A Ghost of Snow

39. An Arrogant Smirk

"HE'S ON HIS WAY HERE WITH AN ARMY."

"Impossible! Even though my father is not very bright, he couldn't possibly be this stupid.", Jin Zixuan quickly refuted.

"Well! Turns out he is. They'll be here anytime now."

"Did he do this to you?", Wei Wuxian asked quietly the disciples who were on duty visibly trembled at how dangerously furious he sounded, even Lan Qiren felt a shudder go down his spine.

Jaing Wanyin didn't directly answer his question, "I left the bunch of guards I came with to delay them."

Though he didn't say, it was clear as crystal as to who was responsible for his injuries. True to Jaing Wanyin's words, within minutes, Jin Guangshan was at the gate of Cloud Recesses with Jin Guangyao, Jin Zixun and an army of at least five hundred following behind him.

"Father, what is the meaning of this?"

"Huh! Come back here, I will take what I want today.", Jin Guangshan snarled at him.

"You really think the Jin Sect's army is a match for the Lans? Father, stop this foolishness right now.", Jin Zixuan attempted to make his father back down.

"It might not be but they are unprepared, while I am. What use is a son like you? The power I want, I will take."

"A-Yao, what are you doing here? Don't tell me you support him? Isn't Zewu-Jun your sworn brother? Stop him.", Jin Zixuan gave up on trying to persuade his father, he instead tried to reason with the one, who would possibly understand.

Jin Guangyao lowered his eyes and bowed, "Do you think I want to do this? But can I stop him when you can't?"

"Even if you can't, it doesn't mean you should support him.", Lan Xichen interrupted their conversation, "A-Yao, step back and you won't be charged for anything.", he said almost pleading.

"Second Brother, I advise you the same, just hand over the Yiling Patriarch, that's all we want. There doesn't have to be a battle. I don't want to fight you either. I am not even a match for you but there is something I want that I can't get without doing this.", Jin Guangyao said looking straight at Lan Xichen, he could clearly see anger burn in his eyes, and he felt that he had finally lost the last speck of kindness that would ever be shown to him in this world.

"Is it worth it?", Lan Xichen questioned anger evident in his voice, "Tell me, is it worth it?", Seeing how Jin Guangyao only lowered his eyes without answering, he pulled Shuoyue and continued, "What you want, comes at a price of my brother's happiness. No matter how important you are to me, he is more. If you insist on supporting Sect Leader Jin, then this is where our brotherhood ends."

"If that's what you want.", Jin Guangyao said, it surprised Lan Xichen that his face didn't show even a little bit of remorse after saying that.

"Sect Leader Jin, take your army back now, and the Lan Sect won't even breathe a word of what happened here to anyone.", Lan Qiren interjected, "You said we weren't prepared, you think after what happened with the Wens, there would ever be a time, we are not prepared?"

"Huh! Grandmaster Lan, there doesn't have to be a war then, even this discussion isn't necessary, just hand the Yiling Patriarch in and this will be over. After all he did murder our Jin disciples with his lackey. As for the camp you set for the Wens, my people would have burned it down by now. I have done this favour to the world, the least you could do is hand the cause of so many catastrophies over for punishment."

"You did what?", Jin Zixuan screamed at his father, "Do you know the consequences of it?"

"Stay out of it.", Wei Wuxian calmly said to Jin Zixuan, "Since you are my sister's husband I won't do anything to you. As for your father, if the news of my family being alright doesn't reach me within the next ten minutes, he won't be leaving here alive."