With most of the adults busy and distracted by the series of catastrophic events happening in Nightless City, under the roof of the Chief Cultivator himself, no one is paying any attention to the children.

This time, they're more careful after the debacle with Wen Xu, hiding away under the balcony where the Murder Babies had first heard Madam Yu speaking with Wen Zhuliu.

Lan Zhan is panicking because, while he's not ashamed of anything they've done so far, they've still got three people on his kill list to go, and it is absolutely imperative that they die. But the plan will be derailed if they are found out. This opportunity isn't going to repeat itself, and he's all in. But who would have thought the Lans' own expert Cultivation would get in the way? Not him, that's for sure.

Wen Qing is quietly freaking out too, because they are about to be exposed in a really shitty way. Trust that nasty dog poop of a cousin to turn around and still be a pain in the ass, even while he's dead!

"We've still got time," Wei Ying says, looking upwards at the sky. "How long will the funerals take?"

It's still Chen shi* (*7 am to 9 am).

"At least an hour each, so maybe until lunchtime? My uncle will probably delay it as much as he can, so we're looking at the early afternoon. Did you see his face when my mother said they'd get your Shufu to play Inquiry? I don't think he's happy about the Lans talking to the deceased, either." Wen Qing is frantically pacing.

The only one who appears calm is Xue Yang, who is crouched on the floor drawing patterns in the dirt. "Why would he be? I bet he's got so much more to lose if your uncle starts talking to the dead and there's suddenly too many of them," he drawls, not looking up. He snickers at the idea.

"That's it!" Wei Ying shouts and is immediately glared at for being too loud by Wen Qing. He blushes and carries on in a whisper. "Shifu might start out calling for Wen Xu and Sect Leader Foot-in-Mouth, but what if there are so many people who have died here that Wen Xu is lost, one voice drowned out by too many others?"

"Inquiry doesn't work like that. If Shufu is given something of Wen Xu's, he'll be fine. He will be able to connect directly with that rotten swine immediately, especially given the violent nature of his death. His spirit is probably hanging around, just waiting to spill his guts!" Lan Zhan replies, downcast.

"Or his bladder," Wei Ying snickers.

But no one laughs, stressed as they are.

Then they hear two sets of footsteps above them, and suddenly, everyone is alert.

"Wen Zhuliu, we have a problem."

That's Wen Ruohan!

"I trust you know how grave the situation is. Lan Qiren cannot be allowed to use musical cultivation under the roof of Nightless City. It is too early...and I am not yet ready to fight all of them."

"Yes, sir."

"I need to know that if I fail to convince him, then you at least, will take care of him?"

"Yes, sir."

"It will be our last resort, because if we destroy his core, that's the same as declaring war on the others. Wait for my signal."

"Yes, sir."

"You can make him disappear. And because you've been so well-behaved, if you succeed, I will let you visit your father. He was asking after you, you know." Wen Ruohan sounds smug.

"Yes, sir."

"The first funeral should be over soon. I will try to talk to him before the next one. It will look bad if I'm not there for A-Xu. But needs must. Come."

"Yes, sir."

And then both sets of steps fade away.

"People need to pick better places for secret chats," Wei Ying grumbles. "I never thought I'd see the day when Wen Ruohan's and my interests would align."

"Mn. He is going to hurt Shufu." Lan Zhan looks seconds away from going to his uncle and telling him everything.

Wei Ying thinks hard, staring at Xue Yang. He's the key in all this...

"Xue Yang, remember when we first met? You said you wouldn't come back here, and you tried to convince us not to come here, too. Why?"

Xue Yang looks torn in between not wishing to tell him and laying everything down that he knows. Then he points downwards, keeping his voice so low, the other three strain themselves trying to hear him. "Wen Ruohan is building an army down there. But there's something wrong with those people, like, they're dead but not completely? It's hard to explain."

"Are you saying they're like...puppets? Can he control them?" Wei Ying is suddenly very excited. He's remembering the fierce corpses they fought in the Sunshot Campaign.

