Come Back to Gusu

24. Nie HuaiSang: The rumors that you share the same father are false, right?

In the morning, the two met up with the others, now including the Wen siblings and the Lan and Nie sect leaders, in Jiang WanYin's office. Jin ZiXuan stood behind his wife and held her waist as she held their baby. "We can assume that anything said outside this room will be reported to my father before the day is out. By now, he will know that Wei GongZi does not have a Core. We need to act accordingly."

"First step, then, is for me to dual cultivate with Wei WuXian to get him a Core, then." Jiang WanYin said, without turning red. "Wen Daifu said a reverse transplant will not work."

Nie HuaiSang was not as shameless as the sect leader. Face bright red, he asked,"Jiang ZongZhu... the rumors that you share the same father are false, right?"

Wei WuXian glared at his short friend. "Don't insult my parents. I'm not dual cultivating with anyone. I haven't had a Core in years and I don't need one now."

Nie MingJue shook his head. "I'm sure Jin ZongZhu is whipping up those who stayed at Koi Tower last night into thinking of you as evil. You use yin energy to cultivate, you refuse to allow your superiors access to the Yin Tiger Seal, you lied to everyone multiple times, and now you don't have a Core. The three of us," he pointed to Jiang WanYin and Lan XiChen, "publically supported you last night. My best guess is that he'll claim we're either in league with you or are in thrall to you."

"Under your spell, would suit his purposes better," Jin ZiXuan added. "A deranged demonic cultivator who used the YinTiger Seal to enslave three of the great sect's leaders?"

A translucent bird flew through the walls to land on Nie HuaiSang's outstretched arm, as if it were a real bird. "Not exactly slaves, Jin Gongzi," he stated. "Puppets. Jin GuangShan has told everyone that Wei Xiong has used the Seal in a more nefarious manner than anything Wen RuoHan ever did. Wen RuoHan created mindless puppets; he says Wei Xiong has used the Seal to create ones that appear to be normal. But we're all under his command. Akin to if we had ingested a gu."

Jiang WanYin slammed his fist on his table. "All the more reason to get you that Core. A puppet?"

Lan XiChen sighed. "It makes it easier to attack us. Killing a puppet was seen as a mercy during the war."

"He's also named himself Xiandu," Nie HuaiSang added softly.

"Fuck." Wei WuXian wasn't exactly sure how many people uttered the expletive.

Wen Qing straightened her back. "Wei WuXian must get a Core, then. No, you don't get a choice anymore," she uttered over Wei WuXian's opened mouth and expected objections. "Over the last year, I've read almost every book regarding Core formation and how to heal it due to various damages. Dual cultivation is the only method we have. We've tried the traditional method. We can try that with Jiang ZongZhu."

"We?" Wei WuXian muttered under his breath.

"If the traditional method doesn't work, there is the more well known form. I have discussed sexual dual cultivation with several rogue cultivators who were interested in learning about it."

"No. Absolutely not," Wei WuXian insisted.

"If you would prefer to have sex with someone close to you, if you need the intimacy of the mind as well as the intimacy of the body, that is also an option."

Wei WuXian stood up. "Wen Daifu, I appreciate your efforts on my behalf. I am not having sex just to get a Core!" He deliberately forced himself to not look at Lan WangJi. It was humiliating enough having a dozen people listening to a discussion about his body without seeing how that discussion impacted the man who had kissed him witless the night before.

"If you won't have sex, then the final option is called Avalanche."

~*~

Wei WuXian practically ran from Jiang WanYing's office. How embarrassing. I've been Coreless for years. I didn't need one to help win the war and I don't need one now. No one else agreed with him. Puppets! Ha! I don't even know how to make a gu. Force people to do my bidding? I hope there was a spy in that room; they'd see right through that gu nonsense. No one was doing my bidding!