"Wait," Nie Huaisang said, holding up a hand to stop them.
Both Luo Qingyang and Yu Qingqi came to a halt at the very edge of a ridge overlooking the mist-covered Nightless City. Faint cries for help drifted up to where they crouched, safe and sound amid the foliage.
Luo Qingyang hated it – sitting there and doing nothing while their companions suffered for it. But she had said she would help Nie Huaisang with his plan, and she intended to keep her word.
They'd spent a lot of time talking with him during their journey. Qingqi had felt close to him almost immediately, probably because he was the only other person in their group who struggled with cultivation.
Luo Qingyang, on the other hand, didn't take to him easily. For Qingqi to compare herself to him seemed like self-deprecation. Nie Huaisang was constantly holding the rest of them back and never tried to do better. Qingqi fought with everything she had. And when she was exhausted at the end of the day, she still found the strength to study by the candlelight – something she'd taken to doing more as the miasma had worsened, so that she would be awake already if Luo Qingyang couldn't stay asleep.
Qingqi wasn't the most powerful, but she worked the hardest. She should never have even dreamt of comparing herself to the man known as The Headshaker.
And yet, those two had taken to one another quickly. So, Luo Qingyang had been pulled along, not willing to come between her wife and her wife's new friend when Qingqi had so few of those outside of Meishan.
As the days progressed, Nie Huaisang had become more irritable and twitchy. He didn't spin grand tales to entertain them anymore. He answered their questions in few words and freely offered even fewer.
That is, until Qingqi began to pry.
With a great deal of coaxing, Qingqi finally pulled the truth from him. Nie Huaisang knew what was going on, but he couldn't tell any of them. He decided to tell Luo Qingyang and Qingqi because they weren't overly close with anyone there aside from Jin Ling… and because, according to him, Nie Huaisang was getting desperate.
He proved to them that the huli jing was Jin Guangyao and not Xue Yang. He explained why no one else could know. And then he asked them to help him deliver the final blow to their enemy, warning them that it could require a lot of restraint on their part.
Luo Qingyang hadn't wanted to agree. She wanted to tell him to go ahead with his secret plan on his own as long as he made sure not to drag any of them down with him. She didn't want to get caught in some hare-brained scheme thought up by someone who couldn't even wield a sword or draw a talisman.
But Qingqi had begged her to agree. She had faith in Nie Huaisang and felt that his plan might allow her to be more useful to the group. Luo Qingyang suspected it was that last part more than the first that drove Qingqi's need to be involved.
Eventually, they'd agreed. Nie Huaisang had asked them again, to be certain, and told them again that it would be a new kind of challenge for them – something likely more difficult than anything they'd done before.
Qingqi, eager to help, had agreed again in a heartbeat.
Luo Qingyang, with great trepidation, agreed too.
But Nie Huaisang had been right. This was more difficult than anything she'd done before. She couldn't take it, sitting there and doing nothing.
She picked at the flaking skin over her knuckles, dried out and cracked from too much soap and scrubbing.
Beside her, Qingqi squinted at the city below. Her eyes darted from right to left, then down, and then from right to left again.
"Jin Ling is there," she whispered, pointing toward the entrance of Nightless City. "I think he's... is he talking to Jin Guangyao?"
Fairy whined softly behind them. Qingqi tenderly shushed her.
She shouldn't have been there with them. Jin Ling's dog should have been safe at home, like Jin Ling had intended for her. But Nie Huaisang's stupid plan just had to use a dog.
"Dogs are a natural enemy for the huli jing," he'd said. "She'll be useful. She wants to be useful. And we'll keep her perfectly safe. You want to protect Jin Ling, don't you?"
So, Luo Qingyang had opened a gate for him and Nie Huaisang had coaxed her out with mention of her master. It almost seemed that Fairy had understood what Nie Huaisang had told her. She seemed to know that Jin Ling was in danger.
If she hadn't known before, she certainly did now. She could barely control herself, standing every couple minutes or so to circle once or twice before sitting back down, panting all the while.
If Fairy ran down there now, she would certainly be killed - natural enemy to the huli jing or not. And if she died, Luo Qingyang could consider her relationship with Jin Ling truly over. He loved that dog.
"Relax," Luo Qingyang soothed.
She turned to give Fairy a pat, but when she did, movement above caught her eye.
Crows, as numerous as the leaves of the tree in which they sat, were gathered in silence. Like the three people beneath them, they too seemed to be waiting for something.
"They've followed my mynah," Nie Huaisang said when he noticed her looking at them. "They expect food."
"Do you make a habit of feeding the crows?" Qingqi asked.
"No," he answered her, "but it happens."
Luo Qingyang suppressed the shiver that tingled at the base of her spine.
Nie Huaisang had all the courage of a mouse and the mannerisms to match, but his voice then had carried none of his usual timidness.
The longer she watched him, his eyes glinting in the rising sun, the more Luo Qingyang began to notice this man was different from the one she'd spoken to during their journey. There was a quiet power about him – very unlike the power of Wei Wuxian, which was loud and striking and bright despite its demonic nature.
No, Nie Huaisang's power was something… else.
It was dark and still, like an algae-ridden lake within a cave. It waited with breath held behind sharp teeth. And it would take only one pebble to crack that smooth lake surface, sending ripples and a cacophony of echoes through that cavern to wake the bats that rested between jagged stalagtites and to rouse the hungry creature that lay coiled in those murky depths.
He was frightening.
Luo Qingyang cursed herself for not having seen it sooner, but she wasn't going to leave now. Not with Jin Ling's life at stake. Not when she'd already said that she would help Nie Huaisang with his plan to save him and the others. Everything rested on this plan.
She wasn't in any position to complain about the means to their end. So long as Sect Leader Nie kept his word to her, she would do the same for him.
Their plan would work. It had to work.
"This is sickening," Qingqi breathed. It was hard to tell where she was looking, but she did indeed look sick to her stomach.
Luo Qingyang wished in that moment that she'd never taught Qingqi how to bolster her senses. Then she wouldn't be able to see or hear what was happening below.
"It will get worse," Nie Huaisang said calmly. "We have to wait."
"What if he starts killing them? What if he figures out we're trying to run down his power?" Qingqi asked.
"He knows that's what we're doing."
"What?! Then-!"
"We outlast him," Nie Huaisang said. "He will torture them to try to get us to show ourselves. We must endure it."
Qingqi bit her lip and turned away.
"I told you it would be difficult," he said.
"Yes, but you didn't really say this."
Luo Qingyang glowered at him. Nie Huaisang didn't seem to notice.
How dare he act like Qingqi should have known? It wasn't like he'd laid the whole plan out for them from the start! He'd told them some things, but mostly as they'd needed to know them.
"Wait, what was that?" Qingqi asked, focusing on a different place than where she'd been looking before. "Did the huli jing flicker? I think I saw the Xue Yang form... waver."
"Mhm," Nie Huaisang said.
"We can go now! We can help them!"
Qingqi sprang up, but Nie Huaisang caught her arm before she could go anywhere. Instinctively, Luo Qingyang reached for her sword.
"Don't fall for that," he said. "He wants us to think he's weaker than he really is. Remember: all of us know the game we're playing."
"Don't call it that," Luo Qingyang snapped.
"Call it what?"
"A game," she said. "It's not a fucking game."
"A-Yang," Qingqi whispered, "you know he didn't mean anything by it."
"I don't presume to know anything about him."