"Not all the way. I snuck in once, just to see where he kept going cos it was so rare to see him. I get restless in closed spaces, so I went exploring." Xue Yang grins but it's gone in a flash. "I found a door behind a painting in his room, and followed the way down to the caves under the Palace. I saw Wen Ruohan cut his arms, and when he ran out of space, he started on his legs, and then he was pouring his blood over some weird kind of metal thing over a blue fire pit. I was lucky to get out. That's some weird kind of black magic."

"When you say... not all the way?"

"They're really creepy looking, those people. White eyes and these red cracks along their skin, which by the way, isn't normal like this." Xue Yang holds up his bare arm, sliding up his sleeve so they can see. "It's kind of grey and rotting. When he's commanding them, it's like he's trying to get inside their heads, and they're fighting him about it, cos you can see those things really struggling. But he must be making progress, otherwise why continue?"

"My Mama said the tunnel was used in the olden days for the leader to be able to leave if someone broke into the palace or his bedroom." Wen Qing supplies.

"So there must be a way out, right? From the caves? What if we release the fierce corpses from there, out into the open? Then people will be forced to confront Wen Ruohan and bring him to justice! And Shifu will have TOO many dead people to talk to! It's a brilliant plan!" Wei Ying is dancing on the spot, and Lan Zhan just wants to throw his arms around him, so hopelessly in love with him.

"It IS a good plan!" Wen Qing says, "but you're forgetting that we have another problem: my uncle is willing to hurt yours just to keep his secret. We have to stop them from talking to each other, and we don't have much time!"

"We can split up!" Wei Ying turns to Lan Zhan, taking his hands and squeezing them tightly.

Immediately Lan Zhan knows he's going to hate whatever he's going to say.

"Lan Zhan-"

"No."

"Lan Zhan, please listen!"

Lan Zhan keeps his eyes on Wei Ying when he shakes his head adamantly.

"Look, you're the best person to talk to Shifu, and now that you know Wen Ruohan is out to get him, you can intervene! You can get other people there, or make sure your uncle doesn't go anywhere alone with him. Take Wen Qing with you, and she can use her needles to paralyse him if he gets too close!" Wei Ying softens his voice.

"I do not want to part from Wei Ying."

There it is, the sole reason for Lan Zhan going on this crazy trip. There is so much pain in his beautiful golden eyes, a lifetime of suffering that Wei Ying is not currently making any better.

"Sweetheart, I don't want that, either." His eyes are too wet, but Wei Ying swallows past the lump in his throat with great determination. "But you know as well as I do that we can't be in two places at once. We have to protect Shifu and we have to release the proof of Wen Ruohan's bad deeds. Xue Yang can take me straight down into the caves and we can find a way. My talismans will help."

He keeps nodding at Lan Zhan, who finally stops shaking his head to pull him closer. This hug is short and tight, because time always seems to be against them. But he knows Wei Ying is right.

They really can't be in two places at the same time, and Wei Ying's idea is the best - but that doesn't mean he has to like it.

****************

Wen Tang Changpu had seen the murderous rage on her brother's face when she had agreed with the person who suggested that some kind of cleansing ritual be used on the palace. But with so many deaths in one night, what better way than the soul summoning Inquiry being used to understand why so many had passed away?

She might have laughed if someone had suggested there was something dangerous afoot, someone who wanted all these people dead, because really, the deaths were so random. Who could have a grudge against an idiot Sect Leader, a child of just nine years, and the Jiangs?

Though, when she thinks about it like that, it's hard to believe that they all died by accident. Her nephew dying is the part she hates, the fact that he was just a young kid. She knew Wen Xu could be a little dipshit when he wanted to be, and she knew that he regularly bullied her children, though Wen Qing could and did give him a run for his money, but children bullied each other all the time, right?

There wasn't much she could do to prevent it, either, because Wen Xu knew how precarious her own position in the palace is, and the fact that he was the heir to the most powerful man in the Cultivation world was an advantage that he never failed to use, so it became a matter of teaching her children how to avoid their cousins as much as possible.

Wen Chao was learning bad traits from both his father and his brother, so the removal of one might make him a better person, but only time could tell.

And now, she has another worry: running interference between her brother and Lan Qiren.

She knows Wen Ruohan won't stop when he wants something, and he definitely did not want Lan Qiren to play Rest, or Inquiry today, so she's extra sharp about keeping an eye on her brother and making sure he gets nowhere near Lan Qiren today.

