Chapter 119 - Extra—Incense Burner (Part Two) (1/2)

Translated by K of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

The second morning, Wei WuXian somehow woke up earlier than Lan WangJi did. His legs were shaking throughout the entire day.

The tapir* incense burner was seized and scrutinized by them for a long while. Wei WuXian took it apart and put it back together, but he still couldn’t understand the mystery behind it.

*TN: This refers to the mythical animal in the shape of which the incense burner was built. These creatures are often connected to dreams.

Sitting beside the desk, Wei WuXian pondered, “If it’s not a problem with the incense, then it has to be a problem with the incense burner. What a thing. It feels so real even Empathy might not compare to it. Was it ever recorded in the Library Pavilion?”

Lan WangJi shook his head.

If he shook his head, that meant it was certain nobody had ever recorded it. Wei WuXian, “Oh, well. Its potency has already passed. We should store it properly for now so that other people don’t come into contact with it by accident. If some master of spiritual tools ever visit us, we could take it out again and ask them.”

They both thought that the incense burner’s potency has passed already, yet what happened was beyond what they expected.

At night, after a round between the sheets, Wei WuXian and Lan WangJi fell asleep side by side, lying within the Jingshi.

Soon after, he opened his eyes again only to discover that he was again lying below the magnolia tree outside the Library Pavilion. The sunlight spilled onto his face through the flowering branches. Wei WuXian squinted, covering it with his hand. He slowly got up.

This time, however, Lan WangJi wasn’t beside him.

Wei WuXian cupped his right hand around his lips, shouting, “Lan Zhan!”

Nobody answered. Wei WuXian wondered, Looks like the incense burner’s potency hasn’t passed yet. But where’s Lan Zhan? Don’t tell me I’m the only one affected by the incense burner’s leftover powers?

Before the magnolia trees was a small path of white pebbles. A group of the GusuLan Sect’s disciples, wearing white clothes and forehead ribbons, passed carrying a few books each, as though they were about to attend their morning lectures. None of them spared Wei WuXian a single glance, still unable to see him. Wei WuXian went up the Library Pavilion and stole a look. Lan WangJi wasn’t inside, no matter the big one or the small one. And so he got down again, beginning his aimless stroll throughout the Cloud Recesses.

Not long afterwards, he managed to make out the whispering voices of two boys. He walked closer, finding that one of their voices sounded quite familiar, “… Nobody had ever kept any within the bounds of the Cloud Recesses. To do such a thing is unheard of.”

After a moment of silence, the other boy answered, somewhat dejected, “I know. But… I have already made my promise. I cannot go against my word.”

Wei WuXian picked this up. He sneakily glanced over. As expected, conversing amidst a clearing of green grass was Lan XiChen and Lan WangJi.

It was a spring day vibrant with soft winds. The young brothers seemed to be two immaculate pieces of jade, reflected against each other. Both were dressed in snowy robes, their wide sleeves and forehead ribbons flapping in the wind, almost as if they were a painting. The Lan WangJi at this point in time was also just about sixteen. He frowned slightly, as though he was worried about something. What he held in his arm was a white rabbit, sniffing its pink nose, and beside his foot was another rabbit, its long ears perked up as it stood clinging to his boot, trying to climb up.

Lan XiChen, “How could the casual remarks between two boys be considered a serious promise? Is it really because of this?”

Lan WangJi looked at the ground and said nothing.

Lan XiChen smiled, “Fine. Then if by any chance Uncle asks of this, you must explain things to him properly. These days, you have been spending just a little too much time on them.”

Lan WangJi nodded solemnly, “Thank you, Brother.” With a pause, he added, “… They will not affect my studies.”

Lan XiChen, “I know, WangJi. However, you must not tell Uncle who gave these to you. Or else, out of rage, he would make you send them away no matter what.”

Hearing this, it seemed as though Lan WangJi hugged the rabbit in his arms even tighter. Lan XiChen smiled. He reached out and poked the rabbit’s pink nose with his fingertip, before leisurely walking away.

After he left, Lan WangJi stood there for a while, thinking. The rabbit at times flicked its ears, resting within his arms in a comfortable manner. The one by his foot clung even more anxiously. Lan WangJi glanced at it before bending down and picking it up as well. He placed both rabbits inside his arms, stroking gently. The tenderness of his hands contrasted his expression.

