Chapter Text
It only took two days of preparations before they set off to battle the Wens. Lan Qiren had insisted the healers look over Lan Wangji despite the omega’s protests. After he was poked and prodded to his shufu’s satisfaction, he was finally free to return to the rebuilt Jingshi. There was yet another obstacle—the issue of where Wei Ying would stay.
“Shufu, I insist,” argued Lan Wangji. He and his uncle had gone around in circles. He saw no harm in having Wei Ying stay with him; after all, they had already consummated their agreement. Lan Qiren did not agree.
“I forbid it! It is scandalous already that you’ve run around with—with such a person. I cannot allow you two to be alone together when you’re an unmated omega—”
“Shufu! I am mated!”
“Do I see a bond mark on your neck? Have we agreed to a marriage? Or even a proposal? You are unmated in my eyes!”
Lan Wangji was trying to reign in the frustration he felt. They all knew that they could not refuse Wei Ying’s help and that, whatever he demanded of them, the sects would be forced to obey. It was no secret that Wei Ying intended to ask for Lan Wangji’s hand; after all, most of the sect leaders had heard his declaration before the Lanshi.
“I am mated in all but name. I have no mark as the marriage is not finalized.”
“And you will remain that way if it’s within my control! I cannot allow you to be whisked away by some unknown man! Wangji, what has he done to you?” Lan Qiren’s eyes were wide in anger and consternation. He looked every bit the cold authoritarian of his reputation.
“Shufu! You know I have no worth without my purity,” Lan Wangji gritted at last.
Silence blanketed them then. Lan Wangji had not wanted to say those words to his family, but it was his final card. He knew he had ruined any marriage prospects the clan had wanted for him; he held little use for them now. He was apologetic for the inevitable turmoil this brought to the sect, but he had done what he thought would protect them. Will protect them.
“Wangji,” Lan Qiren said softly. He closed his eyes tightly and sighed. There were crows feet at the corners of his eyes and when he opened them, Lan Wangji could see the shadows of all the years writ clearly on his uncle’s face. He looked much too old and exhausted, like a human1 rather than a cultivator.
“A-Zhan.”
Lan Wangji startled. He had not heard his given name leave his uncle’s lips in years.
“Is that truly what you believe? That you are worth so little to us, your family?”
Lan Wangji had never seen his stalwart uncle look so devastated. His words stumbled out of him inelegantly. “I… am an omega. The sect needs me to—what else but a marriage alliance?”
Lan Qiren shook his head slowly. The lines on his face sagged even deeper. “You are my nephew. You are more than your worth as a marriage partner. Please, Wangji. This is madness.”
“I… I must.”
Lan Qiren breathed heavily. He began to puff up in anger. “What has he done to you? If he has hurt you—”
“No!” Lan Wangji’s yell surprised even himself. The leaves rustled outside the Jingshi as birds in a nearby tree took flight. Anger and shouting like this were anathema to the usual solemnity of Lan Wangji’s home.
“No,” he continued quietly. “I love him.”
Lan Qiren’s eyes searched his for an endless moment before he turned and scoffed.
“Love. How I wish it would cease to plague this house,” he muttered. “Fine. Do as you will, Wangji. If you wish to come to Nightless City then you will need to rest. I expect that man to reign himself in, do you hear?”
Lan Wangji nodded as Lan Qiren left the Jingshi. He knew how badly his uncle had suffered for his father’s love. And now Lan Wangji was doing the same. His uncle must have seen the dogged stubbornness in Lan Wangji’s eyes and known it for what it was.
Their two days of rest passed quickly after he quietly snuck Wei Ying into his home. He did not wish to anger his uncle further by risking anything that may cause rumors or falsehoods to spread amongst the disciples.
“So this is where you live, Lan Zhan! It’s so neat. This is exactly what I expected from you. Elegant and pure,” chattered Wei Ying as he poked at every shelf and drawer.
Lan Wangji had few possession, but he smiled at his alpha’s antics. He could see Wei Ying scouring his belongings for a sign of his tastes. There was not much for him to see.
“Come. Dinner.”
Wei Ying stumbled over and inhaled deeply. “Ah, this place smells so much like you. I could spend all day taking it in. And you grew up here? Wait, what is that?” He exclaimed, pointing at the mass of fermented beans in the bowl before him.
“These are nutritious,” offered Lan Wangji while Wei Ying wrinkled his nose in disgust.
“And all those greens! I knew you didn’t eat meat, but is your sect so stingy with their seasoning? There’s hardly any soy in all of these dishes!” complained Wei Ying.
Lan Wangji laughed lightly. He uncovered the largest bowl waiting on the table. It was red-braised pork, fresh from the finest inn in Caiyi town. Wei Ying crowed with delight.
“Now where did you get this from? And all for me! Heavens, A-Zhan, you know how to spoil a man.”
Lan Wangji scooped the rice into even portions and motioned for Wei Ying to settle at his low table. He had asked for a disciple to bring food more suited to Wei Ying’s tastes; he knew the alpha would disdain of their usual fare. Lan Wangji himself was even starting to warm to the heavily seasoned dishes they ate in the Burial Mounds. He had wanted to try cooking the food himself, but a sheepish disciple informed him that they had neither the spices nor the meat in the kitchen. Instead, they had another disciple bring back the pork dish with the foods their distant guests had requested from Caiyi.
“You should still try the beans,” Lan Wangji insisted, putting a dollop in Wei Ying’s bowl.
“My, A-Zhan, are you trying to kill your alpha? I don’t think my delicate body can handle such strange foods,” cackled Wei Ying.
“My alpha is immortal. Now eat your food.”
Wei Ying did try the beans in the end. While he was initially put off by the smell, he grudgingly admitted that they tasted better than the unseasoned steamed vegetables.
They mutually decided not to go beyond cuddling on the nights they spent in the Jingshi. Lan Wangji still had enough propriety left to insist that an unwed couple should not consummate so brazenly when they were already breaking so many rules.
Not that he would have protested had Wei Ying tried to take what was his. They had not spoken of it, but his alpha could tell how aroused the thought made Lan Wangji whenever they edged close to that line.
Instead, Lan Wangji experienced the simple joy of falling asleep in the circle of his alpha’s arms, in the comfort of his own home at last. It felt right to have Wei Ying taking up his space. He slept easily both nights.
When they left the Cloud Recesses, it was with an army. They would be joined by the troops of the Nie and Jin as they marched towards Qishan. It would take several slow days given the size of their group. Lan Wangji had wrangled permission for a shared tent from his brother and he was thus satisfied with their travel arrangements.
Nie Huaisang and the Jin delegate both disappeared after the inter-sect meeting. They were likely mobilizing the troops awaiting their orders at the borders of each major sect’s territory. Some of the minor sect leaders also opted to return to their clans to gather troops.
Nie Mingjue chose to stay and march with the Lan delegation. It was an unusual arrangement—Lan Wangji had expected Nie Mingjue to be the one to rouse the troops. If that was their plan, though, who was Lan Wangji to doubt the Nie sect heir’s abilities?
