Who You Are Book 2

Chapter 25 - The Paperman

The two returned to the guest residence that the Lanling Jin Sect arranged for them. The room was rather spacious, and rather ornate. A set of exquisite liquor cups made of smooth white porcelain had even been placed onto the table. Wei Wuxian sat down on the side, and started to admire the set. He only stopped when it was already late into the night.

Searching through the drawers, he found a pair of scissor and a stack of paper. With just a few cuts, he created a paperman. The paperman, with a round head and unusually long sleeves that resembled butterfly wings, was only as tall as an adult's finger. Wei Wuxian took a brush pen from the table and painted a few strokes. Tossing the brush away, he drank a mouthful from a liquor cup, and immediately lay down onto the bed. The paperman, on the other hand, suddenly twitched. With a few trembles, its wide sleeves lifted its weightless body into the air, as though they were wings. It flitted about and landed on the tip of Lan Wangji's shoulder.

Lan Wangji looked to the side, at his shoulder. The paperman threw itself onto his cheek. It climbed upward, all the way to his forehead ribbon, and tugged at it, as though the ribbon was its favorite thing in the world. Lan Wangji let the paperman wriggle on his ribbon for some time. Just as he reached out to take it down, the paperman slid its way down as fast as it could. No matter intentionally or not, it bumped its head once against his lips.

Lan Wangji's movements paused for a moment as a small smile fell upon his face under the little paperman.

Using two of his fingers, he finally caught it, "Do not fool around."

Softly, the paperman rolled its body over his slender finger. The little paperman twirled and danced on Lan Wangji's hand.

Lan Wangji, "You must be careful."

The paperman tilted up to look at Lan Wangji and nodded before flapping its wings. Clinging flat onto the ground, it climbed through the door slit and snuck out of the guest room.

Carp Tower was heavily guarded. Of course, a large, living human wouldn't be able to travel freely around. The good thing was that Wei Wuxian had once learnt a certain technique of the dark arts—the paper metamorphosis.

Although it was indeed useful, it had a number of restrictions as well. Not only was the time strictly limited, the paperman must also return as it were, after it had been released. There mustn't even be a single scratch on it. If, on its way, it was torn apart or broken in any way, the soul would receive the same degree of harm—from a year of unconsciousness to a whole lifetime of lunacy. Thus, one must be extremely careful.

...

"The world cannot handle Wei Wuxian if he ended up with a lifetime of lunacy," Jiang Cheng stated, "the world is already almost at chaos under the tip of his fingers."

"The tips of my fingers are itching to throw a fire talisman at you too," Wei Wuxian spat, "the world can barely handle your tsundere attitude as it is."

"You!..." Jiang Cheng began but was cut off by the fire talisman inches from his face.

"Do you dare continue?" Wei Wuxian asked with a devious grin on his face.

"Hmph," Jiang Cheng huffed.

"Thought so," Wei Wuxian said taking the talisman away.

...

Wei Wuxian possessed the paperman's body. At times, he stuck to the hem of a cultivator's robe. At other times, he flattened himself to pass through closed doors. At times, he unfolded his sleeves and looked down at the ground, pretending to be a piece of used paper, a butterfly that danced amid the night sky. Suddenly, still airborne, he heard faint sounds of crying come from below him. Looking over, he saw one of Jin Guangyao's residences, Blooming Garden.