Little did he know that as he took a step back, his foot suddenly twisted, nearly causing him to stumble and fall to his knees. Lan Wangji's expression changed in an instant. He rushed forward, grasping Wei Wuxian's wrist tightly just as he had done on Mount Dafan before. Steadying him with one hand, Lan Wangji dropped to one knee, intent on examining Wei Wuxian's leg. Startled by this sudden closeness, Wei Wuxian hurriedly protested, "No, no, Hanguang-jun, you don't need to do this!"

Lan Wangji looked up, his pale eyes fixing on Wei Wuxian for a moment before returning his attention to rolling up Wei Wuxian's pant leg. Still held firmly by the wrist, Wei Wuxian could only tilt his head back and stare at the sky, a mix of embarrassment and something else fluttering in his chest.

The skin on Wei Wuxian's leg was mottled with dark, bruise-like marks - the telltale signs of a malicious curse.

Lan Wangji studied the marks for a long moment before speaking, his voice rough with an emotion Wei Wuxian couldn't quite place. "...I was only gone for a few hours."

Wei Wuxian shrugged, trying to lighten the mood. "A lot can happen in a few hours, Lan Zhan. Come on, stand up." He tugged at Lan Wangji's arm, pulling him to his feet. "It's just a regular curse mark. I'll deal with it when it comes for me. But I'll need your help, Hanguang-jun. I can't handle it alone." His eyes sparkled with a mix of mischief and genuine concern. "Did you catch the person? Was it him? Where are they now?"

Lan Wangji's gaze drifted to a shop sign further down the long street. Wei Wuxian followed his line of sight and nodded. "Let's resolve the stone fortress issue first." He started walking towards the shop, only now noticing the numbness in his legs. It must have been from Jiang Cheng's Zidian, he realized. At least his brother had the sense to control the lightning's intensity; otherwise, Wei Wuxian might have ended up as charred as if he'd been struck by actual lightning.

Lan Wangji stood behind him, suddenly calling out, "Wei Ying."

Wei Wuxian hesitated for a moment, as if he hadn't heard the name. Then, casually, he responded, "What is it?"

Lan Wangji's next words were not a question, but a statement. "It was transferred from Jin Ling, wasn't it."

Wei Wuxian neither confirmed nor denied. Lan Wangji continued, "You encountered Jiang Wanyin."

The purple lightning marks intertwined with the curse marks made it easy to deduce. Wei Wuxian turned to face him, a wry smile playing on his lips. "As long as we both exist in this world, we were bound to meet eventually."

Lan Wangji's next words were soft but firm. "Don't walk anymore."

Wei Wuxian couldn't help but tease, "If I don't walk, are you going to carry me?"

Lan Wangji's silent stare in response made Wei Wuxian's smile falter, a shadow of unease passing over his heart. The Lan Wangji of the past would have been flustered by such a comment, either walking away with a cold face or simply ignoring it. But this Lan Wangji... it was hard to predict how he would respond.

Sure enough, Lan Wangji moved to stand in front of Wei Wuxian, looking as if he was about to bend down and offer his back for a ride. Wei Wuxian, alarmed once again, quickly backpedaled. "Wait, wait! I was just joking. My legs are just a bit numb from the Zidian, not broken. It would look ridiculous for a grown man to be carried like that."

Lan Wangji tilted his head slightly, his voice betraying no emotion. "Would it look ridiculous?"

Wei Wuxian countered, "Would it look good?"

After a moment of silence, Lan Wangji spoke again, his tone soft. "But you've carried me before."

Wei Wuxian blinked, genuinely confused. "Did I? I don't remember that."

Lan Wangji's response was quiet, almost resigned. "You never remember these things."

Wei Wuxian shrugged, a hint of defensiveness in his voice. "Everyone says I have a bad memory. Fine, if it's bad, it's bad. Anyway, no piggyback rides."

Lan Wangji's next question was unexpected. "Are you sure you don't want to be carried?"

Wei Wuxian's answer was firm. "Absolutely not."

They stood facing each other, locked in a silent standoff. Suddenly, Lan Wangji moved. In one fluid motion, he wrapped an arm around Wei Wuxian's back and bent slightly, his other hand moving to scoop under Wei Wuxian's knees.

Before Wei Wuxian could process what was happening, he found himself lifted off the ground, cradled securely in Lan Wangji's arms. Smaller and lighter than Lan Wangji, Wei Wuxian was easily held aloft. In all his lives, past and present, he had never been treated like this. Startled, he exclaimed, "Lan Zhan!"

Lan Wangji, carrying Wei Wuxian with perfect stability, replied calmly, "You said you didn't want a piggyback ride."

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Wei Wuxian sputtered, "I didn't say I wanted to be carried like this either!"

Fortunately, night had fallen, and the streets were empty, sparing Wei Wuxian from too much embarrassment. Not that he was particularly thin-skinned. After a few steps, he relaxed into Lan Wangji's arms. With a mischievous glint in his eye, he toyed with the front of Lan Wangji's robes, pretending to untie them. "Are you trying to see who can be more shameless?" he teased.

The familiar scent of sandalwood enveloped Wei Wuxian as Lan Wangji continued walking, his gaze fixed straight ahead. His face remained impassive, a mask of cold seriousness. Wei Wuxian, still fiddling with Lan Wangji's robes, thought to himself, "I never expected Lan Zhan to have such a strong sense of revenge. He's paying me back for all the times I teased him before, one by one. He's really grown up. Not just in cultivation, but in thickness of skin too."

Aloud, Wei Wuxian asked, "Lan Zhan, did you recognize me back on Mount Dafan?"

"Mm," Lan Wangji affirmed.

Curious, Wei Wuxian pressed, "How did you recognize me?"