Qingqi fell silent. It seemed she hadn't noticed any of Luo Qingyang's hesitancy toward Sect Leader Nie. Or maybe she just hadn't thought she felt so strongly.
Nie Huaisang, however, didn't look shocked. He didn't look like anything really. He was stoic as he flicked open his fan and gently waved it to cool himself.
"I know it isn't a game," he said. "But it's easier to think of it as one, wouldn't you say?"
"No. I wouldn't."
"In that case, I hope you can accept my apology. I will be more mindful."
Luo Qingyang bristled. It felt like he was trying to make her out to be unreasonable with the calm and seemingly sincere manner he answered her. But he wasn't sincere, not in the way that Jin Ling was... or Lan Sizhui... or Lan Jingyi...
The scene continued to play out in Nightless City. Xue Yang (really Jin Guangyao) gloated to Wei Wuxian as the four nightmare realms shifted to tell new stories.
They weren't very effective on Lan Jingyi, who continued to shout profanities at the air around him, daring the huli jing to face him.
Luo Qingyang smiled. She liked that boy very much... even if he was a bit annoying.
Lan Sizhui, on the other hand, wasn't faring well at all. Made to first relive an altered version of the original siege of the burial mounds, he was now faced with a new horror.
Luo Qingyang watched the fake trial unfold and came to realize why the first nightmare had had such an effect on him. Lan Sizhui wasn't a Lan at all. He was a Wen, probably the last surviving member of that family.
"Oh," Qingqi said quietly. By her timing and the direction of her gaze, Luo Qingyang assumed she was watching Lan Sizhui as well. "This is unspeakably cruel."
Nie Huaisang didn't say a word.
They watched… and watched…
The scenarios were similar in some ways. And two of them were so alike, or rather identically different, it would have been laughable if they weren't so monstrous.
Jiang Cheng begged a fake Jin Ling to stay with him and stay alive while the real Jin Ling feared a fake Jiang Cheng's wrath.
When that fake Jiang Cheng hit him, though, Luo Qingyang couldn't stay quiet.
"That's it," she announced, abruptly getting to her feet. "I can't do this anymore. I'm going down there."
"Do not."
She whirled around to glare at Huaisang, who stared levelly back at her.
"You have no idea what that's going to do to him!" Luo Qingyang hissed, jabbing her finger back at Nightless City. "This has gone on long enough. At this point, we're wasting our energy to listen and watch. Jin Guangyao can't hold that many illusions at once forever. He's plenty weakened already."
"He's not."
"You don't even know! You're guessing!"
"Yes, but I'm confident," Nie Huaisang said. "It's too early. Please sit down."
Luo Qingyang debated hitting him but ultimately decided against it. It would be in bad form to hit someone who couldn't defend themselves.
"Oh no," Qingqi whispered. "Don't do it. Please don't do it."
Turning back around, Luo Qingyang scanned the city, listening closely to figure out what she was fretting about.
"I'm not going to let you die. Don't give up on me," were the words she heard once she'd focused her spiritual energy once more.
Jiang Cheng was going to give qi to the fake Jin Ling. He was going to give permission to the huli jing to steal spiritual energy from him as he pleased. He was going to guarantee his death.
Luo Qingyang didn't bother announcing her intentions this time. She drew her sword and prepared to sprint for the ridge's edge.
"You'll never make it in time," Nie Huaisang said in a voice so calm that Luo Qingyang again longed to hit him. "There's no point going."
In a flash of silver, she pointed her sword at him. He didn't flinch.
"I can not sit here," she stated.
"You have no love for Jiang Cheng," Nie Huaisang retorted. "Save your instinct for someone you care about."
"For all intents and purposes, Sect Leader Jiang is the only family that Jin Ling has left. Jin Ling trusts me – trusted me. I can't in good conscience let Sect Leader Jiang die."
"He's already done it. You're too late."
She didn't bother to confirm. She knew he wasn't lying.
Without hesitation, her hands shot forward and seized Nie Huaisang by the front of his robes. Fairy growled.
"Do you have any idea what we've done?!" she screamed in his face. "We just allowed that to happen!"
"I do," Nie Huaisang said, unperturbed. "And I told you to trust me. Blame me for this if you want. But please don't sabotage my efforts now."
Luo Qingyang's blood burned in her veins. "How could you allow this?! I thought he was your friend!"
"He was."
"Then do something!"
"I am. Waiting is what I must do."
"He'll die if you keep waiting!"
"Yes. He may indeed be doomed already."
Qingqi was glued to the events unfolding in Nightless City. It didn't seem like she was listening to them at all.
Fairy's hackles were raised. She continued to growl, not at Luo Qingyang, but at Nie Huaisang. He eyed her briefly.
"If you bear with my plan, I can assure you of Jin Ling's safety," Nie Huaisang said. "If I could save everyone, I would. It simply may not be possible."
"I can't stand here and watch him die," Luo Qingyang hissed. "I'm going down there. Don't you dare try to stop me."
"Jin Ling may die if you intervene now."
"I won't let that happen."
"Jin Guangyao hasn't used up enough of the energy he's stored," Nie Huaisang argued. "If you go in there, he'll still have plenty of power left to manipulate you too. You'll be in the same predicament as everyone else."
"He's not using up that energy now because he's stealing from Sect Leader Jiang!"
Nie Huaisang let out a sort of half-laugh. "You think Jiang Cheng is strong enough to power all four of those arrays?"
Taken aback by his sudden disrespectful tone, Luo Qingyang didn't answer.
"No," Nie Huaisang went on, "Jin Guangyao is still using his own power."
"I don't care," she said shortly. "I'm going."
She turned on her heel. But she didn't take a single step toward the ridge. Nie Huaisang's next words stopped her instantly.
"I will kill your daughter."
Fire turned to ice in her blood. Luo Qingyang stared ahead, unseeing.
"You wouldn't dare," she breathed. Beside her, Qingqi had gone equally still.
"I would," he said. "I will. If you come between me and my goal, I will have her killed."
… have her killed.
There were probably fail-safes in place to ensure that if they didn't do what he said, Mianmian would be killed. They couldn't just kill him and be done with it. He wouldn't have threatened their daughter without being sure he was protected in some way.
Qingqi looked up at her, terror in her eyes. She'd come to the same conclusion.
"What have I done?" she whispered.
"This isn't your fault," Luo Qingyang said quietly. "It's-"
"It's mine," Nie Huaisang cut in. He walked forward as they both finally looked back at him. "You aren't foolish. Don't tear yourself up over what could have been or what you think you should have done better. Focus on what we're doing now. That's all you can do."
Yu Qingqi bowed her head, Luo Qingyang assumed, to hide from her wife's scrutiny. She wanted to tell her everything would be okay, but Luo Qingyang wasn't one to sugarcoat things. Mianmian's life had been threatened by a sect leader of one of the four most powerful sects. There were no promises she could make.
"You know," Luo Qingyang said coldly to Nie Huaisang, "when this is all said and done, you're going to face serious consequences for threatening an advisor."
"You know better than that," Nie Huaisang replied. "You will speak and they will gossip. I will hardly have to defend myself. No one is going to take your word over mine."
"Jin Ling will listen to me."
"And how much good did it do you before when you had Lan Wangji's support? If Hanguang-jun's word was not powerful enough to add weight to yours, do you really think Jin Ling's will be?"
Luo Qingyang had no answer.
"Please sit down," Nie Huaisang said.