If they don't do something to quell the nervousness of their guests today, she's afraid that Nightless City will empty out overnight, and no one will ever come back here after this fiasco of a conference. She can see the fear and confusion in all the people gathered here to honour Sect Leader Yao on his final journey onwards to the afterlife. They want answers that everything happening so far is truly an accident, and they want guarantees that when they go to sleep at night, they will wake up hale and hearty in the morning.

Wen Tang Changpu doesn't blame them, one single bit.

**************

Wen Qing pulls on Lan Zhan's sleeve as they hurry towards the courtyard where Sect Leader Yao is being cremated. The ceremony is over and now they're waiting for Wen Xu to arrive, which he does, wrapped tightly in cotton muslin, carried on a stretcher.

The smell hits them first, and Wen Qing does her best to locate her uncle and see where Lan Qiren is before directing Lan Zhan to his side.

"Try not to get noticed otherwise he's going to ask you where Wei Ying is," she cautions as he nods miserably, leaving her side.

Lan Zhan hates Nightless City, he hates being away from Wei Ying, and he absolutely loathes Wen Ruohan for putting them in this situation. He walks silently, his small stature giving him room to move to the front, standing just behind his uncle. He can see Wen Ruohan straight across from them, staring at his Shufu.

His determination that the man gets nowhere near Lan Qiren flares into a white-hot intensity, not only because he doesn't want his uncle to play anything other than a soul calming song for the dead. Nothing like Inquiry or Rest. And it's disgusting that their agenda matches Wen Ruohan but for different reasons.

And then, for the hundredth time, he wonders where Wei Ying is, and if Xue Yang will keep him safe?

************

Wei Ying hopes he can be sure about Xue Yang leading the way, both metaphorically and literally. How much they can trust him remains to be seen, though he has no reason to doubt him except the connections of their past lifetime.

But that Xue Yang was a different person then, and this one is not the same. Okay, he's just as bloodthirsty in that weird, detached way of his, but Wei Ying is extremely grateful that he's on their side right now.

They dart past the lax security guards, and what remains of the Elite guards on the upper floors leading to Wen Ruohan's private quarters. Most of the servants and disciples are gathered in the stone courtyard behind the palace, and in a place of this size, that's quite a distance away. Nobody pays them much attention since they're just two kids running around. Still, it's best to be careful.

The floor where Wen Ruohan resides is empty and so it's easy to get to his door. That's where they encounter their first problem: the door won't open.

"It's warded," Wei Ying says, raising his hand.

Xue Yang is in the process of trying to pick the lock with his knife when he glances back. And then he stands up in awe as Wei Ying draws characters in the air that flash gold and then red, and are absorbed into the wood. He can feel the resistance of whatever was preventing them from going in, fading away in an instance, and then Wei Ying pushes the door open with a single finger, grinning triumphantly.

They quickly enter and then Wei Ying re-activates the ward again, so Wen Ruohan won't be suspicious when he comes back.

He follows Xue Yang straight towards the second door, past the countless treasures and huge porcelain urns that serve as decorations in Wen Ruohan's dressing room. There is a mirror on one side, and combs and bottles of fragrant oils on the dresser, probably for his hair. Three huge trunks are pushed up against the walls, made from strong teak and lacquer artwork decorating the lids, no doubt containing his ceremonial robes and daily clothes. The entire room is a mix of red and gold and black, a far cry from the whiteness of the rest of the marble palace.

There's a second ward on the bedroom door, this one stronger because they both feel odd about wanting to pass by it, as if the ward is messing with their minds, trying to change their decision to want to enter the room. But Wei Ying has been breaking amateur wards like this with ease, in both of his lifetimes, and this one's no exception.

Within seconds, they're inside and Xue Yang is taking Wei Ying straight to the picture that hides the secret passageway to the caves below. One last ward to break and re-activate, and then they step into the dark as it swallows them up.

*****************

Wen Qing is watching her Mama watching her uncle and she sees the determination on both of their faces. Then they both turn to look at Lan Qiren, who seems to have no idea what's going on. His eyes are closed in meditation.

That's when Wen Qing realises that she must keep her mother away from Lan Qiren too, because she will convince the Acting Sect Leader to use his musical cultivation and that is detrimental to their cause.