Everyone knew there was almost no way that Qishan would remain ignorant of the armies amassing at each sect’s borders—there were too many flapping mouths to keep the plans away from listening ears.
Despite these challenges, the plan was set. They would set forth to conquer Qishan.
Wei Ying watched all the preparations in amusement. He had demonstrated time and time again that he was capable of traversing these distances with ease and there was not a hint of tension in his shoulders. If his alpha was this confident in their abilities to defeat the Wens, then Lan Wangji would have to believe. He had woven their fates together inexorably with his bargain. It was time to see it to the end.
Scouts rode their swords ahead on the lookout for a Wen interception. Everyone else marched or rode horses. While flying would be much faster, only a small portion of the armies were cultivators. Lan Wangji rode at his brother’s side with Wei Ying. His uncle and the elders had seen them off with whispered blessings. He and Lan Qiren had not exchanged any words—his uncle seemed smaller than he could ever remembered. Lan Wangji did not want that to be his final memory of his home.
“What are you thinking about, beautiful?” asked Wei Ying, guiding his horse next to Lan Wangji’s.
Lan Xichen looked at them curiously while Lan Wangji’s ears burned. “Shush. Don’t say that,” he whispered.
Wei Ying’s grin flashed white. “But it’s the truth! You looked like you were in such deep thought. What would I give to peer into your brain.”
Lan Xichen laughed as Lan Wangji tried to hide his face. “My brother has always been a studious one. I have often wished the same. Now, Wei-gongzi. You never told me your thoughts on this plan,” said Lan Xichen.
“You’re right, I didn’t! It doesn’t matter what the plan is. I only need to get to Qishan.”
Lan Xichen frowned. “How do you plan to aid us against the Wens? You never told us aside from the demonstration.”
“I guess you’ll have to see! I have no plans to reveal my powers ahead of time, Lan-gongzi, even if it is to the brother of my intended.”
Lan Wangjij coughed pointedly in reminder. Lan Xichen’s smile had become fixed on his face.
“I… see. Our clan has not yet approved of your… plans. I have given great leeway on my beloved brother’s behalf. I hope my decision was not the wrong one.”
Lan Wangji knew his brother still hoped Wei Ying’s demand was a ruse, a way to obtain a greater favor instead. He could not get his brother to understand—he had not seen the way Wei Ying was amongst the elderly and infirm of the Burial Mounds, amongst the family of his own making. Lan Wangji had faith that Wei Ying would not stray from doing what was right.
Lan Xichen only knew that the Yiling Laozu had accompanied his missing brother home and demanded his hand in marriage in exchange for help against the Wen. Lan Wangji was frankly surprised that his brother was not more upset, barring them from sleeping in the same tent. He was sect leader now. He could do what he wanted.
“It is not the wrong decision,” replied Wei Ying breezily. He held out an open hand and a wisp of dark resentment formed. As if it were a butterfly settling gently in his palm, a sphere of perfect darkness landed where Wei Ying’s hand was waiting. The low-level thrumming of ambient resentment around them disappeared. The power was there, merely sitting in Wei Ying’s hand.
Lan Xichen gasped as he felt the air around them change. From this close, Lan Wangji could sense the devastating power in that orb alone.
With a flick of his hand, Wei Ying allowed it to dissipate. “You’ve asked the Yiling Laozu for help. I will keep my word, no matter what you believe of me. It is up to you to hold up your end of the bargain,” he said, the lightness of his earlier tone gone in a flash.
Lan Wangji closed the distance and put a hand in warning on his alpha’s back. Then, the winsome smile was back.
Lan Xichen relaxed as the power faded, but he nodded in acknowledgment. “I see,” was all he said before all three of them focused on the road ahead.
Lan Wangji had little experience in riding long distances. Before his escape to the Burial Mounds, he had hardly left the Cloud Recesses. When he did, he traveled by sword. It was hard and dirty work. His white robes were crusted with road dust and when they finally stopped to set up camp, his backside was sore. Though he had no experience in setting up a tent, Wei Ying was more than adept. The alpha crowed in delight while he set theirs up.
“This is so much better than my old bedroll! Lan Zhan, do we get nicer tents than the rest of the soldiers? Or are do all Lan soldiers travel this luxuriously?”
Lan Wangji had no answers; this was the first time in his memory that the sects set out to war.
“Ah, Lan Zhan, you’re a sight for sore eyes. If I got to cuddle with you every night, I’d look forward to even my terrible old bedroll. But that would be unfair to you. You deserve to be wrapped in only the finest of silks and jewels. I’ll have to find a silk merchant near the Burial Mounds…”
Lan Wangji sighed. “Wei Ying, there is no need.”
Wei Ying was so incensed that he swatted the side of the tent. “Don’t be so courteous! I want you in the best this world has to offer. Besides,” he said, drawing closer. His eyes gleamed dangerously. “You belong to me. Why shouldn’t I decide what you wear?” he whispered.
Lan Wangji shivered, his body instinctively responding to the possessiveness in his alpha’s voice. It was too easy.
Wei Ying drew back, his smirk wide. “Get in the tent. I wouldn’t want anyone getting ideas from the way you smell.”
Lan Wangji fumed but obeyed the order. He did not want to advertise his arousal to the army.
The tent had room only for their two bedrolls. They had no intention of camping for long; in a few days of hard riding, they should arrive in Qishan. There was a vague musty smell inside, but Lan Wangji did not mind. He himself was likely smelling musty after the riding.
Wei Ying crawled inside behind him with a laugh. “What a temptation you make. A wanton omega waiting atop my bedroll after a long day’s ride.”
Lan Wangji kicked him lightly in the side. His alpha took his foot in hand and set it gently down.
“Alright, alright, no more teasing. But I would like to have you like this… do you think your brother will disapprove of us having sex in this tent?”
Lan Wangji glared hard at his alpha and shook his head minutely. Wei Ying sighed dramatically, but flopped down on his back.
“It is time to rest.”
Wei Ying smiled, opening his arms for Lan Wangji to nestle into. “You’re right, A-Zhan. I am pretty tired.”
Lan Wangji nestled into the warmth of his alpha’s embracing, pressing his nose against Wei Ying’s scent gland. This was much better than the time he spent on the run, sleeping in short bursts on grass and hard-packed earth.
His alpha’s spicy scent lulled him to sleep.
Nightless City was on fire when their forces breached the outer walls. Lan Wangji had heard the stories of the braziers and constant fires, but this was worse than he could have imagined.
Every straw-thatched roof was on fire. Even the stone was aflame, the dark oil coating each flat surface illuminated like dried blood. Around them was the screaming.
“What have they done?” asked Lan Wangji. Lan Xichen’s face crumpled the moment he made it past the gates.
“They promised us… they promised that no person from Qishan Wen would be taken alive. I did not think they meant this!” Lan Xichen cried, shuddering.
“They knew. Someone leaked the news that I have chosen to side with the great sects. They believed that I would be powerless without corpses to control,” said Wei Ying, anger threading through his words. “Who leads the Wen sect? I will see to it that I take his head myself. I do not need corpses to destroy them.”