Seething, Luo Qingyang threw herself onto the dirt. Nie Huaisang, without comment or expression, watched her spin around toward Nightless City again.
And the waiting continued.
They realized at some point that Lan Sizhui had also given permission to the huli jing. Qingqi begged to go to him, claiming Lan Sizhui was just a child and too young to be bait for their ridiculous plan. But Nie Huaisang wouldn't hear of it.
"He's old enough to be responsible for his own actions," he said callously.
Qingqi had had enough by that point and spat back at him, "Jin Guangyao overestimated you."
"Overestimated? What do you mean?"
"Your humanity," she said. "He's betting on your humanity while you're betting against it. He's overestimated you."
"I'm sorry you feel that way."
If Mianmian's life hadn't been on the line, Luo Qingyang was sure her wife would have thrown him off the ridge.
"I would almost rather hand you over to Jin Guangyao and let him win than sit here and listen to you for a minute longer," said Qingqi.
"Hm."
They didn't speak again until it was necessary. There was no point. Nie Huaisang wasn't going to budge, no matter what happened to anyone down there. And they couldn't risk Mianmian, no matter how badly they wanted to help the others.
So they watched.
One by one, their companions sought the safety of the Scorching Sun Palace. They watched Lan Wangji fight Jin Guangyao to protect Lan Sizhui. And they watched Lan Xichen coax Jin Ling into the storm gate.
They watched and they did nothing. Even when it seemed Wei Wuxian was certain to die, they allowed events to unfold without meddling.
It was infuriating.
Finally, after they'd seen Gusu and Qinghe and Lanling appear before them as part of some depraved courting ritual, Nie Huaisang spoke again.
"Well done, Er-ge," he muttered under his breath. He then turned to them and said in a voice low with a sort of restrained excitement, "It's time."
"How do you know?" Luo Qingyang asked.
"His traps are beginning to show themselves. Do you see that over there?" He pointed to a place near the city gate, outside of the Lanling illusion. "The faintly glowing lines? Those are part of an array – an array we need to dismantle or suppress before going in there."
Luo Qingyang focused on where he'd pointed, and sure enough, there it was. Dim green lines etched onto the stone. They definitely hadn't been there before when they'd watched the altercation between Jin Ling and the fake Jiang Cheng nearby.
"That looks like a trap for corpses," Qingqi said. "Why do we need to dismantle that?"
"There isn't a single fierce corpse or otherwise to use for several li in any direction," Nie Huaisaing said. "Jin Guangyao would have been sure of that before inviting Wei Wuxian into his den."
"Then why would he have bothered to draw that?" Luo Qingyang asked.
Nie Huaisang smiled wryly. "He'd expected Wen Ning. So, if Wen Ning is indeed to help us, we need to clear the way for him first."
"So Jin Guangyao was right," Luo Qingyang said flatly. "Wen Ning is with you."
"Had you really thought that Wen Ning would leave all of them behind?" Nie Huaisang asked.
"He's agreed to help you?" Luo Qingyang said, astounded.
He shrugged. "He wants to help them. The best way he can do that is by helping me."
She didn't like the sound of that, but there was little sense in prying or arguing.
"Let's go then," Luo Qingyang said.
They carefully picked their way down the ridge. There was a thin trail that led down near the city, but it was so narrow and poorly defined that Luo Qingyang was certain it was a deer trail and not intended for human use.
Fairy was glued to Qingqi's side. She'd always liked her best. Not that she took any issue with Luo Qingyang, but when given the choice, Fairy would choose to keep Qingqi's company.
It took them some time to reach the front gates of Nightless City. By then, the quiet around them had been interrupted by distant unintelligible shouting.
Nie Huaisang stopped abruptly before setting foot in the city.
"One of you will go in there," he said. "You will dismantle the array we've already identified and you will try to find others."
Luo Qingyang bristled at being given orders. Qingqi's fingers curled into a fist.
"Whoever goes in there must not be seen."
"But I thought you said back at the inn that a huli jing can sense anyone in its den," Luo Qingyang said.
"It can," Nie Huaisang answered, "but those talismans I gave you should dampen his ability to sense you."
She looked down at the white jade block that rested on her chest, half hidden beneath her clothing. The characters carved in its face and filled with gold were carefully done and quite lovely. But it had come from Nie Huaisang. So Luo Qingyang refused to admire it.
"Luo Qingyang, I think-"
"Advisor Luo," Luo Qingyang corrected him hotly.
Nie Huaisang inclined his head. "Advisor Luo, perhaps it should be you who goes in to dismantle arrays."
"And why should she go alone?" Qingqi demanded.
"Because whoever stays with me is going to turn me over to Jin Guangyao," Nie Huaisang explained. "You seemed most eager to do so. I figured I'd give you the opportunity."
Luo Qingyang could hardly believe her ears.
"I don't know what trick you're up to, but even weakened as he is, Jin Guangyao is far more powerful than you are," she said. "He'll kill you on the spot."
"Maybe. More likely, though, he'll offer to reward whoever brings me to him first. Then he'll kill me."
"So what do you want us to do?" Qingqi asked begrudgingly.
He explained it. The plan was risky to say the least.
Luo Qingyang was to go in and move around unnoticed while deactivating pertinent arrays – those that would trap corpses or incapacitate cultivators. Any detection arrays were meant to be left alone since they were a waste of time and energy.
She would have half an incense time to do this before Qingqi was to render Nie Huaisang unconscious and drag him into the city to Jin Guangyao. She was only to hand him over once Jin Guangyao agreed to leave everyone else alone, and she was encouraged to try to have him surrender his access to Lan Sizhui and Jiang Cheng, though that ask was a long shot per Nie Huaisang and there was no good way to know whether or not he'd actually done it.
To encourage Jin Guangyao's cooperation, Fairy would accompany Qingqi.
It was important that Qingqi stick to whatever conditions of a deal she and Jin Guangyao agreed to. If she didn't, the deal would be void and they would definitely have no protection. She would also likely make herself a target of his rage.
Additionally, it was important that she be as honest as she could be. Jin Guangyao would sense a lie. As such, Nie Huaisang refused to tell them the rest of the plan or how Wen Ning would factor into it.
"Won't he still know that she's up to something?" Luo Qingyang asked.
"Oh definitely," Nie Huaisang said, "but I'm willing to bet that he'll play along. Besides, Yu Qingqi isn't up to anything. I want her to approach this as if she really is handing me over. As far as you two are concerned, I have no feasible plan and this is going to fail. Consider this surrender. You are at the mercy of Jin Guangyao."
Something in his tone made Luo Qingyang feel as if this may indeed be a very real possibility. He seemed nervous, scared even.
She desperately wanted to know his plan, but she didn't waste her breath asking.
"I don't like this," Qingqi said. "I don't think he's going to agree to leave seven people unharmed in exchange for one. It doesn't seem like a fair trade."
Nie Huaisang's expression hardened. "Nine people."
"What?"
"You must include yourselves," he said.
"Now he's definitely not going to agree."
Nie Huaisang shrugged. "His number one priority is killing me. After that, yes, there is a chance he will be unwilling to let Zewu-jun go. He is also, like I said before, unlikely to surrender his power over Lan Sizhui or Jiang Cheng. You must make the best possible arrangement for yourself."
"And what will make him keep his word?" Luo Qingyang asked.