As soon as the flames die out on the pile of ash that used to be her no-good rotten cousin, Wen Qing moves to intercept her mother and nearly trips up in the process because she hadn't noticed her little other cousin, Wen Chao, sitting on the floor and watching everyone with interest.

And that small act gives her a brilliant idea. It will make her a little late, but hopefully, it'll be worth it.

She turns her full attention to her little cousin, the one that is going to grow up to massacre hundreds of thousands of innocent people, both cultivators and laymen, and she finds she has no remorse for what she's about to do.

She picks him up, despite him kicking her and she swallows the distaste by firing up her determination.

"A-Chao, do you want to play a game?" she asks him sweetly.

"No!" He shouts and then lowers his voice because everyone glares at him.

"Okay, do you want to play a naughty game?" She tries again, and this time, she's caught her prey.

"What kind of naughty game?" He wants to know.

"You have to hide in your father's robes and every time he tries to walk, grab his legs."

Wen Chao stares at her, trying to determine whether that will be fun or not. It's definitely naughty, and he knows he shouldn't do it...but it sounds fun. And Wen Qing can be bossy, but she never lies. He looks over towards his father, who looks sad. And a bit angry.

"Will he smile?" He asks.

"Yes," Wen Qing lies. Alright, she feels a little bad for that one. But then she's reminded of his terrible taste in women by an image of Wang Lingjiao draped all over him. All regrets burn to ash. "And you can't tell anyone that we're playing this game."

"Okay," he agrees easily.

She puts the child down and watches as he crawls under the robes of an unsuspecting Chief Cultivator.

Things are about to get very interesting, indeed.

****************

Wen Tang Changpu bolts over to Lan Qiren as soon as she can, and looks over to her brother who... what? Did Wen Ruohan fall over his own feet??

She's never, ever seen her brother trip up before!

But there's not enough time, and when is there, she thinks bitterly as she glances away from the crowd that gathers around Wen Ruohan, anxious to help him up and dust off his robes.

She quickly pulls Lan Qiren to one side.

"My brother doesn't want you to play your music," she whispers desperately fast. "Do not go anywhere with him-"

"Shufu, I'm hungry!" A little voice demands next to them, and they both look down to see the Second Lan Er-Gonzei in all his cuteness staring up at them. He looks seconds away from crying.

"A-Pu, do not worry," Lan Qiren says, while simultaneously picking Lan Zhan up. "I can look after myself."

"He's going to try and get you alone-"

Lan Qiren nods, well aware of the danger. Wen Ruohan already doesn't like him, and now a third party person wants Lan Qiren to play Inquiry in the Chief Cultivator's own home? That's got to be humiliating. He wants to get out of doing it, but then there will be uproar among the cultivators. They're already jittery as it is, and so many sudden deaths have put people on edge like nothing before.

"Shufu, hungwy!" Lan Zhan says again, though he's far from feeling that way. But he needs to get his uncle far away from Wen Qing's mother.

"Let's go to the kitchens. Plenty of people there," Wen Tang Changpu says, ushering them away from the main courtyard.

There's a shout, followed by a huge crash and when they turn around, Wen Ruohan is in a heap with his son, Wen Chao, and somehow they have managed to make the Head Priest collapse on top of them. Unfortunately for everyone concerned, the Head Priest happened to be carrying the urn with Wen Xu's ashes inside it. The urn is smashed on the ground and Wen Ruohan's murderous face is resembling a fierce corpse, alongside his son.

Naturally, there are dramatic gasps.

"Oh...oh dear," the Head Priest says, struggling to rise.

Hardly anyone offers to help them because they're covered in icky ashes, and that's just...really gross.

Someone calls out for three baths to be prepared and Wen Chao's nanny is forced to pick him up. All three are in no fit state for company, and it is with a longing look that Wen Ruohan reluctantly turns away to go and get cleaned up.

The last thing Lan Qiren sees is a gardener with a grim face sweeping up the ashes and pouring them into another urn. If the child was at peace before, then he certainly isn't now, Lan Qiren thinks uncharitably, as he brings Lan Zhan to the kitchen. But at least he's safe from Wen Ruohan for the time being ...