As the flames burned higher, dark energy coalesced into the air. It swirled out of the doors and windows of each burning house as the wind whistled in high pitch. Lan Wangji thought he heard the screams of the dead echoing through the inhumanly empty streets. There was a collective shudder through the troops as the resentful energy thickened. The hair on the back of Lan Wangji’s neck stood up as the terrible power rushed past him.
“Let them see what power they dare trifle with. Send your troops out, sect leader Lan. I will search for the head of the snake,” promised Wei Ying, his voice splitting into innumerable sounds. Lan Wangji had never seen his eyes glowing like this, the red light threatening to eclipse even the terrible fires.
He gripped his sword and stepped up beside Wei Ying. “Together,” he said. His alpha looked at him and, for a moment, Lan Wangji was afraid that he would demand he remain safely behind. Instead, Wei Ying inclined his head.
“Together.”
The collective forces of three great sects and an immortal rushed into the bowels of Nightless City.
The houses became larger and more sturdily built as they ran towards the city’s center. Many of the homes were opulent, the fine decorations and lanterns outside each gate an inferno. The heat from the flames was intense and Lan Wangji was forced to cover his nose and mouth with his sleeve.
Worse, the city was still empty. Every citizen was gone.
Clouds of resentful energy surrounded either side of the road, pushing the flames and smoke away. Lan Wangji nodded to Wei Ying in thanks. With his powers, they could press towards the palace with ease. As long as they could withstand the sweltering heat, they would be safe.
Lan Wangji fervently hoped for the safety of the army behind them. They would move slowly, needing to put out the flames barring their way before continuing on. Lan Xichen was more than powerful enough to stop the flames with his xiao, but there was only so far his spiritual power could reach.
“Wei Ying,” he murmured.
The reflection of the flames rippled in his alpha’s scarlet gaze.
“What have they done?” Lan Wangji asked.
Wei Ying’s expression was cold with fury. The tension in the lines of his shoulders had been apparent the moment they separated from the army. Something was wrong.
“Wei Ying. Tell me.”
The red light of his love’s eyes turned away. “Someone… someone… they’ve tried to capture the souls of the entire populace. This is a city of the dead. All resentful souls leave an imprint near their place of death. They’re everywhere, Lan Zhan. The damned Wen have killed all their people.”
Lan Wangji’s nails dug into the soft flesh of his free hand. “Why?” he asked, his voice cracking.
“Power of some kind. I think he tried to recreate the Burial Mounds. The same process that made me… me. I thought I had destroyed all records of the Burial Mounds before the cleansing,” Wei Ying said, his voice harsh.
“Wei Ying,” he said, grasping the alpha’s hand and halting their progress. “It is not your fault. This is not your responsibility.”
“Then whose is it?” yelled Wei Ying, his teeth bared in a snarl.
“Wen Ruohan. You did not choose to make the Burial Mounds. He chose to make this.”
Lan Wangji was firm in his conviction that Wei Ying was a good person thrown into terrible circumstances. Lan Wangji knew that Wei Ying, even when suffused with resentful energy, would never slaughter innocents. He was unwilling to keep Lan Wangji against his will and he had been a willing sacrifice. He could never inflict such evil.
Wei Ying’s face was contorted with agony, yet when he met Lan Wangji’s eyes, his face softened. Something in the omega’s face must have conveyed his unwavering faith.
“I will make him pay, A-Zhan. I cannot yield him to the sects’ justice. Nothing they do will be enough to make up for this… for this abomination. Understand this, Lan Zhan.”
Lan Wangji nodded. His sect would never visit the kind of violence Wei Ying wanted upon anyone, especially one from the great sects. He could not either, but he understood. For the resentful souls living within Wei Ying, violence demanded violence. He would have his vengeance.
This was in the alpha’s nature. Lan Wangji accepted it.
They walked into the flames.
The heat momentarily stunned Lan Wangji and Wei Ying gripped his arm tightly, a worried expression on his features.
Lan Wangji shook his head. “I am fine. Keep going.”
Wei Ying nodded solemnly and pushed the wall of resentment around them further away. The flames could not reach through, but the atmosphere was like the inside of a wood stove. Sweat beaded at his brow and he hurried on.
They followed the remnants of the resentful spirits to the center of the chaos. The path was cleared, the twisting maze of grand homes around them burnt out and smoldering. There were no corpses in any of the buildings; the eerie emptiness of the city sent jitters crawling up Lan Wangji’s spine. They were close now, the tall spires of the palace at Nightless City looming before them.
He had never seen a palace like this. He was used to the austerity of the Cloud Recesses where the buildings were low-lying to preserve the calm of the mountains. This place was a gilded monstrosity, created for worship and awe.
“It’s in there,” growled Wei Ying. His hair whipped about him, his body the center of an invisible maelstrom. The crawling aura of resentful energy grew. Specters of dark shadow formed into unnameable creatures at Wei Ying’s command.
The alpha walked through the palace gates and Lan Wangji followed.
Inside, the heat was more bearable. There was no burning, but the dark smoke and hot air were unavoidable.
Here were the corpses they expected. As one, the white-eyed bodies dressed in armor raised their weapons.
Lan Wangji reached for Bichen’s hilt, but Wei Ying’s hand stopped him.
“Don’t bother. Something as inelegant as this could never stop me.”
With a wave of his hand, he commanded his dark apparitions to attack. They swept through the troops of undead and everywhere they touched, the bodies fell. Each soldier seemed to feed the shadows and they grew and swelled. Soon, the grand entry hall was littered with inanimate corpses.
In the vacuum of silence left behind, sounds of mad laughter drifted from deeper within. Lan Wangji stepped over the remains of one dead soldier, intent on reaching the inner sanctum.
“Lan Zhan…” said Wei Ying. He made a motion with his hand as if to prevent Lan Wangji from going further.
Lan Wangji glared at him.
“You wanted me as I am. I am a cultivator. I do not need protection.”
Wei Ying opened his mouth as if to protest, but the look on Lan Wangji’s faced stopped him. Slowly, he nodded.
“You might not want to see what I will do. The monstrosity that I can inflict on them.”
“You wanted all of me. Now, I want all of you. I went to you with open eyes. Let us see this to the end,” said Lan Wangji, his eyes blazing with conviction.
They fell into step together, a yin-yang of color descending into the pits of hell.
Wen Ruohan awaited them, seated on a throne of human bodies. It had been fashioned from still-living men, their expression contorted into screams of agony. The man did not stir at their appearance, only continued to gaze blankly into the distance.
Lan Wangji could swear he saw movement from one of the bodies of the throne. Paranoia crept up and he felt ill.
The sect leader was pallid, his skin nearly the same curdled milk shade as the corpses. His hair was a tangled black mess, like a morass of squiggling eels shying away from a trap. There was a grey film covering his dark irises, giving him a rheumy appearance decades beyond his real age.
“What damned madness is this?” growled Wei Ying.