Wei WuXian felt his heart itch from just the sight of the scene. He walked out from behind the tree, wanting to get even closer to the young Lan WangJi. Yet, the rabbits fell from Lan WangJi’s hands, and the atmosphere changed at once. He spun around. After he saw whom it was, his piercing gaze immediately faltered, “… You?!”

He was shocked, yet Wei WuXian was even more shocked, “You can see me?”

This was definitely the strangest. Logically, those inside the dream shouldn’t be able to see him. But right now, Lan WangJi looked straight at him, “Of course I can. You are… Wei Ying?”

The young man in front of him looked over twenty, definitely older than fifteen. And yet, he indeed had the same face as Wei WuXian. Lan WangJi couldn’t figure out the identity of the intruder, maintaining sharp vigilance. If he were wearing his sword right now, he would’ve probably unsheathed Bichen already.

Wei WuXian reacted with extreme swiftness. He fixed his expression at once, “It’s me!”

With such an answer, Lan WangJi’s face seemed even more alarmed as he walked a few steps backward. Wei WuXian put on a wounded expression and tone, “Lan Zhan, I took such great pains to come back and find you—how could you treat me like this?

Lan WangJi, “Are you… truly Wei Ying?”

Wei WuXian, “Of course.”

Lan WangJi, “Then why is your appearance different?”

Wei WuXian, “Now that’d be a long story. This is what happened: I’m Wei WuXian indeed, but I’m Wei WuXian from seven years in the future. Seven years later, I discovered a powerful tool that let me travel back in time into the past. I was just in the middle of examining it when I touched it accidentally—and here I am!”

The explanation was so absurd it couldn’t even fool a child. Lan WangJi’s voice was cold, “How can you prove it?”

Wei WuXian, “How do you want me to? I know absolutely everything about you. The rabbit you were hugging as well as the one by your feet—those were from me, weren’t they? You seemed so reluctant when you accepted them, yet now you refuse to let them go even when your brother tells you not to. You’ve fallen in love?”

Hearing this, Lan WangJi’s expression changed slightly. He seemed as if he wanted to say something, yet stopped in the middle, “I…”

Wei WuXian walked a few steps closer, opening his arms with a wide grin, “What’s wrong? You embarrassed?”

Seeing just how peculiar his actions were, Lan WangJi looked as though he faced a formidable enemy, his face full of caution as he walked even more steps back. Wei WuXian hadn’t seen Lan WangJi face him with such an attitude in a long time. He laughed in secret as he feigned anger, “What do you mean by this? What are you avoiding me for? Good for you, Lan Zhan—for ten years you and I have been husband and wife, and now you’ve forgotten about me so easily?”

With this, Lan WangJi’s handsome, icy features snapped instantaneously.

He began. “… For ten years? You… and I? … have been husband and wife?!”

It was only eleven words, yet he only managed to spit them out after a handful of pauses. Wei WuXian seemed as though he finally realized something, “Oh, I forgot. You don’t know about this yet. Doing the maths, it seems like we’ve only just met each other? Did I just leave the Cloud Recesses? No worries. Let me tell you a secret—just a few years, and we’ll become partners in cultivation!”

Lan WangJi, “… Partners in cultivation?”

Wei WuXian gloated, “That’s right! The kind that practices dual cultivation everyday. It was a proper, orthodox marriage—we’ve even prostrated.”

Lan WangJi was so enraged that his chest heaved slightly. A moment later, a few words seeped from between his teeth, “… Utterly nonsense!”

Wei WuXian, “You’ll know if it’s nonsense or not if you keep listening for just a bit longer. When you sleep, you like to hug me tightly, and you have to be hugging me or else you won’t be able to sleep; every time you kiss me it’s always so long, and when it ends you like to bite me gently before you leave; oh, right, you like to bite me too when we’re doing that other thing, like on my body…”

Ever since the words ‘hug me tightly’, Lan WangJi’s expression had become twisted. The longer he listened, the greater his reaction was. It was as if he was about to cover his ears to block out the obscenity, lunging forward ready to strike, “Nonsense!”

Wei WuXian dodged to the side, “Nonsense again? At least change things up a bit! And how do you even know I’m talking nonsense? Is this not what you’re like?”

Lan WangJi spoke a word at a time, “I… have never kissed… so how could I know what I like… when I…!”

Wei WuXian thought for a bit, “You’re not wrong. You haven’t kissed anyone yet at this age, so of course you don’t know what you’re like when you kiss someone. Wanna try right now?”

