Wei Ying opened his eyes and saw nothing. He blinked rapidly,  unsure why he was in so much pain. And this place, where was he?

"Master." A welcome voice said, out of the deepness of the black.

Wei Ying looked up into the red eyes of Hui Gai.

And then, he remembered everything.

He scrambled up and threw his arms around the demon.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I failed you!" He sobbed.

"Master. It is alright." Hui Gai awkwardly patted his back. "This might be a good thing."

"W-What?" Wei Ying pulled away, terribly confused.

"I can speak to you directly now. Just that alone, is so much better. And even better than that," Hui Gai licked his red lips. "I am your servant now."

"Never call yourself that!" Wei Ying cried, angry. "You are, and will always be my friend."

"As you wish." Hui Gai wiped the tears from his face. "You shall not cry for me, Master. Now that we are together, there is still a chance we can do something."

"What do you mean?" Wei Ying rubbed his chest unconsciously, feeling a strange sort of pain.

"I am not sure yet. Let us see what happens when you wake. My allegiance is now yours, I will do whatever you ask of me. Keep me in thoughts from now, so you will hear when I call."

"I trust you, my friend." Wei Ying hugged him again.

*******

Lan Zhan stood on the bridge that Jiang Cheng had helped to make, lost in thought.

Wen Ning had already rounded up the village folk and gathered them in the town centre. They turned out to be quite peaceful of nature once all the troops had arrived. His brother was talking to them now, asking for information on the whereabouts of Jiang Cheng and Wei Ying.

Li Hua and Wen Ning were standing behind him, watching.

Shen Ling landed gracefully on the other side of the bridge, looking at Lan Zhan.

"I'm sorry, Young Master. I lost the signal suddenly. I very clearly felt him before, but then..."

Lan Zhan looked at the still vibrant blue flame on his finger.
"He's alive."

The words did nothing to calm him. A feeling like ants crawling all over him had been constant since he left Cloud Recesses a few days ago. Wei Ying? He put all his love and attention into those two words. Where are you?

The sudden elation at Shen Ling's announcement, that he could sense Wei Ying, had died upon coming into contact with a ward. This unseen barrier stopped them from passing further than crossing the bridge.

Shen Ling had tried and failed; Lan Zhan sent out talismans, and they were useless. They needed Wei Ying's expertise now.

They were running out of time.

Tonight was the eve of the Autumn Equinox.

******

A/N

I'm sorry for the really short chapter but hopefully you, my dear readers, will forgive me! It was not my choice but rather than losing these words, I updated a bit early. Next chapter will definitely make up for this!

And look at this! We are up to chapter 50 already!!

Thank you so much for sticking with me and this story. I love reading what you think, your reactions are priceless to me. You guys bring me so much joy!