Wen Ruohan’s unseeing eyes shot to them. A wide smile stretched his chapped and peeling lips.
“At last. Have I finally done enough to be graced with a visit by the immortal master of the Burial Mounds?” He laughed madly and lay back into the macabre embrace of the headless torso that served as his throne’s backing. The body’s stiff arms were fashioned into armrests, perpetually embracing the man who sat on the throne.
“What immortal master?” spat Wei Ying.
Wen Ruohan tilted his head to the side in a curiously childish manner. “You, of course. The master of the Burial Mounds. Is it not you who controls them, Yiling Laozu?”
“I may be the Yiling Laozu, but I would never participate in this kind of degeneracy. What did you want with me?”
Wen Ruohan laughed again. “What else would I want but the secrets to immortality? I’ve killed them all, you see, but their souls do not answer to me. Even all of their souls combined would not make me immortal. Tell me, master, what is your secret?”
The look on Wei Ying’s face was forbidding. Lan Wangji remembered the alpha’s expression of agony when he told the story of how he became immortal and hated Wen Ruohan for this.
“Don’t call me master,” Wei Ying snarled.
Lan Wangji could feel the resentful energy in the throne room intensify; it coalesced in a visible fog that permeated the entirety of the cavernous space. The feeling of such malevolence against his body forced him to channel a continuous quantity of spiritual energy to his skin as a makeshift shield against the resentment. The energy seemed to burrow closer, as if searching for an opening to corrupt his meridians. Lan Wangji would not allow it.
Wen Ruohan’s mad laughter continued, raising in pitch until it rang continuously through the halls. Then it was not Wen Ruohan’s laughter, but the laughter of countless enraged souls waiting to inflict their pain upon the living.
“Lan Zhan!”
Lan Wangji jumped out of the way of an immense claw made of shadow, instinctively drawing Bichen. The shadows were forming into grotesque creatures around them, claws and fangs replacing the normal features of a human. The creatures did not discriminate where they attacked; many of them faced against Lan Wangji and Wei Ying, but several leaped towards Wen Ruohan’s throne.
With a growl, Wei Ying raised his hand and pulled out a ball of resentful energy, blasting it towards one shadow creature. It roared as the power took off its misshapen head, dispersing it in one blow.
Lan Wangji slashed at a creature that rushed at him and split it in two. For a moment, it looked as if it was about to disappear into a rush of air like the other, but its body rippled. Then the two halves grew more misshapen limbs as they pulled in wisps of ambient resentment. Without missing a beat, Lan Wangji summoned his guqin and strummed the first chords of a Lan battle song. He pressed more of his spiritual power into the blast, hoping to overwhelm the rapidly growing creatures with his pure energy.
His attention was captured by an enraged scream. He turned to see Wen Ruohan clutching a bloody gash in his arm. Wen Ruohan screamed again and the shadows at the sides of the room moved. Another corpse army emerged from the walls.
The walking corpses rushed forwards, some half-rotted and falling apart. Many of them were blackened and burned beyond recognition. Some were missing limbs, but they stumbled mindlessly towards the throne to attack the resentful phantoms.
Momentarily distracted, Lan Wangji was almost bitten by another of the shadows. As he raised his arm to shield his neck from the attack, a blast of resentful energy tore the creature apart.
He met Wei Ying’s eyes for a moment and nodded his thanks. His alpha was grimly determined, nodding back before barraging the group of shadows around him with more energy.
Lan Wangji could see that the creatures he destroyed with musical cultivation had fully dispersed. He let out a breath in relief; he could be of use in this battle.
He sent Bichen out to cut the lower limbs of a number of shadows around him, causing them to tumble into a pile. As they fell, he strummed his guqin again and blasted them with spiritual energy.
The number of shadow creatures around him and Wei Ying were dwindling. With every step and turn, Lan Wangji was getting closer and closer to his alpha. He jumped away from the claws of one creature and landed beside Wei Ying. Wordlessly, they turned back-to-back.
Bichen’s blue sword glare flashed as Lan Wangji cut at the creatures to slow them. Twin blasts of black resentment and white spiritual energy came together to rip the circle of creatures around them to nothing.
By the end of the fight, both Lan Wangji and Wei Ying were panting. Most of the city’s resentment had coalesced here and they had exterminated it. Lan Wangji thought of the souls they removed from the reincarnation cycle and he shuddered. None of the people in this city deserved what had been done to them.
Wei Ying saw his expression and softened. “Your skills with the sword and guqin are unmatched, Lan Zhan. It is a shame you were never allowed to night hunt.”
A ear-splitting shriek cut their conversation short. Upon the dias of the throne, Wen Ruohen writhed and clutched his throat. Tears of blood streamed down his face as his body was battered by resentful energy again and again. Most of his corpse puppets lay strewn about the floor in pieces. Some half-destroyed torsos were still trying to reach Wen Ruohan, pulling their dismembered bodies towards his screams with their withered hands.
The few puppets that remained standing groaned and fought against the dark creatures around them to no avail. Wei Ying shook his head and pulled a black bamboo flute from inside his robes. It was lacquered and well-kept but unadorned. Without a word, Wei Ying lifted the flute to his lips and blew.
The first notes of a haunting melody came and the corpses turned to look at him. Even the resentful shadows seemed to still at the music. Then the melody crescendoed into a shriek and the puppets groaned.
Wei Ying stepped towards the throne, the flute melody he played seeming to control the puppets. They fell away from Wen Ruohan and stilled, returned to corpses once more.
The shadow creatures were only stopped momentarily. Some surged towards Wei Ying, intent on destroying the thing that had prevented them from catching their prey.
The alpha stopped playing the flute and the darkness swarmed towards him unhindered. Lan Wangji stepped forwards involuntarily, one hand reaching towards his mate. Then the cocoon of shadows around Wei Ying exploded from within and the resentful energy dissipated in one blow.
Lan Wangji heard a gurgling from the throne and turned to see Wen Ruohan’s body drop to the ground. Blood rushed out of his mouth and nose and every orifice as the remaining resentful creatures battered his body. With a tiny whimper, his body stilled. He had drowned in his own blood.
Wei Ying quickly ran forwards and blasted the two remaining creatures with resentful energy. Then the palace around them was still.
“Wei Ying, is he…”
The alpha nodded. All that remained of the tyrant who had massacred his entire city was this broken body.
“This is better than he deserves. And all of this… for what?” Wei Ying began to laugh, looking at the carnage around them. “All of this! For a chance at this cursed existence?” He laughed again, a brittle half-sob.
Lan Wangji ran and embraced him. His alpha turned and buried his head against Lan Wangji’s neck, scenting him; Lan Wangji tried to project calm and love. Wei Ying’s scent was sharp and bitter, the pain writ clearly in all of him.
“This is not you, Wei Ying. This will never be you. He did not understand what he sought,” murmured Lan Wangji, smoothing a hand through Wei Ying’s hair.
“Immortality makes men into monsters. Even the pursuit made this man a monster,” said Wei Ying, his voice shattered and bleak.