Nie Huaisang shrugged again. "Maybe nothing," he said. "There's speculation that huli jing are bound by certain agreements in a way similar to how they need permission to consume another person's qi. The deal may not protect you at all. But it's this or you two leave now and allow the rest of them to die, your daughter included."
"Fine."
Luo Qingyang did a final check of her equipment and supplies before stepping into Nightless City, head held high.
A pattering, like that of rain, sounded in the distance just then. She turned back to see Qingqi, Fairy, and Nie Huaisang all watching her intently. To her surprise, they all seemed nervous to see her go, Nie Huaisang too.
"Wish me luck," she said.
"Good luck," said Nie Huaisang.
"I love you," said Qingqi.
Fairy whined softly.
She turned away from them again and marched into the city.
The first array was easy to find since she'd already seen it from outside. Luo Qingyang unsheathed her sword, cut a few breaks in the circle and shredded one of the principle characters within it, then sheathed her sword again and continued on.
There was no telling how many arrays there would be or even whether they would all be visible to her. But she crept around the outskirts of the city, avoiding the area she'd last seen the others in and prayed they wouldn't choose to move from there.
The next array she found was a useless alarm. She didn't bother to evaluate it to find the crux, but she did skirt around it so as not to alert Jin Guangyao to her presence.
The next was also useless. The one after that was designed to keep people from exiting the city. That one she decided to unmake, along with one that would incinerate anyone standing within it when activated.
The pattering stopped as she was about to tamper with another corpse trapping array.
Could that be her signal that Qingqi had arrived? How long had it been since she'd entered the city to deal with the traps?
She finished with the corpse trapping array and stalked off toward the area she'd been avoiding.
There, she found a gravely wounded Wei Wuxian held in place by an unkempt Jin Guangyao. Not far from them stood Lan Xichen, Lan Wangji, and Jiang Cheng. The three were very still, likely fearful that any movement they would make would result in Wei Wuxian's demise.
Across from them, one hand on her sword while the other grasped the wrist of a listless Nie Huaisang, was Yu Qingqi. Fairy stood beside her, teeth bared and hackles raised.
But somehow, Qingqi looked fiercer. Her shoulders were squared, her gaze unwavering. A fire burned in her that Luo Qingyang had rarely seen.
"I've come to make a deal with you," Qingqi announced to Jin Guangyao, her voice firm and steady.
"Why now?" Jin Guangyao asked.
"I'm tired of watching this. He-" she lifted Nie Huaisang's arm, "-promised me that no one would die. He promised that his plan would get us all home safely."
"And, what? You've realized he's willing to sacrifice a few of you to get what he wants?"
"I've realized that he doesn't really have a plan."
Jin Guangyao threw his head back and laughed. "Sure! All right, what is this? What is this really?"
"I'll explain after you let him go."
Jin Guangyao cocked an eyebrow and pointed at Wei Wuxian. "Him?" he said. "I've done what you wanted rather than what you requested. I removed the blade that was killing him." He waved the golden dagger at her. "If I'd let him go as you asked, it would have had the same effect of removing the blade, yes, but it would have hurt a lot more. I was being reasonable. Let this go to show you that I don't intend to play semantics in this. You couldn't trust his deals-" Jin Guangyao pointed viciously at Nie Huaisang, "-but you can trust mine.
Jiang Cheng scoffed but said nothing. Jin Guangyao ignored him.
"You can't trust that, Qingqing," Luo Qingyang muttered under her breath. "Please be careful."
She'd never prayed so hard in her life than she prayed in that moment.
Jin Guangyao sighed dramatically when Qingqi didn't answer him right away. "I will let you leave if that's what you want."
"No," Qingqi said forcefully. "I came here to make a deal. Let's make a deal."
Her eyes meandered toward Wei Wuxian again.
"But first," she said, "set him down gently."
Jin Guangyao flashed her a dead smile. "Very well," he said, lowering Wei Wuxian as requested. "I hope that you came expecting a little back and forth. I'm not going to give you everything for Huaisang."
"I wouldn't expect you to. He's not worth that much."
Jin Guangyao laughed loudly.
Luo Qingyang was shocked by how well Qingqi played her part. She'd sounded quite genuine.
"Great!" Jin Guangyao exclaimed, clapping his hands together. "How about this, then? We will prioritize what we want and agree stepwise. You list your top priority, then I will list mine, and so on. Sound good?"
Luo Qingyang's stomach sank. From the sounds of it, they might only save half of them.
"I… suppose…" Qingqi said slowly, seeming to realize this too.
"No need to worry! I don't want for much," Jin Guangyao assured her.
"Right."
Luo Qingyang bit her cheek anxiously as Jin Guangyao walked toward Qingqi. She waited for one of the other three still standing to intervene or at least say something, but none of them did. They all looked very tired.
"I'll tip the scales in your favor," Jin Guangyao said. "You need not bargain for your or your wife's safety. I will grant it to you now in appreciation of what you're doing for me. So long as you stick to all other stipulations we set forth. Hm?"
"Okay. Fine," Qingqi said. "We'll do it like that."
Jin Guangyao smiled. "You first, then. What is most important to you?"
She spoke without hesitation. "Jin Ling."
Jin Guangyao answered without hesitation as well. "Deal. I won't harm Jin Ling."
Qingqi's eyebrow flicked upward for a fraction of a second.
Luo Qingyang was admittedly surprised at first too by how quickly Jin Guangyao had agreed. But, thinking a little more about it, none of this had ever seemed to involve Jin Ling that much. The Battle of Jinlintai was probably an effort on Jin Guangyao's part to get Jin Ling out of the mess he was in now.
For one reason or another, he hadn't wanted his nephew here. Never had.
"Okay," Qingqi said shortly. "I presume he's your top priority?" She nodded toward Nie Huaisang, still asleep on the cobblestones where she'd laid him.
Jin Guangyao shook his head slowly. "Lan Xichen," he said.
Of course he would say that! Luo Qingyang was a fool not to have realized it before he'd spoken. Whoever he'd wanted more between Nie Huaisang and Lan Xichen didn't matter. Qingqi was obviously going to hand over Nie Huaisang. So, it only made sense for him to claim Lan Xichen first, even if he wasn't his top priority.
Lan Xichen bowed his head, Zidian spit violet sparks across the cobblestones, and even behind the cloth over his mouth, Lan Wangji's already frosty expression turned glacial.
Qingqi was suddenly at a loss. "I – uh – I don't presume to speak for…"
"I agree."
Luo Qingyang's heart stood still at the sound of Lan Xichen's voice.
"No!" cried Lan Wangji and Jiang Cheng in unison.
But Lan Xichen paid them no mind as he stepped forward toward Jin Guangyao.
"I will even agree to your original offer," Lan Xichen said to him. "Please just let the others go, A-Yao."
She would have expected Jin Guangyao to look pleased with himself, but he didn't. He looked cross.
"My original offer does not still stand," he said bitterly. "You made yourself abundantly clear. Don't think that calling me what you used to is going to change anything."
Qingqi began to fiddle with her hair. "What are you going to do to him?"
"That's no concern of yours," Jin Guangyao snapped at her before turning back to Lan Xichen. "Am I to understand that you won't agree unless I let everyone else go? This deal is going to fall through very quickly…"
Lan Xichen set his jaw. "I will still agree."
Luo Qingyang buried her face in her hands.
"Xiongzhang," Lan Wangji said quietly, pleading with his brother, "you-"
"He's made his decision, Hanguang-jun," Jin Guangyao cut in. "Let's please not drag this out any longer than we have to."
