What if dying in the Burial Mounds wasn't the end? What if fate pulls on the strings of reality and gives Wei Wuxian infinite chances at life? If this was truly the case, how would Wei Wuxian spend those lives?
Lan Wangji sighed, leaning into the wood of the structure. After 2 days of non-stop traveling upon Bichen, the duo finally reached their desired destination, the Qinghe Nie sect. Wei Wuxian proposed the idea a while back. He suggested residing in a location close to that of Sect Leader Nie and Jin Guangyao but still staying close to the common folk. This way, the two of them could act immediately if something is amiss with Jin Guangyao while still keeping up to date with the local gossip.
"That was inevitable," Wei Wuxian groans into his new robes (bought from Lan Wangji's money), "It's only natural to begin a search when the Yilling Louzu and Hanguang-Jun run into the great unknown."
Glancing over at Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji reassured, "It will take time before they reach Qinghe. I predict that the search party will start with places we know well. I have rarely been outside Gusu and its surrounding areas. We will not be suspected for a few days."
Lips easing into a smile, Wei Wuxian muttered quietly, "I think that's the most words I've ever heard you say in one go." Not hearing him, Lan Wangji began settling down for the night. The inn, having two beds in the room that were spaced far from each other, prevented awkward interactions between the two. Wei Wuxian believes it's for the better.
Stripping down to only the inner layers of his clothes, Wei Wuxian settled into his bed, the silk covers providing a heavy contrast to the poor inns he had stayed at prior to meeting Lan Wangji. Untying his red ribbon and placing it messily on the floor along with his outer robes, Wei Wuxian suddenly began missing his sword. Suibian, of course, was never going back into his possession. Neither is Chenqing. He doesn't even know where any of his things ended up after his death. Perhaps Jiang Wanyin's men found Chenqing while searching the bottom of the Burial Mounds.
Wei Wuxian suddenly had the urge to laugh as he remembered a sword he once possessed. Qifai. He left the sword back in another universe and it was quite a pity. Although the sword was quite average in terms of crafting and spiritual abilities, he never quite forgot the scandalous look on the man's face as he mentioned the name of the sword. "Maybe I can convince Lan Zhan to get me another one," Wei Wuxian's mind said, numb with sleep. He didn't even notice that he had begun to use Lan Wangji's birth name again, creating a sense of familiarity that was never there to begin with. After all, Lan Wangji still hated him, right?
The morning approached quickly, the sun rising on the horizon, creating a bleeding artwork of warm hues. As Wei Wuxian stirred, Lan Wangji was already busy, trading with the local townsfolk. After giving a couple of silver pieces, Lan Wangji secured them enough grain, dried meats, and vegetables to last another month or two.
Out of the corner of his eyes, Lan Wangji spotted a cosmetics vendor. Approaching the vendor, Lan Wangji asked for the white and pink powders as well as the vibrant red lip color. The vendor grinned brightly at him, "Looking to impress a girl, eh?" Lan Wangji, unsure of what to say, simply nodded. The vendor's face split impossibly into a bigger smile. "Then I have the perfect things for you!" Gesturing towards a small bag, the vendor pulled out a bag full of ribbons. The vendor ranted excitedly, "Every pretty girl deserves ribbons! In my opinion, they really bring out the color and vibrance of a beautiful lady. I know for a fact that the lady you are buying all this for is pretty. How else will she have been able to impress a man like you?!"
Lan Wangji found himself to be growing tenser by the second. Lying was discouraged in his sect, being one of the many rules. Lan Wangji is not a fabulous actor by any means, especially in such awkward social situations. He was about to reject the ribbons until one caught his eye. It was a beautiful ribbon, it really was. The base colors were black and red, blended together when they met. The design was done using a golden thread, twirling through the ribbon, occasionally creating the shape of a lotus. "I will buy this one," Lan Wangji said, running his hands in the soft silk of the ribbon. "An excellent choice!" the vendor exclaimed, clapping his hands together while eying Lan Wangji's money pouch, "How about one silver piece?" Lan Wangji agreed, placing the silver onto the vendor's stand, and walking off, ribbon in hand.
Lan Wangji knew it was a stupid purchase. One silver piece was enough for an entire sheet of the fabric on which the ribbon was made. However, there was something intriguing about the hair ribbon that had drawn him to it. He glanced down at the color scheme and pattern and had a feeling that he knew exactly what it was.
After a quick visit to a robe vendor, he managed to secure four brown robes, not dissimilar to the ones the average Qinghe folk were wearing. Blending in was key, especially when almost the entirety of the Gusu Lan sect had eyes on them. Another advantage was that they were quite warm. Despite the hot weather of the day, when flying on a sword in the dead of the night, warmth was the priority.
Seeing as he still had lots of money after his spending, he quickly grabbed a jar of chili powder from a random trader and made his way back to the inn. There, he found Wei Wuxian, still half asleep, body almost completely rolled off the bed and onto the ground. Lan Wangji walked over to him and gave him a gentle nudge on the shoulder, waking him up entirely.
They spend the rest of the morning snacking on a few grains and vegetables (much to Wei Wuxian's disappointment), and a portion of the dried meat with chili powder (much to Wei Wuxian's pleasure). After Wei Wuxian finished eating his monstrosity of a spicy meal, they changed into Qinghe robes and applied the white powder on their skin, trying to prevent anyone from recognizing the both of them. Lan Wangji suggested using the pink powder as either eyeshadow or blush but Wei Wuxian insisted that it would make them too feminine, not wanting to explain to the public how they were men and not women.
And so, after the morning was eaten away by their preparations, the two cultivators set out to collect gossip from the nearby area.
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This chapter was not late this time! Hurray!! Have a great day, everyone.