“You are nothing like Wen Ruohan. You are not a monster.”
“Lan Zhan…”
Lan Wangji’s arms tightened. “I promise you, Wei Ying. I will cultivate to immortality and join you. I will never allow you to become this, if that is what you fear.”
The alpha’s arms encircled Lan Wangji’s hips. “Oh A-Zhan. I know you would never allow… Lan Zhan, A-Zhan, how is it fair to condemn you to this life with me?” Wei Ying pulled back and stared into Lan Wangji’s eyes. He smoothed one hand over the omega’s cheek. His fingers were calloused and warm. His eyes were silver pools that shimmered in the dim light.
“Forever with you could only be a joy,” said Lan Wangji. Then he kissed him.
“Xiongzhang. Have you located any survivors?” asked Lan Wangji much later. It had taken them many shichen to douse the fires spreading throughout the city. By the time only smoldering coals remained, Lan Wangji was exhausted from carrying pail after pail of water. He found Lan Xichen near the gates, directing the healers to tend to the wounded.
Lan Xichen’s smile was small, but he nodded. “Yes, we were able to locate a group of them. It seemed that someone within the palace caught wind of the plan and secretly smuggled some civilians out. Others were able to enter underground shelters before the burning started. There are innumerable dead, but not everyone.”
Lan Wangji nodded, relieved that he and Wei Ying had not destroyed the souls of all the innocent.
“Wangji… what happened in there? The bodies, they were…” Lan Xichen trailed off, his face pale at the memories of the carnage. His eyes drifted to Wei Ying’s back as the man laughed with one of the wounded.
“He was not the one who… caused those deaths. Wen Ruohan died to the resentful energy he created,” answered Lan Wangji, his conviction thick in his voice.
Lan Xichen’s face took on a sympathetic look that Lan Wangji always hated having directed at himself. “I… know how you feel about that man. But what the stories say… he’s a monster—”
“Ge!” Lan Wangji’s outburst was unexpected. Several soldiers around them turned at Lan Wangji’s raised voice. Wei Ying immediately looked over, concern writ clearly on his face. Lan Wangji shook his head at Wei Ying before turning back to his brother. “He is not a monster. It was not his choice to become immortal. He controls the power out of necessity.”
Lan Xichen sighed, his eyes downcast. “Wangji. He walks the crooked path. It is blasphemy to desecrate the dead.”
“Xiongzhang. I understand. He is a good man. Allow me this one choice in my life.”
Lan Xichen’s face was grief-stricken. “Wangji! We’ve never tried to take your choices—”
“Yet you have,” interrupted Lan Wangji.
The brothers stared at each other. Lan Wangji refused to back down. All of his life, he had been hidden away like a treasured piece of jade, but every stone could be fashioned into a weapon. He was not a precious jewel but a sword meant to cut and protect. Now that he knew the taste of a different life, he could not return to being the man he once was.
Lan Xichen’s face was grave but understanding. They both knew what being hidden away from the world had done to their mother. His brother would not repeat the sins of his father.
“As you will. We will ride for the Cloud Recesses once the wounded are treated. Will you return with us?”
Lan Wangji hesitated, looking over at Wei Ying. Lan Xichen read the look in his eyes and sighed. “You cannot be allowed to wed without the proper dowry, Wangji. The Lans are not so frugal so as not to provide one suitable for their only omegan young master.”
“Ge?” Lan Wangji was shocked into speechlessness.
“Oh, Wangji, how could we ever let you go without a proper celebration? Shufu would have my head.”
Lan Wangji smiled, a tiny tremulous thing. Lan Xichen’s answering smile was broad.
Much later, Lan Wangji found Wei Ying and they tumbled into their tent together, both exhausted beyond belief. The omega had been roped into explaining the events of the battle with Wen Ruohan to the war council; most of them did not trust Wei Ying because of the obvious remnants of demonic cultivation in the throne room. When he and Wei Ying left the palace, they found the army patching themselves together. After they had finished battling the fires of the city, they had gathered outside the palace preparing to storm the place and attack Wen Ruohan. Instead, they were met with a field of corpses that sprung up and attacked. The army fought them valiantly, but the dead would not stop. It was a gruesome battle and everyone was glad to return home.
The road back was much easier. The armies split apart to march to their respective territories. With the plans in place, Lan Wangji, Wei Ying, and Lan Xichen decided to fly back to the Cloud Recesses. The sect leader was needed at home and it was safer for them all to return together.
Wei Ying and Lan Wangji flew together on Bichen, both deciding that riding on solid resentment back to the Cloud Recesses may send the wrong message. All three of them were windswept when they landed at the gates. Within minutes of their return, Lan Qiren bustled out from deep within the buildings, his face lined with worry. When he saw that the Lan brothers were unharmed, he visibly relaxed.
“Xichen, I hope you have good news,” he said, eyeing Wei Ying carefully.
Lan Xichen stepped forward and bowed to his uncle. “Yes, shufu, we have good news. We were able to defeat Wen Ruohan.” Then his expression shuttered. “It was not without dire losses. Wen Ruohan… he went mad and killed most of his own people.”
Lan Qiren gasped in shock. Lan Wangji stepped in to explain.
“He attempted to reach immortality and failed. He was destroyed by the resentment he created.”
Lan Qiren stared at Wei Ying, the unasked questions clear on his face.
“Shufu,” started Lan Wangji, but his brother shook his head.
“I will explain to you and the elders later, Shufu. Wangji has made his choice and we are honor bound to accept it given the help the Yiling Laozu has provided. We… we will have a wedding to arrange,” said Lan Xichen, a gently amused look on his face.
Lan Qiren’s face went red with indignation, then white as he processed the words.
Wei Ying bowed deeply to Lan Qiren. “Lan-qianbei, this one is earnest in his desire for your nephew’s hand in marriage. While I am certainly not what you wanted for your precious nephew, he has promised himself to me and I to him. I take my promises seriously.”
Lan Wangji bowed as well. “Shufu. Please.”
There was a tense moment as Lan Qiren obviously struggled with his words before he sighed.
“We will discuss this later. Come, Xichen. Wangji, the Jingshi is still prepared for you and our… guest. I will see you at dinner.”
By the time Lan Wangji lifted his head, his uncle had already begun to walk away. Lan Xichen smiled at him reassuringly before following the older man. Wei Ying sighed beside him.
“He really doesn’t like me,” he said.
Lan Wangji took Wei Ying’s hand in his and gently kissed it. “He will get used to it.”
Wei Ying’s laughter was like the tinkle of chimes in the wind.
Their slow days in the Cloud Recesses passed as if a dream. The tranquility and isolation no longer felt as comforting as they once were. He had Wei Ying at his side, but their time together soon drew short.
“Lan Zhan?”
Several days after their return, Lan Wangji sat at the low table in his room copying a set of old texts. The candle burned low and Wei Ying vibrated at his elbow, watching him work.
Lan Wangji looked askance at the alpha. Wei Ying smiled, but without his usual exuberance.