"Oh please," Jiang Cheng said hotly. "You're not going to let any of us go. Just admit it."
"If that's true," said Lan Xichen, "then this is just a waste of time. Agree or disagree, my fate doesn't change."
"It will if we defeat him."
Lan Xichen gave him a long look. Jiang Cheng scowled but understood.
They couldn't defeat him.
Once everyone was quiet again, Jin Guangyao spoke up. "Your turn, Yu Qingqi. Who is your second?"
"Lan Jingyi."
"Ah! You'll put the children first? How noble of you! Very well. Lan Jingyi is yours. I will not harm him."
"And yours?" said Qingqi.
"Nie Huaisang, of course."
Luo Qingyang had expected him to again prioritize someone else for the same reason he'd prioritized Lan Xichen. But he didn't.
Was he trying to seem honest? Was he trying to prove that Lan Xichen had actually been his primary goal all along?
"Jin Guangyao, please…" Lan Xichen whispered. "Don't do this."
Jin Guangyao, of course, ignored him.
"Deal," Qingqi said, failing to hide her surprise. "He's yours."
A pause fell between them then. The atmosphere became tense, more so than it had been.
"Lan Sizhui," said Qingqi.
"I thought so," Jin Guangyao mused. "But you see, this is a more difficult one, isn't it? I don't have to be anywhere near him to end his life. It gives me a lot of leverage. That boy is well-loved, you know. Plus, having the extra energy available is nice too."
"Are you going to deny me?"
"Well, in a lot of ways, his permission was more valuable as leverage," Jin Guangyao said, tapping his finger against the side of his head as if he were thinking hard. "However, if we are to part ways without violence, I suppose leverage is unnecessary."
Qingqi perked up instantly. "Does that mean you'll also give up your access to Sect Leader Jiang's spiritual energy?"
Jiang Cheng's eyebrows raised. He understandably hadn't expected to be so high on Qingqi's list.
Jin Guangyao flashed her a tense smile. "I did tell you that I didn't want for much, didn't I?"
"You did," said Qingqi.
"Hm. How about this? I will give you everyone else – Lan Sizhui, Lan Wangji, Wei Wuxian, even the dog - but I will keep Sect Leader Jiang."
Jiang Cheng again seemed taken aback. Luo Qingyang was admittedly confused too. As Jin Guangyao had already pointed out, Lan Sizhui was the more valuable prisoner. Why not try to trade everyone else for him instead?
"Why?" Qingqi asked. "What could you possibly want him for?"
Jin Guangyao shrugged. "I could ask you the same question."
"He's important to Jin Ling."
No, don't show your hand, Luo Qingyang thought. He doesn't need to know why you want anyone.
Oddly enough, Jin Guangyao's expression seemed to soften. "My reasoning isn't so different from yours," he said.
"It is exactly the opposite," Qingqi said, her anger evident. "You promise not to harm Jin Ling, but you'll take the last of his family from him? You're just being cruel."
"How close are they really?" Jin Guangyao asked. "I think he's confided more to your wife than he has to Sect Leader Jiang. He'll still have his advisor."
Qingqi simply glared at him. Jiang Cheng seemed exceptionally angry too.
"Would it help if I promise not to revel in the cruelty?" Jin Guangyao offered. "I will make it quick and painless."
"So you intend to kill him?"
"What else could I possibly want him for?"
Qingqi ground her teeth and flared her nostrils. But eventually, she looked to Jiang Cheng for his permission.
"Please," Lan Xichen begged Jin Guangyao. "You don't really want anyone else. Please don't."
But Jin Guangyao ignored him. He, just like Qingqi, watched Jiang Cheng.
"Don't be an idiot," came a raspy voice from the ground.
Wei Wuxian turned over on his side to look at them. Luo Qingyang had believed him to be unconscious, but he'd clearly heard what was going on. He must have just been too weak to move until that moment.
"Jiang Cheng, don't do it," he said. "You don't have to. We can fight him."
Jiang Cheng knit his brow. His face hardened.
"You're one to talk," he said. "Who are you going to fight like that? Besides, we'll probably end up having to fight him anyway. We can't trust him to keep his word. But…"
"But if I do, Jin Ling's safety is guaranteed," Jin Guangyao finished for him with a smirk. "Surely you won't pass up that possibility?"
Though it seemed to pain him to agree, Jiang Cheng nodded.
"I will go with you as long as you keep your end of the agreement," he said.
Jin Guangyao grinned. "So we're in agreement?"
"We sure fucking aren't," Wei Wuxian said heatedly, still lying on the ground.
"We are," said Qingqi.
"Great. We agree to no longer interfere in each other's affairs. Come. Seal it with me."
Qingqi took a step back. "What?"
Jin Guangyao drew his dagger across his palm. Luo Qingyang was a little surprised to see that he bled normal blood. She'd expected some unnatural silvery substance.
He then passed the knife to Qingqi so she could do the same. And she did.
"I surrender the permission granted to me by Lan Sizhui," said Jin Guangyao, holding his bloody hand over his heart, "and vow not to interfere in the affairs of nor cause harm to Yu Qingqi, Luo Qingyang, Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji, Lan Sizhui, Lan Jingyi, Jin Ling, or Fairy except in self-defense."
"In reasonable self-defense!" Wei Wuxian corrected.
Jin Guangyao laughed. "I don't think so."
"Why not?" Qingqi demanded. "That seems fair to me."
Jin Guangyao narrowed his eyes at her. "Reasonable self-defense would only allow me to use as much force as necessary to protect myself. There would be nothing stopping any of them from attacking me and wearing me down until I'm finally weak enough to be allowed to use lethal force." He looked sharply at Wei Wuxian. "I thought you would be craftier than that."
Wei Wuxian shrugged. "It was worth a shot."
"Sure." Jin Guangyao turned back to Qingqi. "Please repeat the vow."
"Uh, I vow not to interfere in the affairs of nor cause harm to Zewu-jun-"
"No titles please," Jin Guangyao said. "Courtesy or birth names are acceptable. From the beginning."
Qingqi scowled at him but did as requested.
"I vow not to interfere in the affairs of nor cause harm to Lan Xichen, Nie Huaisang, Jiang Cheng, or Jin Guangyao except in self-defense."
They pressed their bloodied palms together, a sight that repulsed Luo Qingyang to witness.
Nothing happened. No flash of light or puff of smoke. There was nothing to indicate with any certainty that there was anything more than their words to keep them honest.
Jin Guangyao grinned as he stepped back from Qingqi. "Fun as that was, what's the trick?"
"What?" Qingqi replied.
Luo Qingyang was momentarily distracted by Lan Wangji, who went to kneel beside Wei Wuxian. She quickly returned her attention to Qingqi.
"You wouldn't really have come out here to make a deal with me. You were distracting me for something. Where is your wife? What trap have you lain for me?"
"There is no trap," Qingqi said quietly. "A-Yang was unwilling to stoop to my level. She refused to consort with you."
"Oh really?"
He leaned forward to inspect Nie Huaisang's face. When he straightened, he was frowning.
"He's actually unconscious," he remarked in disbelief. "What is it then? Those who didn't seal with me are going to make it so I have to break our deal?"
"Absolutely," Wei Wuxian said, already looking much better from Lan Wangji's healing. "I'll kill you myself if I have to. You're not taking any of them."