Lan Wangji lowered his gaze to meet Wei Wuxian's eyes. "Do you want to know?"

Wei Wuxian nodded eagerly. "Of course."

"You told me yourself," Lan Wangji replied cryptically.

Wei Wuxian frowned, puzzled. "I told you? Was it because of Jin Ling? Because I summoned Wen Ning? That's not it, is it?"

A fleeting ripple of emotion passed through Lan Wangji's eyes, but it vanished as quickly as it appeared, leaving behind the usual calm depth.

His voice was solemn as he said, "Figure it out yourself."

Wei Wuxian pouted, "I'm asking you because I can't figure it out."

This time, no matter how much Wei Wuxian probed, Lan Wangji remained silent. He carried Wei Wuxian into the inn, where the only reaction came from the clerk at the front desk, who spat out a mouthful of water in surprise. There were no other onlookers to witness their unconventional entrance.

As they reached the door to their room, Wei Wuxian said, "Alright, we're here. You can put me down now. You don't have a third hand to open the door..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Lan Wangji did something utterly out of character. It was perhaps the first time in his life that he had performed such a crude action.

Still holding Wei Wuxian, he kicked the door open.

The two door panels swung wide, revealing a figure sitting awkwardly inside. The person immediately burst into tears, "Hanguang-jun, I don't know, I really don't know, I..."

As he registered the unusual posture of the two men entering the room, his eyes widened, and he barely managed to complete his sentence, "...I truly don't know anything."

It was indeed a case of "ask three times, know nothing thrice."

Lan Wangji, seemingly oblivious to the other person's shock, carried Wei Wuxian into the room and gently set him down on a mat. Nie Huaisang, looking utterly mortified, quickly opened his fan to hide his face. Wei Wuxian peered over the fan, taking a moment to study his former classmate.

Nie Huaisang hadn't changed much over the years. He still had the same face that could have been scholarly and refined, yet wore an expression that made him look easily manipulated. His attire was tasteful and elegant, clearly chosen with great care. He looked more like a wealthy idler than the leader of a prominent sect. Even dressed in imperial robes, he wouldn't look like a prince, and even wielding a long sword, he wouldn't resemble a cultivational leader.

As Nie Huaisang stubbornly denied any knowledge, Lan Wangji placed the piece of fabric torn from his sleeve by the black-maned spiritual dog on the table. Nie Huaisang covered his torn sleeve, his face a picture of despair. "I was just passing by. I really don't know anything."

Wei Wuxian leaned forward, a glint in his eye. "If you don't know, then let me tell you. See if you remember anything as I speak."

Nie Huaisang stammered, unsure how to respond. Wei Wuxian continued, his voice taking on a storyteller's cadence:

"In the area of Qinghe's Xinglu Ridge, there are rumors of a 'Man-Eating Ridge' and a 'Man-Eating Fortress.' Yet, there are no actual victims. So, it's just a rumor. But this rumor serves a purpose - it keeps ordinary people away from Xinglu Ridge. It's a defense line, the first of many."

Wei Wuxian paused, letting his words sink in before continuing, "Where there's a first, there's a second. The second line of defense is the walking corpses on Xinglu Ridge. Even if some brave souls ignore the man-eating rumors and venture onto the ridge, or if someone accidentally wanders in, seeing walking dead would send them fleeing. But these corpses are few in number and weak in power, so they don't cause real harm."

He leaned back, his eyes never leaving Nie Huaisang's face. "The third line of defense is the maze array near the stone fortress. While the first two lines defend against ordinary people, this one is meant for cultivators. But its effect is limited to average cultivators. For those with spiritual tools or dogs specialized in breaking arrays, or for eminent cultivators like Hanguang-jun, this defense can be easily broken."

Wei Wuxian's voice grew softer, more intense. "Three layers of defense, all to prevent people from discovering the stone fortress on Xinglu Ridge. The identity of the fortress's builder is clear. This is Qinghe Nie Sect's territory. No one but the Nie family could easily set up these three checkpoints in Qinghe. And you just happened to appear near the fortress, leaving evidence behind."

He leaned forward, his gaze piercing. "What purpose does the Qinghe Nie Sect have in building a man-eating fortress on Xinglu Ridge? Where did the corpses in the walls come from? Were they really eaten by the fortress? Sect Leader Nie, if you don't explain clearly today, I'm afraid that once this gets out, when all the cultivational sects come to question you, no one will be willing to listen to or believe what you have to say."

Nie Huaisang, looking utterly defeated, finally spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. "...It's not a man-eating fortress at all. It's... it's just my family's ancestral tomb!"

Wei Wuxian raised an eyebrow. "Ancestral tomb? Since when do ancestral tombs contain swords instead of bodies in their coffins?"

Nie Huaisang's face crumpled, his eyes pleading. "Hanguang-jun, before I say anything more, can you make a vow? For the sake of our families' long-standing friendship, and the sworn brotherhood between your brother and mine, please swear that whatever I say next, you... and your companion here... will never reveal it to anyone. If it ever does come out, please speak up for me, be my witness. You've always been the most trustworthy. If you make this vow, I'll believe you."

Lan Wangji nodded solemnly. "As you wish."

Wei Wuxian, his curiosity piqued, pressed on. "You said it's not a man-eating fortress. So it has never eaten anyone?"

Nie Huaisang bit his lip, then admitted reluctantly, "...It has."

Wei Wuxian's eyes widened. "Wow."

Nie Huaisang quickly added, "But only once! And the main fault wasn't with our family. It happened decades ago! The rumors about the man-eating fortress on Xinglu Ridge started spreading from that time. I... I just fanned the flames a bit, magnifying the rumors a few times over."