This post has the following content warnings:
View Flat HTML
View Metadata
Search Post
His Imperial Majesty the Emperor of the Great Song Dynasty, Son of Heaven, Lord of Ten Thousand Years, Ruler of the Central Kingdom, sits upon the Dragon Throne, ruling a land of ten thousand li in every direction, bearing the Mandate of Heaven and supported in his absolute and total rule by able and capable servants. Everything in harmony. Unlike the shirt of the under-minister for internal affairs, which had clearly not been adequately steamed, and did not quite match the flowers that had been selected for the month. It was going to be one of those days. He has not been on the throne very long, only a handful of years, and yet the acclimation to his subjects flying around on swords is something he is certain will never cease to unsettle him. As a child surviving in the harem, he had known the ultimate reward, that he would rule the court that all in ten thousand li owed obedience to. But the clans and sects of the cultivators seemed to treat that obedience as less of a divine mandate and more of a polite fiction. Thankfully they at least did not visit him at court. But the under-minister was approaching, so His Imperial Majesty the Emperor of the Great Song Dynasty, Son of Heaven, Lord of Ten Thousand Years, Ruler of the Central Kingdom reflexively corrects his posture and beckons him closer.
"No, Your Majesty. Lan Wangji is one of the strongest cultivators, but until recent events no one would have expected something like this of him. By all reports, when he is not night-hunting, he meditates, performs exercises, plays the guqin, and practices calligraphy. He speaks little and is noted for his perfect adherence to all three thousand rules of the Lan clan."
The emperor is confused for a moment, but remembers that three thousand rules is probably a lot for someone outside the Court. "Strange indeed. Continue."
"Your Imperial Majesty, it is mysterious why Lan Wangji is working with Wei Wuxian instead of trying to kill him again, and why instead of immediately seeking his revenge Wei Wuxian chose to spend his time night-hunting and mentoring the Lan juniors."
"The Lan Clan is normally obedient and faithful, a model for all to follow. It seems almost as mysterious why they are following him, though we suppose power is important for cultivators."
"Well, Your Imperial Majesty," the underminister says judiciously, "presumably the Lan juniors did not know, and simply assumed that obeying the most respectable member of their clan would not lead them to spend time with a notorious mass murderer."
"Ah, so the mentoring situation involves less ability to flee than realized? Or have they not realized who is mentoring them? Or now that they have started, they fear returning without having gained all that they can since the stain is already afixed? Explain for the Court, please."
"Your Imperial Majesty, Wei Wuxian was pretending to be Mo Xuanyu. The Lan juniors say they were unaware, but Lan Wangji is believed to have been aware of the facts of the matter. How he was aware we do not know, nor why he decided to night-hunt with Lan Wangji. Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji hated each other when Wei Wuxian was first alive."
"And who is Mo Xuanyu? Why is it thought that Lan Wangji knew better?" The emperor is almost, at this point, used to extremely questionable and impulsive decisions from people with the power to destroy the entire empire.
"Mo Xuanyu is former demonic cultivator in the Jin clan and illegitimate child of the former chief cultivator Jin Guangshan. No one knows why he decided to summon Wei Wuxian into his body. --Lan Wangji appeared unsurprised when Wei Wuxian's identity was revealed and they both disappeared shortly afterward."
The emperor will let pass without comment the revelation of another illegitimate child of the chief cultivator, whose behavior should be above reproach. Perhaps the cultivator clans do things differently. "Is there any information on where they are?"
"Send the chief cultivator our condolences on the loss of his half-brother. How was Wei Wuxian's identity revealed?"
"He attempted to smear Jin Guangyao by claiming that Jin Guangyao had evil secrets in his secret room. Of course he did not. Then Wei Wuxian drew his sword, which had sheathed itself so that no one but Wei Wuxian could draw it, and revealed himself. Then he made Jin Guangyao's wife Qin Su kill herself and passed out. Lan Wangji took his body and flew away on his sword."
It is unfortunate that the chief cultivator has evil secrets in his secret room, whatever those are, but not terribly concerning. His own ascension did not come without a few skeletons in closets and the bottoms of rivers. "What enmity existed between Qin Su and Wei Wuxian, and how was she so powerful that killing her knocked the man who slaughtered thousands of cultivators unconscious? Does Lan Wangji's sword fly, or is Wei Wuxian's sword possessed of even more unusual powers?"
"Lan Wangji can fly on his sword, Your Imperial Majesty. We do not know why Wei Wuxian so hated Qin Su, nor why he passed out afterward. Perhaps the process of transitioning to a new body was difficult for him."
"His previous most dramatic feats have been accomplished with control over fierce corpses. Were any observed? Has the chief cultivator discussed the existence of a method to permanently banish Wei Wuxian?"
"No fierce corpses were observed at the time, Your Imperial Majesty. If the body he is currently inhabiting is killed, Wei Wuxian will die as well-- at least until someone else decides to summon him into their body."
"If Wei Wuxian develops a habit of accomplishing the summoner's goals before being killed, he is likely to be a permanent issue for the chief cultivator and his heirs unless demonic cultivation is entirely stamped out, or Wei Wuxian wins and becomes the immortal chief cultivator, drinker of alcohol, eater of potatoes, and protector of the remnants of the Wen clan." Presumably the final element of the list is one of the evil secrets in the secret room. "Did he add any new goals to the list in his most recent appearance?"
"Presumably, Your Imperial Majesty, because it is unclear how his current actions get him alcohol or potatoes and the Wen remnants are all dead and the corpses burned."
"The preparations for a resumed war between Wei Wuxian and his ally and the Chief Cultivator are already underway, we hope."
"Yes, Your Imperial Majesty. Fortunately, the years of peace have given us ample time to rebuild the granaries. Progress continues to be slow on training non-cultivator soldiers to deal with fierce corpses."
"So, Wei Wuxian is night-hunting, likely taking the fierce corpses for his own use, alongside Lan Wangji. What is Wen Ning doing? Is it known why he did not assist Wei Wuxian in slaying Qin Su?"
This story is obviously false. Jin Guangyao almost certainly knows that the emperor knows it is false. The emperor is somewhat insulted that the lie was not even plausible, but appreciates the gesture of informing him. "In addition to the consolations for the loss of his half-brother, send Jin Guangyao our deepest condolences for the murder of his wife. Let him know that this assault is condemned by the emperor, and that it is added to the list of Wei Wuxian's crimes." Not that any man in the army would be fool enough to arrest him. "Thank him for the continued information, and of course pass on our blessing and offer of support to his efforts."