𝐖𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐀𝐒𝐓┃𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐎𝐍𝐄

第五章

         the water flowing underneath their boats was eerily silent. there wasn't even a slight hint of an unsettling wave. for a lake that was supposed to be swarming with water ghouls, it was too still.

the sight sent chills down a few of the disciples. jiang cheng surveyed the area, his grip tightening around his sword. like others, he too, could feel that something wasn't right.

the jade twins were also on alert. both cautiously examining the muggy water, expecting for a water ghoul to appear out of nowhere.

every single one of them stood with nerves tingling within through their bodies.

the only person who could clearly expect the outcome was wei wuxian. sitting on the edge of the boat that he shared with jiang cheng this time, he stared at his sword, suibian, that he held tightly in his hands.

how long has it really been since he last used it? wei wuxian felt undeserving of holding it.

back then, he was discriminated against by everyone for leaving his sword and never carrying it with himself.

it wasn't like he did it willingly. even if he have kept his sword, it was pointless.

he had lost his golden core. what was the point of using a sword when he didn't even have a golden core to wield it?

though, wei wuxian never regretted his decision of sacrificing his core for jiang cheng. not even once. and if the time came again, he won't think twice before repeating his past actions.

wei wuxian glanced up at his shi-di that stood on the other end of the boat, peering over the water to look for the water ghouls.

wei wuxian will not let it happen again.

his fingers tightly gripped the handle of the suibian as he slowly unsheathed it. the sword gave the glint―shining brightly―but he felt weird.

when he had given away his golden core, he couldn't feel suibian anymore. but now, even if he had gotten his core back and suibian responds back to him; the assurance that he can use it again, he couldn't help but feel nervous about it.

part of him felt like he had betrayed his sword. and maybe he did.

his sword was right in his hands and he could use it but still he finds himself reminiscing back to the memory of his ghost flute; 𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙦𝙞𝙣𝙜.

he seemed to be missing his flute more than necessary. even more than he missed his sword back then.

and maybe, this guiltiness of his, made him anxious to even hold it in his hands. let alone flying on it, wei wuxian didn't even feel deserving to even own it as his own.

jiang cheng had noticed the odd shutdown of his brother. all the way through the caiyi town after departing from the ornament stalls, until' they got on the boats and sailed into the biling lake; wei wuxian didn't even utter a single word again.

he didn't even stop to look at any other stall or interact with the people around. usually, wei wuxian would have surely engaged himself in a flirty conversation with the town’s women, flattering them to get good deals off them or finding the vendors that sold alcohol.

but wei wuxian did none of those. he silently walked behind jiang cheng, his gait unfocused and body tensed. jiang cheng felt odd by the way wei wuxian anxiously held onto suibian.

he couldn't understand what was wrong with his shi-xiong all of a sudden. in an attempt to cheer up his brother, jiang cheng had tried pointing out a stall that sold emperor's smile, nearby. but wei wuxian didn't respond and simply walked ahead.