Backlash Part 2

Chapter 209: Light-Transmitting Mirror

Wei Wuxian wasn't certain what he had expected to happen when they reached Cloud Recesses. Being beset by an angry mob perhaps? That wouldn't be very Lan-like. Although, the GusuLan sect had been part of the mob that attacked him in the Burial Mounds. So maybe that wasn't so ridiculous of a concern?

Wei Wuxian had definitely expected to have at least one person demanding they lock him up in the Mingshi while they purged all the evil out of him. Or something like that anyway. He expected angry elders demanding Wei Wuxian be thrown out of the Cloud Recesses. He absolutely expected to be accosted. Maybe it would be by the cultivators who had fought beside him and witnessed the wickedness of his cultivation? Probably by elders who could not tolerate Wei Wuxian's corruption infecting their sect.

Lan Qiren was actually first on Wei Wuxian's list of people that he expected to decry him for his immoral practices. Wei Wuxian could easily imagine Lan Qiren banishing him from the Cloud Recesses and scribing a new rule onto their Wall of Discipline. 'Do not interact with Wei Wuxian,' or something similar to that.

At minimum Wei Wuxian expected a heated lecture about the corrupting influence of resentful energy. He could practically hear the angry outrage or Lan Qiren's voice as he condemned Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian assumed that was a leftover from his early interaction with Lan Qiren when Wei Wuxian was being an obnoxious teenager. He assumed Lan Qiren probably hated him and found him immoral, but Wei Wuxian hadn't actually talked to Lan Qiren after he started using demonic cultivation. Why would he? Lan Qiren had reacted violently when Wei Wuxian suggested the idea as a student. He couldn't imagine Lan Qiren would become welcoming when Wei Wuxian made that heresy a reality.

Wei Wuxian's expectations were decidedly not met. Instead of being thrown out, imprisoned, or scolded until his ears bled; everyone in the GusuLan sect seemed to be treating him like this was normal? They at least seemed to be bizarrely calm about having a demonic cultivator in their midst. Wei Wuxian was doubly surprised when his family was accepted with reactions varying from neutral all the way to enthusiastic.

The GusuLan sect had held a banquet the week after they were back. Wei Wuxian had managed to sit through the entire duration without freaking out, which was a major accomplishment for him. He hadn't been able to tolerate banquets or large meetings in Nightless city for very long. Too many cultivators in the room with him had left him an anxious mess. His instincts screaming about the danger of being surrounded while his mind started mixing up the past/future with the present.

Maybe because it was only GusuLan sect cultivators present? They were a minority of the cultivators who joined the siege of the Burial Mounds. Them and the QingheNie sect might as well have not been there with the forces brought by YunmengJiang and LanlingJin. That still stung, the fact that YunmengJiang had committed more strongly to his death than everyone except the Jin. Although, with what happened to Jiang Yanli... perhaps Wei Wuxian had earned that ire.

In the weeks that followed the DafanWei's were settled into their own residences. Those who practised medicine were currently being integrated into the infirmary staff. Wei Qing was in the process of putting together a proposal for a series of classes on medical cultivation. Wei Wuxian wasn't certain the last time he had seen her engage in something with such focused enthusiasm. Wei Qing wasn't grinning and bouncing around the way Wei Wuxian would have, but there was a quiet pleased expression on her face.

The GusuLan sect seemed to have taken well to the former Wen's,much to Wei Wuxian's surprise. Lan Zhi was frequently found discussing the plans for the large medical garden with Popo and Si-shu. Wen Qionglin frequently joined them when he was not working in the infirmary. San-yi was working through the GusuLan sects medical techniques in order to identify differences between the knowledge and practices. This would ultimately lead to an integration of the knowledge and practices between the two families. The first application being the proposal Wei Qing was working on.