that Lan Zhan has to look at him again, just to make sure this is his Wei Ying.

This smile reminds him of the very formidable Yiling Patriarch.

But that was the old Wei Ying.

He has changed in the time in between, and this Wei Ying is far more dangerous than he was before.

This is the Dark Angel.

And Lan Zhan is the Light Bearer of the North.

They are both infinitely more powerful than their past selves, and if this Flower Demon thinks she can get away with trying to hurt them, or their family…she has got another thing coming.