"You were listening though, weren't you?" Jin Guangyao asked. "I've allotted for self-defense. I'm allowed to fight back if you attack me."
Wei Wuxian didn't seem to care. He got to his feet and stomped toward Jin Guangyao. He didn't get far before Lan Xichen caught him.
"If your life is indeed safe," Lan Xichen said, "please don't risk it now."
To Luo Qingyang's surprise, Wei Wuxian seemed to smile beneath his face covering. "I'm not risking anything more than I was before. And my fighting him doesn't give up anyone else's protection since I wasn't the one who sealed with him. Am I right?"
His question was directed at Jin Guangyao, who was polite in appearance but inscrutable as always.
"What does happen if one of us breaks the stipulations of our contract?" Qingqi queried.
Jin Guangyao inclined his head to her. "I appreciate all that you've done for me today, and I have tried to be forthcoming in our interaction, but I'm afraid that is not an answer that I'm willing to volunteer to you."
"He's bound and you are not – not to the same degree anyway," Wei Wuxian blurted out. "According to theory, he physically cannot break the contract unless you break it first. We can still do whatever we want without consequences so. Let. Me. Go. Zewu-jun."
"Without consequences?!" Jiang Cheng scoffed. "Self-defense is a loose term, Wei Wuxian. Don't be stupid."
"So he'll kill me? So what?!"
"Wei Wuxian, please."
Wei Wuxian looked up at Lan Xichen, seeming quite in misery.
"Zewu-jun, I… I heard what you said before," he said. "If I am your family, then you are mine. Let me fight for you. Let me fight for my family."
His gaze flicked unmistakably in Jiang Cheng's direction. Only for a moment, but Luo Qingyang saw it.
Lan Xichen's arm dropped by a fraction, but he still didn't release Wei Wuxian. He said something very quietly, something that Luo Qingyang couldn't hear from where she was and wasn't willing to risk detection by amplifying her senses within Jin Guangyao's den.
"I don't care what you want!" Wei Wuxian yelled. "I'm going to fight for you even if you won't fight for yourself!"
In a flash of white, Lan Wangji was by his side, sword drawn. They were both going to fight for Lan Xichen.
Jin Guangyao's silence was unsettling. Luo Qingyang returned her attention to him just in time for him to speak again.
"I will kill them both, Er-ge," he said calmly, ignoring everyone else and speaking only to Lan Xichen. "You know what you need to do to keep them safe."
"I-" Lan Xichen began.
"Don't you dare."
Jiang Cheng moved to stand between Jin Guangyao and Lan Xichen. The glare he levelled at Jin Guangyao was fit to rend the very earth beneath their feet.
"Don't you dare give him permission," he said over his shoulder without breaking eye contact with the one in front of him. "We allowed Yu Qingqi to sign us over, but there is no reason for us to go quietly. We aren't held by the agreement."
"You speak so loudly for one without any power here," Jin Guangyao drawled. "I'm tired of listening to you, Sect Leader Jiang."
He didn't move at all. There was no outward evidence that Jin Guangyao was doing anything except when Jiang Cheng became suddenly unstable on his feet.
"No! Don't!" Lan Xichen cried, rushing forward to catch him.
Jiang Cheng was unconscious in an instant. A second longer and he might have been dead.
But Lan Xichen pressed a glowing palm against his chest, infusing him with his own qi.
"Why the surprise?" Jin Guangyao asked. "You knew I was going to kill him. I promised to make it quick and painless."
Lan Xichen sank to the ground with Jiang Cheng. Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian were momentarily stunned.
"You keep that up and you're going to die with him," Jin Guangyao warned. "You'd better stop."
"You should take your own advice," Wei Wuxian snarled.
Red and white sword glares zoomed toward Jin Guangyao. He dodged them easily. Luo Qingyang saw the twirl of a golden dagger and knew she could watch quietly no longer.
She leapt out from her hiding place, sending her sword speeding ahead toward Jin Guangyao.
It was enough of a surprise to prevent Wei Wuxian from being stabbed again. It wasn't, however, enough to land a hit on Jin Guangyao.
He dodged again and snatched her sword clean out of the air. He then immediately put it to use fending off both Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji.
Luo Qingyang kept trying to call her weapon back, but it wouldn't listen to her. She was forced to stop in her tracks before she ever reached the others.
A horrible sickness spread through her belly. Her knees became wobbly and refused to hold her weight. At her very core, there was nothing. She was powerless.
When she saw Jiang Cheng in the distance, gently shaking an unresponsive Lan Xichen, she began to despair.
They were going to lose. She could feel it. She knew it deep in her bones.
"A-Yang? A-Yang, look at me."
"Qingqing?"
It was hard to focus, but she felt arms around her that could only be her wife's – arms that held her tentatively because they knew better than to squeeze lest her comfort turn to suffocation.
"I'm here, A-Yang," Qingqi said. "What's wrong? What can I do?"
"I think it's my sword," she said, barely strong enough to get the words out. "That demon is corrupting my sword."
"I'll get it back for you then."
Luo Qingyang caught her arm before Qingqi could rise. "You can't. You mustn't break the contract."
"How can you expect me to sit back and do nothing again?! I want to help!"
"You are helping, Qingqing. Don't throw it all away now."
"I won't watch you like this."
"It isn't enough to kill me," Luo Qingyang assured her. "Don't worry."
"At the very least, they need your help! I need to-!"
"What's wrong with her?"
Luo Qingyang heard Jiang Cheng before she saw him. He stood nearby, watching the fight between Jin Guangyao, Lan Wangji, Wei Wuxian, and now Fairy, who must have joined sometime after Luo Qingyang was weakened.
It was odd, but she could have sworn that Wei Wuxian kept moving away from the dog on purpose, almost as if she were his enemy rather than Jin Guangyao.
Lan Xichen was still lying where Jiang Cheng left him, but even in her exhausted state, Luo Qingyang knew better than to think he was dead. Surely Jiang Cheng wouldn't be so composed.
"Her sword has been corrupted by Jin Guangyao," Qingqi said. "She won't let me get it back for her."
"She's right," Jiang Cheng said. "You shouldn't risk the deal. Even though Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji are idiots, the kids will still be safe."
"But I-!"
"I'll get it back for her."
Qingqi's arms stiffened around Luo Qingyang. "Won't he drain you again if he notices you're up and about?"
Jiang Cheng snorted. "Sure, but I'm not going to hide the whole time."
"You can't expect me to do nothing then either!"
He rolled his eyes. "My doing nothing won't help anyone. Your doing nothing is the best way you can help."
"I hate it."
"I would too."
Then, Jiang Cheng did something he'd never done before. He offered Luo Qingyang his hand.
"Come on," he said. "You can get up. It'll be easier if you're closer to him. When I knock your sword away, be ready to take it."
She wasn't so certain she could stand, but she wasn't going to give Jiang Cheng the opportunity to call her weak.
She mustered every ounce of strength she had left and rose to her feet with a lot less effort than anticipated.
"I'll go back to Sect Leader Nie, then," Qingqi said sullenly. "I left him there."
"No point," said Jiang Cheng. "You can't protect him even if you wanted to and you can't move him anywhere safer since that might count as interference. Leave him there. He'll sleep through the fight like he always does."
"Fine. I guess I'll do nothing."
"Good."
Luo Qingyang wanted to tell him off for being so brusque, but she was finding it hard enough to put one foot in front of the other. So, she followed him silently as they went to join the battle.