“…” Lan WangJi was in such a rage he had even forgotten to summon the disciples and seize the suspicious intruder. He attacked strike after strike, aiming straight for his wrist*. He was still young at this point, however. Wei WuXian was a lot more skilled, easily avoiding the attacks. Spotting an opening, he pinched somewhere on Lan WangJi’s arm, and Lan WangJi’s movements paused. With this opportunity, Wei WuXian landed a light peck on his cheek.

*TN: At one’s wrist, where the veins are and where the pulse can be felt, is an acupoint that is supposedly deadly.

“…”

After the kiss, Wei WuXian let go of Lan WangJi’s arm and released the restraint.

But Lan WangJi was already a frozen statue, and for a long time he remained so, sent into a daze.

“Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha…” Wei WuXian laughed himself awake from the dream.

He laughed so hard he almost rolled off the bed. Fortunately, Lan WangJi’s arms were always wrapped around his waist. Along with the laughter, his entire body trembled the moment he woke up, making Lan WangJi wake up from his sleep as well. The two sat up together.

Lan WangJi looked down, massaging his temple with one hand, “Just now, I…”

Wei WuXian, “Just now, did you have a dream that you met a twenty-something-year-old me when you were fifteen?”

“…” Lan WangJi stared at him, “The incense burner.”

Wei WuXia nodded, “I thought I only entered the dream again because of the incense burner’s after effects, yet who knew you were the one who was influenced even more heavily.”

Tonight’s situation was different from last time’s. Just now, the young Lan Zhan in the dream was Lan WangJi himself.

Those who were dreaming often didn’t know that they were dreaming. And thus, Lan WangJi really thought he was only fifteen in his dream. It was a proper dream at first—morning lectures, strolls, taking care of rabbits. Yet, he ran right into Wei WuXian, who snuck into his dream and decided to make mischief there. After he was caught, what came was a good round of teasing.

Wei WuXian, “I can’t anymore, Lan Zhan. How you looked hugging your rabbit and not letting go, scared out of your wits that your brother and your uncle might not let you have them—I love you so much. Hahahahaha…”

Lan WangJi didn’t know how to respond, “… It is late at night. Your laughter might disturb others.”

Wei WuXian, “You think we’re quiet everyday at night? Why did you wake up so early? Wake up a bit later, and I’d drag you to the far mountains of your sect and do bad things with you, letting the young Lan-Ergege have a first taste of the good stuff in life, hahahaha…”

Lan WangJi watched him roll around at the side. He never ended up finding the words. After sitting for a while, he suddenly reached out and pressed Wei WuXian down onto the bed.

The two thought that after the second night passed, the incense burner’s powers should’ve dissipated already. Yet, the third night, Wei WuXian woke up in Lan WangJi’s dream again.

Dressed in black, he sauntered through the white pebble paths of the Cloud Recesses, Chenqing’s red tassel bobbing up and down with each stride of his. Soon, the sound of reciting textbook material floated by.

It was from the direction of the Lanshi. Wei WuXian strutted towards the room. As expected, a couple of the Lan Sect’s disciples were doing their evening studies inside. Lan QiRen wasn’t there. Lan WangJi was still the one who supervised.

The Lan WangJi of tonight’s dream still appeared to be young, but he was more like the one Wei WuXian saw in the Cave of the Xuanwu, about seventeen or eighteen. His features held an elegance that already carried the air of a prominent cultivator, yet still bore the youthful green of a young man. He sat attentively before the room. When someone had a question and came forth to ask, he would take a swift glance before immediately coming up with an answer, his serious expression creating stark contrast against his adolescence.

Wei WuXian leaned against a pillar outside the Lanshi. Having watched for a while, he soundlessly swept up to the roof and placed Chenqing near his lips.

Within the Lanshi, Lan WangJi paused slightly. One of the boys asked, “Young Master, what is it?”

Lan WangJi, “Who is playing the flute at such a time?”

The boys looked at one another. Quickly, one of them replied, “I hear no flute?”

With this, Lan WangJi frowned somewhat. He stood up and went out the door, holding his sword, just in time for Wei WuXian to put his flute away and land nimbly on another roof with a leap.

Lan WangJi noticed the movement, ordering in a lowered voice, “Who is it?!”

Wei WuXian let out two crisp whistles slide out from below his tongue. The sound was already a couple dozen yards away. He laughed, “It’s your husband!”

