Recesses of the Heart

4

"Lan Zhan, you have to promise me that you won't tell anyone who I really am," I said, "I want to hide my identity for as long as I can. I will still be me, but with a new name."

"I understand, Xiao Wuji," he said, "May I call you Xiao Ji or Xiao Wu?"

I smiled, "in private you can address me as my original name it's just that I don't know who will be listening in. Otherwise you can call me whatever you like," I told him.

"Alright," he said.

I sighed, "Lan Zhan, why did you try to save me?" I asked, "I was already dying from the backlash of the Yin Hu Fu. Even if you saved me, I would have died anyway."

"Better than suicide or dying alone," he told me, "I wanted to save you, I wanted to do everything I could."

"Lan Zhan, back then, I was also so confused by you," I told him, "you were always so angry with me. I never wanted to hurt you but you pushed me away first."

"When I asked you to return to Gusu with me, I wanted to hide you and protect you. I am sorry for all the misunderstanding," he said.

I sighed, "hide me? What good would that have done?"

"At least I knew you'd be safe. With whatever you were facing, I'd do what I could to help you," he said, "now that I know why, I wish I just acted."

"Lan Zhan," I whispered.

"Wangji?" I heard a voice say from not far from here. It made me tense up a bit.

"It's just Brother," he said.

"I should get going anyway," I said, "we can talk more later."

"Alright," he said and led me out front.

"There you are," Zewu Jun said, "and you have company."

I smiled and greeted him, "I am Yunmeng Jiang's head disciple Xiao Wuji."

"Ah, it's nice to meet you," he said. He wore his signature soft smile, "you are recently adopted by them too, correct?"

"Yes," I said, "I was just getting acquainted with Lan-Er-Gongzi. I ran into him as I was exploring the sect, getting a layout of the place."

"Is that so?" He asked, "Wangji doesn't normally get close with anyone."

"Really?" I asked, "I didn't know that," I lied, "especially since he took me to his residence."

"It is, indeed, quite interesting," Zewu Jun said and both of us looked at Lan Zhan.

"Xiongzhang, did you need something?" Lan Zhan asked. He looked a bit flustered. I bit back a giggle as now I was teasing him with his brother's help.

"That disciple you brought back, did you notice anything out of sorts before he changed?" Zewu Jun asked.

The puppet...that disciple from last time. He was still affected by Wen Ruohan and his piece of Yin Iron, "Xiongzhang, since Xiao Wuji is quite smart, why not have him examine the disciple."

"That sounds nice but I don't really want someone else interfering with our sect affairs," Zewu Jun said.

I smiled and decided to pull out my badge that indicates that I'm a disciple of Baoshan Sanren, "Zewu Jun, before being taken in by the Jiang's, I was a disciple to a very famous cultivator," I said and showed it to him.

His eyes widened, "You are a disciple of Baoshan Sanren?" He asked.

"I am," I replied, "so you'd be surprised on what I might know. Plus, a disciple back at Yunmeng was recently found covered in red scars and white eyes. He was turned into a puppet by an unorthodox tool. I am actually investigating it while I am away."

"What tool?" Zewu Jun asked.

"The Yin Iron," I told him, "if you know of it, be careful...anyways I need to get back to my siblings. Feel free to find me if you need assistance."

"Xiao Wuji?" Lan Zhan called out.

I turned to him and smiled, "I will see you later. You know where to find me."

Lan Zhan nodded. I could see contentment in his eyes. It was different from the looks I always remembered from our past. It was nice seeing him, and knowing he has his memories too, I was glad that I wasn't alone. He was going to help me make more changes. His father was out of seclusion, so that was already a big change.

Making my way back to my guest residence, I took my time just taking in the environment. I missed the calming feeling I would get when being in Cloud Recesses. This place was nice. I questioned what would have happened if I actually came back here when Lan Zhan asked me back then. The sects would have eventually found out and would come knocking on their doors to tell them to either kill me or hand me over to someone else who would. I sighed. No use pondering on the what ifs anymore. I'm in a new timeline under a new name. I will do what I can to make things better this time.

Once I returned to my guest residence, I noticed that Jiang Cheng and Shijie were both gone. I had a feeling that they too, were exploring. I knew they were safe so I just let them be. I went to my own room and shut myself inside. That was when I took out ink and parchment and started to write down everything in order of what happened and when and that will let me know what I need to work on first.

Obviously, Biling Lake and the water ghouls were going to be the next major event. Wen Chao barging into Cloud Recessed to deliver Wen Qing and Wen Ning, I considered small. I was determined to help them too. I wanted to help Wen Qing protect her home village. Those people will be targeted just because of their name alone. I know that Baoshan has already helped them out, but Wen Qing and Wen Ning were still under Wen Ruohan's clutches, so I wanted to help them.

I needed to gain their trust again. The way to do that is to not only make friends with Wen Ning, but also protect him like he was my little brother. Wen Qing wants her brother safe most of all. I do not want Wen Ning turning into the Ghost General again if I can help it. I will have to make really good protection charms for him. Which I am now able to due to my immortality.

I was grateful for my new cultivation status. It will be the key to winning this time. I just had to hide that power for as long as possible...but that is easier said than done. Who knows what will change now that some of the timeline has changed too. I need to adjust accordingly.