She didn't join much of anything, though, for a while. Jin Guangyao was a lot slower than he had been, but it still took the three of them a long time to return Luo Qingyang's sword to her.
When at last Jiang Cheng's Zidian flung her weapon from the fray, she eagerly took it up. The corruption was cured the instant her sword left Jin Guangyao's hands.
Refusing to part with it again, Luo Qingyang clutched her weapon tightly and leapt into the chaos.
When Jin Guangyao began to truly struggle fending off all of them, he switched tactics. Luo Qingyang had expected him to drain Jiang Cheng, but he didn't. Instead, he shifted back to his fox form, narrowly avoiding a lunge from Fairy, and took off toward Huaisang.
It took a moment for any of them to realize what he was doing and by the time they did, there was no chance of them getting to him in time.
Wei Wuxian, Lan Wangji, and Jiang Cheng sent their swords careening after him. But Luo Qingyang was still unwilling to part with hers. She watched Jin Guangyao shift back to his human form, seize Nie Huaisang by the collar, and haul him up as a shield between himself and the swords.
Naturally, they would not strike an unintended target. The three swords turned neatly and returned to their respective owners.
There was a lull then in the fight. Jin Guangyao hadn't run to Nie Huaisang to immediately kill him. He'd gone to give himself a break from the onslaught… or so Luo Qingyang had thought until Jiang Cheng became unsteady again.
"He needs to concentrate to drain you," Wei Wuxian breathed, speaking aloud Luo Qingyang's suspicion.
"Then distract him, damn it," Jiang Cheng growled.
Again, they sent their swords hurling toward him. But they never even got the chance to strike.
Quick as lightning, Wen Ning appeared just as Nie Huaisang was beginning to regain consciousness. He seized Jin Guangyao around the throat and threw him across the courtyard as if he weighed no more than a paper doll.
"Wen Ning!" Wei Wuxian cried joyously. "Where have you been?! It's… Wen Ning?"
The Ghost General gave no indication that he'd heard nor understood anything that had been said to him. He took off after Jin Guangyao with wild abandon. Fairy followed suit.
"Why is he-?" Wei Wuxian cut off then, his eyes narrowing at Nie Huaisang, who was rubbing the back of his neck and brushing dust off of his robes. "Did you do something to Wen Ning?"
Nie Huaisang didn't seem to notice he was being spoken to. He continued to fuss over his appearance and curse under his breath.
"Huaisang!" Wei Wuxian shouted, getting his attention immediately. "What did you do to Wen Ning?!"
Even from the distance they were at, Luo Qingyang could tell that Nie Huaisang had gone very pale.
"He's fine," he assured them. "We'll sort it out later. Let's just-"
"Did you use skullpiercers on him?!"
"I did what needed to be done, Wei Wuxian."
Wei Wuxian's expression darkened. Luo Qingyang was sure she'd never seen him so angry.
"He didn't buy into your plan, so you figured you'd just take control of him? Is that it?" Wei Wuxian demanded.
"He's too loyal to you," Nie Huaisang said. "I knew he wouldn't listen to me, but-"
"You didn't even give him the chance to hear you out?!"
"I think you're blowing this out of proportion."
"I have entertained you long enough!" Wei Wuxian screamed. "You've gone too far, Huaisang! If you had it your way, you would have used skullpiercers on all of us, wouldn't you?!"
"Wei Wuxian, that's-"
He broke off when Wei Wuxian started to move toward him. Luckily for him, Lan Wangji stopped him from going far.
"We must deal with him later," Lan Wangji said.
"I'm sure Chifeng-zun would be so proud!" Wei Wuxian yelled, ignoring him. "How could he not be?! His little brother amounted to something after all! A manipulative, backstabbing, two-faced, shell of a person! I can almost hear him singing your praises now!"
Nie Huaisang was stony-faced but said nothing. Wei Wuxian still looked like he was going to pummel him into the ground. But when Jiang Cheng turned on his heel to return to fighting Jin Guangyao, Wei Wuxian finally settled down a little.
"Interfere with any of us again, and I'll make sure it's the last thing you ever do," Wei Wuxian said, his voice low and dangerous. "You'd better hope that all of us make it out of here alive because I'm going to hold you personally responsible for anything that happens from here on out."
Nie Huaisang's mouth twisted in contempt. "Then I expect I'll be hearing you singing my praises very soon."
Wei Wuxian scoffed and stalked off after Jiang Cheng. Lan Wangji went with him. For a brief moment, Luo Qingyang and Nie Huaisang regarded one another. And then, she went with the rest of them.
The fight continued. Against all odds, Jin Guangyao still had strength left in him yet.
Even with Lan Wangji's guqin, Wei Wuxian's flute, and Jiang Cheng's whip, the high class spiritual weapons alone could not carry the fight.
Wen Ning, mindless as he was, helped enormously. He blocked every single potentially fatal attack that Jin Guangyao aimed at them. And Fairy gave him no time to concentrate on more difficult incantations. She was the extra speed that they'd needed.
But Jin Guangyao wasn't stupid. He quickly picked up on who his weakest opponent was and began to target Luo Qingyang.
At first, it wasn't concerning. With Wen Ning and the others to help her, she didn't have any trouble fending him off. But before long, his attacks became smarter. He would time things to throw off the flow of the fight, the unspoken rhythm that guided each of their movements around one another. He used weak spells not to directly attack them, but to cause them to knock into one another.
Pretty soon, more than half of Jin Guangyao's attention was on her. And that was more than enough. If he got any better at throwing the others off, she was going to be in big trouble.
And improve he did.
With one well-placed step and a flashy talisman, he moved Wen Ning exactly where he wanted him. The characters of a corpse trapping array lit up. He was immobilized.
Wei Wuxian made a move to break the array, but Jin Guangyao diverted it and pushed him back simply by forcing Fairy in his direction.
Luo Qingyang really was in trouble now. They all were.
Jin Guangyao had lied. He'd pretended to be so weak that his arrays were visible. But she hadn't even seen this corpse trapping array until Wen Ning had stepped into it and activated it.
He'd lured them down to the city after all. Nie Huaisang had miscalculated.
More than every other swing of his golden daggers was directed at her. She blocked and parried and danced around, but he was quickly learning her patterns. Any second now, she was going to take a wrong step.
That second arrived sooner than she'd hoped. And they all saw it when it happened. Everything seemed to slow down.
Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji lunged for Jin Guangyao, hoping to catch him before he could deliver the killing blow. Luo Qingyang was temporarily off-balance and unable to do much to protect herself. She expected Jiang Cheng, who was closest to her, would try to knock her out of the way, but it was clear from the direction Jin Guangyao was moving that this would only push her further into his path.
She didn't, however, expect the violet coils of Zidian to wrap around her waist.
With one quick tug, Luo Qingyang was yanked backward and out of Jin Guangyao's trajectory.
She landed hard on the stone and looked up to realize that although Jiang Cheng may have saved her, he'd made a different mistake altogether.
Jin Guangyao had apparently been leading them on and letting them think he was slowing down. He had a lot more speed left in him after all.
He turned on the point of a pin and came for Jiang Cheng instead. In that instant, she saw the look on Jiang Cheng's face.
He hadn't been tricked by Jin Guangyao's pretending to be slow. He had anticipated this would happen. There wasn't an ounce of shock in that look of bitter resignation.
Luo Qingyang's fear of losing her sword again dissolved in an instant and she tried to direct hers toward Jin Guangyao.