“I’ve been thinking… the survivors from the Wen… where will they be taken? Where will they go?”
Lan Wangji frowned. The sect leaders had debated this question endlessly earlier that day while Lan Wangji sat back and listened warily. He did not know. No sect could propose good suggestions; all of them were low on supplies after the Sunshot campaign and the earlier skirmishes.
“I can tell from your face after those damned meetings… they don’t have any plans, do they?”
Lan Wangji shook his head.
Wei Ying sighed. “I need to speak with Wen Qing. Those people are civilians. I will not allow the sects to use them as political pawns.”
Lan Wangji nodded. This was also his preference.
Wei Ying reached out a hand to stroke Lan Wangji’s face. “My A-Zhan… if you are willing, I would like to take them in. I have the rest of the Wen in the Burial Mounds already.”
Lan Wangji leaned into the alpha’s touch and closed his eyes. The earthy scent of his mate filled his nose, the spicy notes mellowed in their privacy. “Of course. You are the Yiling Laozu. You do not need my permission.”
Wei Ying laughed and pecked him on the lips. “Lan Zhan, if you are to be my mate… I can’t only be the Yiling Laozu. A good husband thrives on his spouse’s happiness.”
Lan Wangji’s heart swelled in his chest. Husband. Soon, they would truly be husbands.
Then Wei Ying’s smile dropped and he stroked Lan Wangji’s cheek gently. “I need to go back, Lan Zhan. We need to prepare. The people of the Burial Mounds must decide as well; the civilians are their people.”
Lan Wangji nuzzled into Wei Ying’s touch. He knew what this meant. “My family will not allow me to leave without the marriage fully arranged,” he said softly.
Wei Ying nodded.
“It pains me,” said Lan Wangji.
“I would be leaving my heart in the Cloud Recesses. Your sect would be tasked with protecting the thing most precious to me until I return to claim it. The bargain that I am powerless to refuse…” Wei Ying said, his voice gentle and crooning.
“I wish to return with you. My brother will not let me.”
“Soon, A-Zhan. The Yiling Laozu always reclaims what is his.”
Their words were lost between the tangle of their bodies, a meeting of mouths, skin, and hearts.
“Wangji…” said Lan Xichen from outside the heavily decorated palanquin.
Lan Wangji drew a curtain back to look at his brother. It was against decorum, but the entire thing was unconventional.
Lan Xichen’s eyes were brimming with unshed tears. His brother could make such a joyous occasion feel like a funeral. Lan Wangji’s hand reached out and his brother grasped it.
“Brother. I am happy.”
Lan Xichen nodded. His face turned up in a watery smile. “Oh, Wangji, I’m happy for you, I truly am. I never thought… well, you must come back. Return to see your family when you have the chance.”
Lan Wangji smiled. The headpiece tugged heavily at his hair, but he did not complain. It would not do to ruin the hard work of the omegas in his sect who spent several shichen that morning to dress him up.
With a shout, the palanquin bearers stood up and Lan Wangji swayed. The wood was painted a bright crimson and the fabrics decorating his seat were red and gauzy. The curtains were a heavy red brocade threaded through with gold.
It had taken some time to prepare the appropriate dowry and gifts for a marriage of this importance. Though Lan Wangji would have run away with Wei Ying to any mountaintop to take their bows, his sect would never allow their young master to submit himself to such dishonor.
In the end, Lan craftspeople spent weeks preparing the clothing, bedding, and decorations required to send Lan Wangji away to his alpha. Behind the palanquin bearers were men carrying chests full of heavy blankets, jewelry, and fabrics. He had protested that there was no need for such finery in the Burial Mounds, but the elders had insisted. At his own insistence, they also brought seeds and bushels of fruits, vegetables, and grains. He knew these would be of much more use. While they were not destitute by any means, the people lived simply.
Lan Wangji fully intended to join them in their simple life and he had no need for the fine fabrics. Nonetheless, the finery would join him.
Lan Wangji took one final look at the Cloud Recesses as he was slowly carried away from his first home. He would miss the clouds and high mountains, but home was not a home without Wei Ying.
He let the curtain fall closed and sat back carefully. The robes he wore were the deepest of reds and embroidered in gold and silver with motifs of phoenixes and dragons. He was dressed in layers upon layers of light silks, the colors darkening from the lightest of pinks to the darkest of reds. His outer robe was thick brocade unto which the largest motifs were sewn.
He had almost broken down and cried when he first saw himself in his beaten bronze mirror. He had looked like an immortal descended down from the high heavens. A fitting counterpart to the real immortal he was marrying.
It was the hairpiece that had Lan Wangji emotional. After he was wrapped in his robes by the omegas of his sect, his beta shufu had come to comb his hair. His uncle’s hands were careful as they brushed Lan Wangji’s long black hair from scalp to ends. They were mostly silent as he worked until the very end.
“Wangji,” his uncle said, his skilled hands stilling.
“Mn?”
His uncle sighed. “I worry for you, little Wangji. You look so much like your mother like this.”
Lan Wangji had hardly ever heard his uncle speak of his mother. He had to bite back the tears that formed in his eyes; it would not do to ruin the complicated makeup his clans-people had painted on his face.
“She was unhappy,” he said instead of crying.
“Yes.”
He could see his uncle’s downcast eyes in the mirror, a pained expression on his features.
“I am not. Shufu, I wish to marry him.”
Lan Qiren caught his eyes in the mirror. His eyes shone, but he pulled his expression back to its usual calm.
“I am glad, Wangji. I am glad,” he whispered.
Then Lan Qiren went through the difficult task of pulling Lan Wangji’s long hair into a complicated knot atop his head. The traditional omegan hairpins made of gold and rubies were threaded through it; they had graced his mother’s hair when she was married into the Lan clan.
His mother’s son would not go through the same pain.
Lan Wangji was jostled out of the memories of the morning by a lurch as the palanquin straightened out. The road forward was smooth. They had left the Cloud Recesses.
Lan Wangji settled against the cushions and closed his eyes in meditation. Soon, he would be with Wei Ying.
Soon, he would be home.
Lan Wangji was led by the hand into a dark cave carved into the side of the mountain. The red veil over his head was silk woven so closely that he could not see through it. All that guided him was the strong grip of his alpha leading him carefully down the path.
He was glad that they would take their bows alone. It felt fitting with both their sets of parents departed from the world. There would be time for celebration later. This was for them alone.
They came to a stop in a wide section of the cave lit by the wavering flames of candles. Lan Wangji waited, the anticipation thick in his chest.
Then the veil was pulled from his face and he could finally see Wei Ying.
The alpha was dressed in red robes finer than he had ever seen on the man. They were not embroidered brocade like his own, but were a heavy silk. Layered underneath were a set of black under robes. The clothing fit him closely, emphasizing the natural shape of his waist. On his head was a crown of yellow gold; for once, his wild hair was tamed into a proper topknot.
Best of all was the smile on his lips and the twinkling of his eyes.
