The Child of Demonic Cultivation

Harsh -9

WC: 1365

The marks on Su She's chest were clearly not the result of being the curse's target. Had that been the case, then Su She's organs and golden core would have been riddled by the curse too, leaving him with no spiritual powers. But he could still use transportation talismans regularly, which consumed an enormous amount of spiritual energy each time. The marks had to have been left by the curse rebound after casting the spell on someone else!

Jin Ling didn't understand, and Nie Huaisang probably didn't either. The only reason Lan Tian had the faintest idea was because of their time in the burial mounds and the stories Lan Wangji had told them in the past. It wasn't quite to full detail but enough that Lan Tian could piece together the story to some degree.

Lan Xichen was already looking at Jin Guangyao as he asked, " Sect Leader Jin, was this also part of the plan for the Qiongqi Path Ambush?"

"Why would you think that?" Jin Guangyao answered with a question.

"Do you even need to ask?" Jiang Cheng said coldly.

He continued speaking as Lan Tian moved in front of Jin Ling and slowly pushed him backwards. They began surveying the area, how many cultivators? How many others? How many windows, doors? How far to the nearest door? Was it locked from the outside?

"Did you have a fued with Jin Zixun, then?" Wei Wuxian asked.

"Haughty people like him—I'll kill every single one I come across!" Su She said.

Lan Tian knew the "haughty" person at the top of his list was Lan Wangji and they couldn't help but feel defensive of their father. Lan Tian felt an arm wrap around their torso pulling them back. Without realizing it, it seemed Lan Tian had began moving towards Su She out of blind emotional outrage. Jin Ling lifted up Lan Tian pulling them even farther back and stopping their protest.

"But..." Jin Ling flipped Lan Tian around before placing a finger to their lips then his own. Lan Tian rolled their eyes before nodding. Jin Ling moved beside them so they could both watch from a fair distance while wrapping his arm around Lan Tian's waist.

The two watched half attentively while the older members of the group all seemed to be having massive revelations.

Jin Ling leaned over to Lan Tian whispering, "Do you understand anything of what's going on?"

"Some of it, but I don't know who Mianmian is, Dad never mentioned her in the stories." Lan Tian shrugged.

Wei Wuxian suddenly erupted in laughter. "I get it now."

"What is that?" Lan Wangji asked.

Wei Wuxian shook his head.

As he laughed, Wei Wuxian's eyes reddened. In a tone both sarcastic and self deprecating he said, "I can't believe it was because of someone like you...for such a senseless reason!"

But Jin Guangyao seemed to have seen through him. "Wei-gongzi, you can't think of it like that."

"Oh?" Wei Wuxian said. "You know what I'm thinking?"

"Of course," Jin Guangyao answered. "It was easy to guess. You're undoubtedly thinking how unjust this is—but it's actually not. Even if Su She hadn't cast that curse on Jin Zixun, Mister Wei would have found himself besieged for some reason, sooner or later."

Lan Tian began to understand the situation as Jin Ling's clan and family were brought up more and more. They could feel Jin Ling's arm tighten around them as the group kept talking. Lan Tian knew how easy it would be for them to loose their composure and attack Jin Guangyao for his words but they needed to stay clear headed, so Jin Ling could feel his own anger and grief.

"Because that's just how you are," he continued with a smile. "To put it nicely, you're chivalrous and free -spirited. To put it bluntly, you offend people wherever you go. So unless everyone you offended remained safe and sound for the rest of their lives, you were sure to be the prime suspect if anything untoward happened to them or anyone plotted against them. Revenge would soon follow. That is something you can't control."

To everyone's surprise, Wei Wuxian laughed. "Oh dear, what should I do? I actually think you make a lot of sense."

Jin Guangyao added, "And besides, even if you hadn't lost control that time at Qiongqi path, could you guarantee you would never have lost control for the rest of your life?" And so, people like you are destined to have a short life. Now then, doesn't thinking that way make you feel a lot better?"

Jiang Cheng raged. "You're the one with the fucking short life!"

Disregarding his critical injuries, he grabbed Sandu and attempted to charge over. Fresh blood immediately gushed from his wound, Jin Ling rushed to hold him back. Lan Tian a piece of cloth from the ground and pressed it to Jiang Cheng's wound. Unable to move, Jiang Cheng was forced to stem in his hatred.

"Son of a whore!" he cursed. "You have no shame whatsoever. All in the name of rising to the top! Weren't you the one who put Su She up to it?! Who are you trying to fool?!"

Jin Guangyao's smile froze for a moment after he heard Jiang Cheng's first comment.

He looked at Jiang Cheng and thought for a moment before saying dispassionately, "Sect Leader Jiang, calm down. I understand how you feel right now. You're furious because you found out the truth about your golden core. Looking back on what you've done over the years, your proud heart feels a little guilty. You're anxious to find a villain culpable for what happened to Wei-gongzi in his former life, a fiend whom you can saddle with the blame. Then you'll lash out against him to avenge Wei-gongzi—and to relieve yourself a little of the burden."

Lan Tian silently rolled their eyes at the man. How could someone have so much of a superiority complex that they like to hear themselves speak this much. Half the words he said were forgotten as soon as he said them due to the sheer number of bullshit words leaving his lips.

He continued, "Perhaps you think that blaming me for everything from the Thousand Sores and Hundred Holes curse to the Qiongqi Path Ambush can alleviate your troubles. By all means, go ahead. It doesn't matter if you think that way But you have to understand that you are also responsible for what happened to Wei-gongzi. In fact, you played a large role. Why did so many people dedicate themselves to crusading against the Yiling Patriarch? Why did everyone involved—and even those who had nothing to do with the matter at all—donate their voices to the cause? Why was there such an overwhelming number of people baying for his blood? was it really their sense of justice at work? Of course not. Part of the reason... was you."

Jiang Cheng scoffed. Lan Xichen, knowing Jin Guangyao was trying to sow discord again growled, "Sect Leader Jin!"

Jin Guangyao remained unmoved and continued with a candid smile "...At the time, the Jin Clan of Lanling, the Nie Clan of Qinghe, and the Lan Clan of Gusu contended with one another to divide the lion's share of the cultivation world among them. The other clans only had crumbs to nibble on. You had just rebuilt Lotus Pier, and you also had the immeasurably dangerous Yiling Patriarch in your corner. Do you think the other clans were happy to see such a young family head with such power? Fortunately, your relationship with your shixiong seemed strained. Everyone saw this was something they could exploit, so naturally, they tried their best to add fuel to the flames if it would make you two fall out with one another. They were making themselves more powerful by keeping the Jiang Clan of Yunmeng from growing stronger."

The more Jin Guangyao talked the less Lan Tian could understand the situation but one thing was for certain, Jiang Cheng defiantly hit his sore spot.

Wei Wuxian echoed Lan Tian's thoughts before adding, "No wonder you killed Chifeng-zun."

At the mention of Nie Mingjue, Lan Xichen's expression changed. Jin Guangyao's smile also froze for a moment. Then, he stood. Having regulated his circulation, he tried flexing the fingers of his left hand, which could finally move freely.