At Lanling Jinlin Tai, Jin Guangyao, accompanied by Jin Ling and several Jin Clan elders, stood atop the steps to welcome the arriving guests. Spotting the members of the Lan Clan approaching, Jin Guangyao walked forward with a warm smile.
"Second Brother, you're here. Please, come inside," Jin Guangyao said.
"A-Yao," Lan Xichen greeted him.
Noticing a masked figure among the Lan Clan's ranks, Jin Guangyao asked with a puzzled look, "Second Brother, who might this young master in the mask be?"
Lan Xichen smiled and replied, "Ah, that is Young Master Mo, a friend of Wangji's."
With the cultivation sects nearly all assembled, Jin Guangyao led the Lan Clan delegation into Douyan Hall.
"Today is our Discussion Conference," Jin Guangyao announced. "As is customary, if anyone has any matters to raise, we can discuss them together. At noon, the Jin Clan has prepared a lavish banquet, and this afternoon we will hold a hunting competition, giving the younger generation a chance to test their skills."
...
Sector Chief Yao spoke up: "Clan Leader Lan, who exactly is that masked friend of yours? Is he a member of the Lan Clan?"
"He is a friend of Wangji's," Lan Xichen answered.
Sector Chief Yao chuckled. "Oh? Friends of Hanguang-Jun are a rare sight indeed; throughout all these years, there has only ever been one. I wonder if this friend would be willing to remove his mask so the rest of us can make his acquaintance?"
Hearing this, Lan Wangji snapped his gaze toward Sector Chief Yao. The icy glare in his eyes startled the Sector Chief into taking a half-step back.
Wei Wuxian reached out to tug gently at Lan Wangji's sleeve, then said unconcernedly, "You want to know who I am? I'm just afraid you'll regret it once you see my true face."
"Is that so?" Sector Chief Yao scoffed. "Then I must ask the young master to remove his mask."
"No rush. You'll see for yourselves soon enough," Wei Wuxian replied. "Everyone, I have come here today entrusted with a task. There are two matters that require you all to bear witness: the first happened sixteen years ago, and the second occurred at Mo Family Village."
"Sixteen years ago?" Sector Chief Yao pressed. "Could you be the Yiling Patriarch, Wei Wuxian?"
"I told you not to be in such a hurry; let's take them one by one," Wei Wuxian said smoothly. "Sixteen years ago, at Qiongqi Dao, Jin Zixuan met his death, alongside the Thousand-Holes Curse on Jin Zixuan's body. You all claimed that Wei Wuxian cast that curse. But as far as I know, the Thousand-Holes Curse is an immensely vicious spell; if the victim dies, the curse rebounds onto the caster. I wonder how Sector Chief Su has been managing over the past decade or so while carrying such a toxic curse?"
Su She's expression shifted as he snapped, "What are you spouting nonsense about? What does this have to do with me? That curse was cast by Wei Wuxian, how would I know anything about it?"
Wei Wuxian smiled. "Oh, is that so? Then I wonder what this is."
With a flash of sword light, Su She's outer robe was cleanly sliced open, exposing his startling chest. There, stark against his skin, were the exact same thousand holes that had covered Jin Zixuan before his death—resembling countless staring eyes spread across Su She's entire chest.
Gasps rippled through the cultivation sects. "Ah! It really is the Thousand-Holes Curse! He was the one who cursed Jin Zixuan!"
As the crowd erupted into murmurs and whispers, Su She realized his deception had been exposed and spun around to flee, only to be blocked by Bichen's blade.
"Sector Chief Su, don't be in such a hurry to run," Wei Wuxian said, his voice ringing clear. "We haven't discussed how you used the *Luanpochao* to disturb Wen Ning's mind and control him into killing Jin Zixuan! As for where the *Luanpochao* came from—shall Sector Chief Su explain it himself, or would you rather I tell you?"
"What *Luanpochao*?" Su She denied frantically. "I know nothing of it, I've never even heard of it, and it's even more impossible that I could control the Ghost General, Wen Ning."
"Oh, are you sure?" Wei Wuxian countered. "It's naturally impossible for *you* to possess it, but it's quite enough for your master to have it. As for Wen Ning, some things are better left for him to tell you himself. And as for the rest of you—you all shouted at the top of your lungs about grinding Wen Qing and Wen Ning into dust, yet in the end, didn't you still want to use Wen Ning as a tool for yourselves? After all these years, have you managed to tame him?"
The cultivation sects broke into uneasy whispers once again. Lan Wangji turned his head to look at Wei Wuxian, while Lan Xichen's gaze had locked onto Jin Guangyao the moment Wei Wuxian mentioned the *Luanpochao*. For the *Luanpochao* was a forbidden text kept within the Lan Clan's Restricted Library—a place that, apart from Lan Qiren, Lan Xichen, and Lan Wangji, could only be accessed by elders and the token Lan Xichen had personally given to Jin Guangyao.
Su She and Sector Chief Yao barked together, "Stop your raving nonsense here! The Ghost General has been dead for a long time!"