Lan Wangji could not help but gasp at the splendor of his mate. His mate. The man whose bite he would wear for the rest of his life. The man with whom he vowed to spend eternity.
“Lan Zhan. You look beautiful. I couldn’t imagine how much more spectacular you could become, but you always manage to surprise me. It’s good that your face was hidden away, else you would break the hearts of any man or woman who looked upon you!” His silver eyes crinkled with mirth and joy. Joy.
Lan Wangji laughed softly, his heart soaring. “You tease. Wei Ying is beautiful.”
Wei Ying’s cheeks colored adorably at the sincerity. “I can’t take this treatment, Lan Zhan!”
Lan Wangji smiled.
They looked dopily at each other for several long moments, wrapped up in their bubble of joy.
Slowly, Lan Wangji turned to look around the cavern. Wei Ying laughed and pulled him closer to the altar.
The place was dimly lit with only candles. The ground was flat and dry, the walls smoothed rock. Despite the dreariness, someone had hung cheerful cuts of red paper around the cave.
On the altar was a bright red bolt of fabric upon which awaited a teapot and cups. This place was well cared for and the floor free of dust. Upon the altar sat the tablets of Wei Ying’s parents.
“This is our ancestral hall. So far, we only have my parents. Eventually, more will join. It was only recently that I was joined by anyone at all,” Wei Ying said quietly.
Lan Wangji reached up to stroke his cheek. “I will join you. Never again will Wei Ying be alone.”
They knelt before the worn tablets. Together, they made their three bows.
When it was time, the tea in the pot was still steaming. Carefully, Lan Wangji poured two cups for his mate’s parents. Then he poured the tea upon the ground in offering. Wei Ying did the same in turn.
Just like that. They were married.
Wei Ying whooped with delight and pulled Lan Wangji into a kiss. He laughed into the omega’s surprise-slackened mouth.
“You’re mine, Lan Zhan. You promised! Before the heavens and our ancestors, you’re mine.”
Lan Wangji smiled. “I have always been yours.”
Before he could say more, Wei Ying scooped him up into his arms. His long robes threatened to trail over the ground, but Wei Ying paid it no heed. He was running, taking the path out of the ancestral cave with practiced steps, the sounds of his happiness bouncing against the walls.
Lan Wangji held on for dear life. He could not help the joyful laughter that burbled out of his throat.
They were married.
Outside, a group of Wens stood and cheered when Wei Ying raced into the fading sunlight. They popped firecrackers in celebration as he rushed by. For a brief moment, Lan Wangji even saw Wen Qing’s dark red smile.
Wei Ying did not heed any of Lan Wangji’s half-hearted protests, his reminders that his people needed him and that a feast was waiting. Lan Wangji had no desire for anything save the long-deferred mating bite. The feast, the people, the world could wait for him to finally be bound to his alpha, heart and soul.
Wei Ying’s personal room was hung with red curtains and cheerful cutouts. A tray of dried persimmons, dates, and nuts was carefully placed in the center of the bed. When Wei Ying raised a hand to push it off in haste, Lan Wangji stopped him.
“Wei Ying! Put me down. They prepared that for us.”
Wei Ying grunted but complied. As Lan Wangji’s feet touched the ground, Wei Ying was already moving to place the tray of food on the ground. In a flash, Lan Wangji was lying on their marital bed against the red bedding.
Wei Ying hovered over him, a sly smile on his face. Lan Wangji could smell the musk of arousal pouring off his alpha. He had detected an undercurrent of arousal from the moment Wei Ying saw him, but it had been held back. Now, he was hit by a wave of it. His own scent sweetened in response, his slick instinctively descending.
His alpha leaned down and kissed him, softly and sweetly, so different from their usual kisses. Lan Wangji opened his mouth to allow Wei Ying’s tongue inside, licking and exploring gently. It was far from the first time that they had done this, but it was for their bonding. The prospect of his body and soul being marked as Wei Ying’s made Lan Wangji happier than he thought he could be. He had never expected his life or his mate to be of his own choosing.
Wei Ying was gentle as he tugged at the first tie on the omega’s robes. Lan Wangji’s hands came up to help him with the complex series of knots. Lan Wangji’s hair pulled uncomfortable where his head was wedged against the bed, but he did not mind. He leaned up and sucked at Wei Ying’s neck, delighting at the moan it elicited. He nosed at the scent gland before licking over it.
Wei Ying’s hips bucked against his and he hissed.
“I know what you want, A-Zhan. Let me get you bare; I promise, you’ll have exactly what you want,” he murmured, hands still working steadily at pulling the layers of red fabric away from the omega’s body.
Lan Wangji pushed his alpha away and Wei Ying sat up. Then he deftly undid the remaining ties and threw his robes open. His final layer of underobes and trousers were made of a pink silk so fine as to be completely see through. His erection tented his trousers, the fabric darkened where his precum pooled. Lan Wangji knew he looked completely debauched, the layers of fabric more obscene than if he had presented fully naked.
Wei Ying’s jaw dropped as he took in the omega’s form. His hands stroked reverently up and down Lan Wangji’s sides.
“Heavens, you’re so beautiful. How did I ever get this lucky? And what a naughty omega you are, dressed in such tempting clothing on our wedding night… with this you’re asking to be ravished,” he said, a throaty groan in his throat.
Lan Wangji looked up at him from under his lashes, affecting a demure manner. “Is my husband pleased?”
Wei Ying growled and descended upon him, his lips searching out every bit of exposed skin. He mouthed at Lan Wangji’s collarbone before dipping down to take a nipple in his mouth. He sucked hard and Lan Wangji moaned.
Wei Ying moved further down while the omega whined in protest. Then Wei Ying’s teeth were nibbling at Lan Wangji’s hipbones, his tongue sweeping over the valleys of his body.
Before Lan Wangji could thrust his cock against Wei Ying, the alpha retreated to kneel over his body. They were both panting into the still air. Most unfairly, Wei Ying was completely dressed though his robes were mildly mussed.
“Wei Ying!”
The alpha chuckled. “Someone is impatient! Don’t worry, Lan Zhan, husband, I’ll give you what you want.”
Lan Wangji growled deep in his throat then ripped at Wei Ying’s sash. The alpha laughed as Lan Wangji pulled yards and yards of red fabric off. He impatiently pushed the robes off Wei Ying’s shoulders until the man was left in only his deep black underrobes. The fabric was silky and smooth to the touch. Lan Wangji pulled him down in a bruising kiss and tangled his hands into his husband’s soft hair.
Slowly, Wei Ying lowered the rest of himself onto Lan Wangji, pressing the omega against the sheets. His hands reached between them and stroked Lan Wangji’s cock in one short move. The omega groaned and bucked his hips up against the touch.
“Sh, let me take care of you first. It’ll take the edge off and make it easier,” Wei Ying murmured, his lips mouthing at the angle of Lan Wangji’s jaw.
His hand stroked through the thin red silk, gently at first before increasing his speed. The soft silk felt too rough against Lan Wangji’s sensitive skin and his hips twitched away in discomfort. Wei Ying grinned and reached into his trousers, palming his member fully.