But it was too late.
Although he'd known what he'd done, Jiang Cheng wasn't fast enough to protect himself. He didn't cry out when the blade met his belly. The only sound he made was that of the air being driven from his lungs from the force of impact.
In his usual fashion, Jin Guangyao twirled around, moving Jiang Cheng with him so that he would shield him from the next attacks that came his way.
Jiang Cheng seemed to become aware of his pain then. But he screwed his face up against it and used his proximity to throw a coil of Zidian around Jin Guangyao's neck.
Luo Qingyang prepared to catch him, sure that Jin Guangyao would release him then and retreat.
But he didn't.
Jin Guangyao screamed as Zidian burned his flesh, assaulting Luo Qingyang with a smell she only wished she wasn't familiar with. As almost a reflex, Jin Guangyao wrenched the golden dagger upward, making Jiang Cheng's already serious wound much much worse.
Jiang Cheng finally cried out. Zidian flickered and Jin Guangyao broke free, taking his dagger with him.
It all happened so fast.
Wei Wuxian caught Jiang Cheng before Luo Qingyang ever had the chance. Lan Wangji pursued Jin Guangyao, but it was useless. Jin Guangyao shifted to his fox form and easily left Lan Wangji behind.
Fairy, however, was not so easily shaken.
She bolted at him from the side and the two creatures collided at top speed.
Luo Qingyang could hear the horrible sounds that came from Jiang Cheng beside her, but she chose to watch Fairy and Jin Guangyao instead. She had to be sure the battle was over.
And she felt so damn guilty about Jiang Cheng. She couldn't bear to look at him.
Fairy dug her teeth deep into the back of Jin Guangyao's silver neck and shook him like he was a rabbit. He yelped.
The fox was half her size, so it was a simple thing for Fairy to drag him around with her.
Luo Qingyang wondered why Jin Guangyao had not returned to his human form, which would have had a better chance fending her off. Maybe he couldn't while she was holding him.
And Fairy clearly didn't intend to let go.
She shook him and dragged him and shook him some more. But it wasn't enough to kill him.
"Fairy!"
Both Fairy and Luo Qingyang looked up at Nie Huaisang. He pointed at his throat.
"Here, Fairy. Finish it."
Fairy either didn't understand or was unwilling to grip Jin Guangyao by the throat like Nie Huaisang had suggested. She went still, holding the shivering huli jing just above the cobblestones.
"Fine," Nie Huaisang said, crossing the distance between them. "Release him."
Fairy only did so once Nie Huaisang was within reach. Slowly, she lowered Jin Guangyao to the ground, where he finally shifted back to his human form.
His breathing was ragged. Blood pooled on the stone beneath him. But he smirked up at Nie Huaisang nonetheless.
"Going to finally get your own hands dirty?" Jin Guangyao asked, voice weak.
Nie Huaisang bent down. But rather than taking the dagger from Jin Guangyao's hands, he merely knocked it aside and began patting down his tattered robes.
"Where is it?" Nie Huaisang demanded.
"What?"
"The power source you used. I know you needed an incredible amount of yang energy to coax a huli jing to you in that split second before your death. And you would have needed even more than that to make sure you found one that was compatible. So where is it?"
"Very good, Huaisang," Jin Guangyao whispered. Luo Qingyang had to enhance her hearing just to catch what he'd said. "Here. You're going to find it one way or another. Allow me to save you the trouble."
He gingerly pulled a golden amulet out from under his robe and gave it to Nie Huaisang.
"I modelled it after the Yin Tiger Tally," Jin Guangyao explained. "It's not as strong of course, but it was strong enough. I call it the Yang Dragon Tally. Do you like it?"
"Not really."
"Alas, it's not as pretty as the things I used to get for you. I wonder if you still have any of those things?"
"I don't."
"Pity. You loved them so much. You didn't need to punish yourself like that, you know."
"You've lost," Nie Huaisang stated coolly. "I don't need to listen to anymore of your bullshit."
"Then kill me," Jin Guangyao said simply. "The dog isn't going to eat me. You're going to have to deliver the final blow yourself."
"I know."
Nie Huaisang picked up the golden dagger from the ground.
"What are you waiting for?" Jin Guangyao asked.
Nie Huaisang held the blade over his chest, but Luo Qingyang could see his hand quake.
"Oh, Huaisang," Jin Guangyao whispered sweetly. "You've never killed anyone like this before, have you?"
Nie Huaisang didn't answer, but he didn't stab him either.
"It's okay," Jin Guangyao said. "It doesn't take quite as much force as you'd think. And knowing you, it won't bother you very much in the days that come after. You're a lot like me in that way… and others."
"We are entirely different."
"Not really. Our motives are a little, but ultimately the result is the same. You're alone."
Nie Huaisang didn't say anything. So, Jin Guangyao went on.
"It hurts, but you'll survive. Don't worry about that. You may ruin everything – everyone – around you, but you'll get through it because that's what you have to do."
Nie Huaisang scowled. "If that's how you felt, why continue? Why did you kill Da-ge?"
Luo Qingyang braced for laughter. He was a villain after all. They were supposed to laugh at trivial questions like that.
But Jin Guangyao didn't. He looked…morose, of all things.
"I loved him… And I loved you too," Jin Guangyao breathed.
"Liar."
"I wish I were. You were family to me when my own blood cast me aside. I owed everything to your brother."
"Funny way of repaying him," Nie Huaisang said shortly.
"It felt like there was no other way."
"You could have stopped! You could have stopped sneaking around and lying! You'd gotten what you wanted! You were well-respected after the war! What else could you want?!"
Jin Guangyao gave a half-shrug and winced. The crimson pool beneath him had continued to grow steadily.
"I could have stopped. I don't know why I didn't," Jin Guangyao said. "But you knew that already. You're fighting the same thing, that emptiness. You're trying to fill it too."
Nie Huaisang looked dismissive.
"I heard that you're after my old job of head cultivator," Jin Guangyao said conversationally.
"…"
"I wish I could be here to see firsthand the moment you realize that it won't satisfy either."
"Hm," Nie Huaisang said, growing bored. "Tell Wen Ruohan to go fuck himself when you see him."
Finally, Jin Guangyao laughed, though it quickly devolved into weak coughing. "Tell him yourself when you join us."
Nie Huaisang raised his eyebrows, then smirked. "So much for our family, huh?"
"Brought together by compassion. Kept together by hatred."
"Not going to beg for your life again, like you did in Guanyin Temple?"
"If I thought it'd do any good, I might," Jin Guangyao said casually. "You know I'll stoop to any level. But I think it'll be more fun to deprive you of the satisfaction."
Nie Huaisang shrugged. "Your death will be good enough for me."
Jin Guangyao grinned. "No it won't."
Apparently that last jab at him was enough to push Nie Huaisang through his initial hesitation. He plunged the golden dagger through Jin Guangyao's heart. Red flooded the blade and disappeared under Nie Huaisang's billowing sleeve.
Jin Guangyao said something. His lips were moving but even with Luo Qingyang's amplified senses, she couldn't quite make it out. In response, Nie Huaisang twisted the dagger. Jin Guangyao jolted and the blood began to flow in earnest between the two of them.
Jin Guangyao started to lift his hand, whether to stop Nie Huaisang's twisting or to take the Yang Tally from his other hand or maybe even to touch his face, Luo Qingyang didn't know. His hand fell against the cobblestones again with a dull thud.
He was dead.