Hearing the voice, Lan WangJi’s expression changed. He couldn’t be sure, “Wei Ying?”

Wei WuXian didn’t answer him. Lan WangJi unsheathed Bichen from his back and chased after him. With a few hops and leaps, Wei WuXian had already landed atop the tall walls of the Cloud Recesses. He stood up, stepping on a rooftop tile. Lan WangJi landed as well, standing a few feet away from him. Holding Bichen, his forehead ribbon, his sleeves, and the lower hems of his robes flapped in the night wind, almost heavenly.

Wei WuXian put his hands behind his back, grinning, “What a handsome man with what handsome moves. With such a scene, it’d be absolutely perfect if there were to be a handsome jar of Emperor’s Smile.”

Lan WangJi stared straight at him. A moment later, he spoke, “Wei Ying, what do you need, visiting the Cloud Recesses at night uninvited?”

Wei WuXian, “Guess?”

“…” Lan WangJi, “Ridiculous!”

Bichen’s blade sliced past, yet Wei WuXian dodged it easily. The young adult Lan WangJi was already adept at the sword, yet in front of the current Wei WuXian, he couldn’t really post much of a threat. Just a few exchanges, and he caught an opening, slapping a talisman onto Lan WangJi’s chest. Lan WangJi’s body froze, unable to move, while Wei WuXian grabbed him and sprinted towards the back mountains of the Cloud Recesses.

Wei WuXian found a thick bush of herb plants. Lan WangJi was placed here, leaning against a white rock, “What do you want?”

Wei WuXian pinched his cheek, his face serious, “Rape.”

Lan WangJi couldn’t tell if he was joking or not, face growing pale, “Wei Ying, you… must not act so recklessly.”

Wei WuXian laughed, “You know me. I love acting recklessly.” As he spoke, he reached under Lan WangJi’s thick layers and took a squeeze at a critical region of his.

The squeeze was quite skillfully executed, between light and heavy. Instantly, Lan WangJi’s expression grew funny.

The corners of his mouth twitched as he sealed his lips together, eventually managing to take control over his face and feign calmness. However, Wei WuXian went even further, untying his sashes and stripping his lower garments in just a few moves. He weighed in his hand the heavy thing that didn’t at all match Lan WangJi’s delicate features, praising from the bottom of his heart, “You’ve truly been talented since a young age, HanGuang-Jun.”

After he spoke, he even gave the shaft a light flick. With the such a private part of his body being played with like this, Lan WangJi already looked as if he was about to die from rage. He didn’t have the spare energy to think about whom HanGuang-Jun was either, his voice harsh, “Wei Ying!!!”

Wei WuXian snickered, “Shout all you want. Nobody would come to save you even if you shout your throat hoarse.”

Lan WangJi was about to speak again as he watched Wei WuXian finish laughing and, brushing a strand of hair behind his ear, sink down to swallow the length down below.

Shock exploded in Lan WangJi’s eyes. He couldn’t even believe what was happening, his entire body stiff.

The seventeen-year-old Lan WangJi was still surrounded by youthful immaturity, yet the size of that erection was definitely not to be reckoned with. Wei WuXian slowly took the length into his mouth. Even before he could swallow everything, he felt its slippery tip knock against the wall of his throat. The body of the erection was thick and searing. The inside of his mouth could even feel the strong pulse of its veins. His cheeks also puffed from stuffing the foreign object inside. Despite the difficulty, he still patiently sent the remaining bit deeper into his throat.

Wei WuXian was indeed quite experienced with dealing with that member of Lan WangJi’s. He gave it all that he had, sucking and licking with much noise, almost as though he was tasting some sort of delicacy with devotion. Even with Lan WangJi’s ever-so-fair complexion that refused to let out a single tint of red, he was still blushing at his neck and ears, breaths shallow. Wei WuXian spent so long time sucking and swallowing that even his cheeks began to hurt, yet still there was no release. He was quite puzzled as to what was going on—it was impossible he wasn’t even skilled enough to handle the seventeen-year-old Lan WangJi. He glanced up, however, only to find that Lan WangJi’s face was full of endurance. The rod was clearly already as hard as iron, yet he persisted stubbornly, refusing to release almost as if he was trying to protect some last line of defense.

He found it to be quite amusing, his desire to make mischief rising up again. The moist tip of the tongue licked again and again the slit atop the thick glans. With a few deep throats, Lan WangJi finally couldn’t hold it any longer and let it out.