“Look at you…” murmured Wei Ying into Lan Wangji’s ear, his breaths speeding up. The hand on his cock spread his copious precum over his skin and jerked him faster and faster. Lan Wangji tried to buck up unconsciously, but Wei Ying held his hips down. His grip tightened and he rubbed his thumb over the head of Lan Wangji’s cock on every upstroke.
“I’m—I’m going to—” groaned Lan Wangji.
“Come for me, husband,” said Wei Ying.
Lan Wangji did just that. His eyes closed and his body tensed as the pleasure suffused him. After, his limbs felt wobbly and weak from orgasm.
When he opened his eyes, it was to see Wei Ying’s beautiful inner robes covered in his cum. He gasped.
“Wei Ying! I apologize—”
“Don’t! Don’t apologize, Lan Zhan, I’m happy that our wedding robes will always carry proof of your pleasure. Nothing would make me more proud.”
Lan Wangji’s entire face heated. Wei Ying only laughed and flicked the tip of one of Lan Wangji’s blushing ears.
“Lan Zhan-ah, don’t make that face! What haven’t we shared by now?” teased Wei Ying.
Instead of replying, Lan Wangji’s hands slid under his alpha’s robes and pulled them off as he was speaking.
“My, so demanding! Haven’t I pleased my A-Zhan enough? It must be past hai-shi now; shouldn’t good Lans be sleeping?”
Lan Wangji glowered, knowing his alpha wanted a rise out of him.
Wei Ying pecked his lips in apology. He slowly worked Lan Wangji’s arms out of his heavy wedding robes and stood up to hang them in the waiting wardrobe. Lan Wangji made an attempt to sit up and help, but his alpha shook his head and motioned for him to stay lounging. Sated and tired, Lan Wangji complied. When Wei Ying moved to throw his own robes onto the floor, Lan Wangji made a noise of disapproval. The alpha sighed dramatically, but put his robes away equally as carefully.
Finally, Wei Ying returned to their bed and pulled his trousers off, tossing them onto the floor. Looking at Lan Wangji clad in only his cum soiled silk trousers, he growled. The fabric had become completely clear from the omega’s cum and slick. In one motion, Wei Ying tore them off his body.
“Wei Ying!” Lan Wangji chided half-heartedly.
The alpha raked his eyes hungrily down his body before settling between his legs. Then he gripped Lan Wangji’s thighs and yanked the omega bodily down the bed, forcing his legs to spread. Wei Ying’s gaze was so heated that the omega whimpered. The sound only increased the alpha’s fervor, his hands coming down to grip Lan Wangji’s backside. He wrenched the two thick globes apart to reveal the sweet secret in between.
Lan Wangji’s chrysanthemum was bared to the air. The sweet scent of his slick suffused the room.
Wei Ying buried his face between the omega’s cheeks, noisily lapping at his hole. He groaned as if tasting the sweetest of wines before pushing his tongue inside.
Lan Wangji fell back against the bed, overtaken by his pleasure. The omega’s little hole was extremely sensitive, the slightest teasing touch against it causing him to writhe. Wei Ying’s mouth and lips took full advantage of his mate’s sensitivity, working against him and covered with slick.
He could feel his hole loosening from the attention laved upon it. Despite his thrusts against Wei Ying’s face, the alpha refused to put his fingers inside.
“Wei Ying…” he moaned, wriggling his hips towards the tongue breaching him. Despite his begging moans, his alpha continued to tease.
Lan Wangji could not take it any longer. He took Wei Ying’s face between his hands and pulled the alpha up for a searing kiss.
“No?” asked Wei Ying when they pulled apart to breathe.
Lan Wangji shook his head. “I need you inside me. No more teasing.”
Wei Ying smiled widely and nuzzled against Lan Wangji’s neck. The omega gasped at the light touch against his mating gland. He needed this.
The alpha hiked Lan Wangji’s legs around his hips, then he lined his cock up single-handedly and thrust in. Immediately, Lan Wangji’s body arced at the intrusion and he whined from sensitivity. His thighs tightened around Wei Ying’s body as they settled into a slow rocking rhythm.
He could smell the musk and sweat of their lovemaking. The sound of the cock within his body moving was loud in the room. Wei Ying was gentle and slow, as if wanting to prolong the moment for as long as he could. Their lovemaking previously had been violent in its intensity. This was a counterpoint to their first time, a slow and steady crescendo of pleasure as their bodies broke together like gentle waves. They kissed slowly, the sliding of lips and tongues another point of rising heat.
Lan Wangji felt his orgasm building as Wei Ying pumped in and out of him. The center of his pelvis felt tight as Wei Ying’s cock roamed slowly over his prostate again and again. It had barely been touched and was not yet oversensitive from their mating. His breaths came shorter and shorter as pleasure sank into his veins, his body reaching close to that exquisite point of tension.
“Wei Ying, Wei Ying, please, hurry, please,” he mumbled, his words cut off by little hitching moans.
“Hold on a little longer, Lan Zhan, just a little more,” grunted Wei Ying.
Lan Wangji could feel the swell of Wei Ying’s knot beginning, but it was not enough. He wanted to cum together with his alpha, to milk Wei Ying’s pleasure with the rhythmic contraction of his body. It was becoming much harder to think.
“Oh, A-Zhan, I can feel you clenching against me… a little more, hold off a little longer for me, love.”
Lan Wangji moaned and tried to hold back the tide of his orgasm.
Wei Ying’s hips grew frantic, pushing into him with punishing thrusts. His motion was erratic as he sought release in his omega’s willing body.
The harder thrusts against Lan Wangji’s prostate almost threw him over, but he held on. Right when he thought he would break and the orgasm would be torn from him against his will, Wei Ying slammed in. His knot expanded, tying them together. The feeling of being so full and so loved sent Lan Wangji over the edge. His pleasure was a white hot thing, the contractions of his body causing him to buck against his alpha uncontrollably.
Right as he started to return to himself, he felt the sharp pain of the mating bite. His eyes rolled back and pleasure burned through his body like a wildfire, uncontrollable and destructive. Nothing had ever felt so right.
Slowly, Lan Wangji registered the texture of the sheets beneath him and the heavy weight of his alpha’s body atop. He was warm and sated and so, so loved. He could feel Wei Ying’s heavy breaths expanding in his chest.
They lay together like that for a long, long time. They were tied together by Wei Ying’s knot and by the bond that had taken root at the moment of their mating.
Wei Ying was the first to break the silence.
“Lan Zhan-ah, Lan Zhan. You’re amazing, incredible, spectacular. You took me so well. I—I love you, Lan Zhan. I’ll never stop loving you. So long as I still draw breath, I will be yours.”
Lan Wangji opened his eyes and smiled. Wei Ying lifted himself so he could see the golden eyes of his beloved.
“I love you, Wei Ying. I will never stop loving you, as long as I live. I am yours.”
Wei Ying’s eyes glimmered with emotion, sparkling brighter than all the stars in the endless sky.