TFOD Chapter 4

Chapter 3: Wild Spillage Second Act

He originally wanted to wash his face, to admire this body’s remains, but there was no water in the room, nothing to drink or wash with.

The only basin-like object, Wei Wuxian guessed, was for excretion, not for washing.

Pushing the door, he found it bolted from the outside, probably to prevent him from running around.

Not a single thing gave him even a hint of joy in his rebirth!

He simply decided to meditate for a while to adjust to his new body. This sitting lasted for a whole day. When he opened his eyes, sunlight was leaking into the room from the door and window cracks. Although he could get up and walk, he was still dizzy and his vision was blurry, with no improvement. Wei Wuxian thought strangely, “This Mo Xuanyu’s cultivation is so low that his spiritual power can be ignored, there’s no reason I can’t control this body, why is it so difficult to use?”

It wasn’t until a strange noise came from his stomach that he understood it had nothing to do with his cultivation or spiritual power. It was just that this body, not practicing abstinence from grains, was hungry. If he didn’t go find food soon, he might become the first fierce ghost or evil spirit in history to be invited into a body and immediately starve to death.

Wei Wuxian gathered his energy and lifted his foot, ready to kick the door open when suddenly a series of footsteps approached. Someone kicked the door and said impatiently, “It’s time to eat!”

Though the words were said, there was no intention of opening the door. Wei Wuxian looked down, and saw a smaller door open at the bottom of the door, just enough to see a small bowl heavily placed in front of the door.

The servant outside added, “Hurry up! What are you dawdling for? Take the bowl out when you’re done!”

The small door was even smaller than a dog hole, not allowing anyone to pass through, but it could bring in the bowl. Two dishes and a bowl of rice, looking terrible. Wei Wuxian stirred the two chopsticks stuck in the rice, feeling a little sad:

The Yi Ling Patriarch had just returned to the world and was kicked and cursed at. His first meal to welcome him back was this kind of leftovers. Where was the bloody storm? Where was the complete extermination? Who would believe it if he told them? This was truly a tiger fallen in the plains being bullied by dogs, a dragon swimming in shallow water being harassed by shrimps; a plucked phoenix is worse than a chicken.

Just then, the servant outside spoke again, this time in a cheerful voice, as if a different person: “A-Ding! Come here.”

Another sweet, clear female voice responded from afar, “A-Tong, are you going to take food to that one inside again?”

A-Tong spat, “Otherwise, why would I come to this unlucky courtyard!”

A-Ding’s voice got much closer, reaching the door: “You only take food to him once a day, it wouldn’t be a problem if you occasionally slack off, and you still call it unlucky. Look at me, I have so many chores I can’t even go out to play.”

A-Tong complained, “It’s not like I only take food to him! How would you dare go out to play these days? With so many walking corpses, every family has closed their doors tightly.”

Wei Wuxian squatted down by the door, holding the bowl and eating with the two uneven chopsticks while listening.

It seemed that the Mo Family Manor was not very peaceful lately. Walking corpses, as the name suggested, were dead people that walked around. They were a common and relatively low-level type of corpse transformation. Generally, they had a blank look, walked slowly, and their lethality was not very high, but it was enough to scare ordinary people. Just the stench was enough to make anyone vomit.

However, to Wei Wuxian, they were the easiest and most obedient puppets to control. Hearing about them suddenly made him feel a little familiar.

A-Tong seemed to be winking and making faces: “If you want to go out, take me with you, I’ll protect you…” A-Ding said, “You? Protect me? You’re bluffing. Do you really think you can fight off those things?” A-Tong said sulkily, “I can’t fight them off, but neither can anyone else.” A-Ding laughed, “How do you know other people can’t fight them off? Let me tell you, today, there are messengers from the cultivation sects that came to our Mo Family Manor. I heard they are from a very impressive, prominent family! The Madam is entertaining them in the hall, and everyone in town is crowded around watching. Listen, isn’t it noisy? I have no time to fool around with you, and they might order me around again soon.”

Wei Wuxian focused his senses. Indeed, there was a faint sound of hubbub coming from the east. After a moment of thought, he got up, lifted his foot, and kicked the door. The bolt broke with a “crack”.

The two servants were flirting and laughing when they were startled by the door suddenly flying open on both sides, letting out a shriek. Wei Wuxian threw aside the bowl and chopsticks and walked straight out, but the sunlight blinded him for a while, and his skin felt a slight prickling sensation. He raised his hand to his brow, closing his eyes for a moment.

A-Tong had shrieked even louder than A-Ding. After calming down, she saw it was the madman everyone could bully, and her courage grew again. Feeling the need to regain the face she had lost, she jumped forward and shouted, waving her hand like she was shooing away a dog, “Go, go! Go back! What did you come out for!”

Even a beggar or a fly wouldn’t be treated any worse. These servants had probably always treated Mo Xuanyu like this, and he never resisted, which allowed them to be so unbridled. Wei Wuxian lightly kicked A-Tong, sending her tumbling, and laughed, “Who do you think you’re humiliating?”

After kicking her, he followed the sound of the hubbub towards the east. The east hall and courtyard were crowded with people, and a woman’s voice, louder than everyone else’s, was heard, “…Our family has a younger member, who also had a chance at becoming a cultivator…”

It must be that Madam Mo, again trying to connect with a cultivation family. Wei Wuxian didn’t wait for her to finish, quickly pushing through the crowd and squeezing into the hall. He waved enthusiastically and said, “I’m here, I’m here!”

Sitting in the hall was a middle-aged woman, well-maintained and dressed in rich, luxurious clothes. She was Madam Mo. The one sitting below her was her adopted husband. Opposite them were several sword-carrying young men in white robes. A disheveled, strange-looking man suddenly appeared in the crowd, and all the noise stopped abruptly. Wei Wuxian seemed completely oblivious to the frozen scene, shamelessly saying, “Who called for me just now? The one with a chance at becoming a cultivator, that must be me!”

Her makeup was too thick, and it cracked as she smiled, falling down in flakes. One of the young men in white robes nearly burst out laughing with a “pfft,” but he was given a disapproving look by the young man who seemed to be the leader, and immediately became serious.

Wei Wuxian followed the sound and scanned with his eyes, and was slightly startled. He thought it was an exaggeration of the ignorant servants, but who knew that the people who came were really disciples of a “prominent family’s” cultivation sect.

These young men were light and elegant, with flowing ribbons. Their immortal aura was so majestic and beautiful, and their uniforms clearly showed they were from the Gusu Lan Sect. Moreover, they were direct descendants with Lan family blood, because they all wore a white forehead ribbon with a curling cloud pattern one finger wide.

The Gusu Lan Sect’s family motto was “Elegance and Righteousness.” This forehead ribbon symbolized “self-discipline.” The curling cloud pattern was the Lan family’s crest. Guest disciples or disciples who were attached to a large family but had different surnames would not have the family crest on their forehead ribbons. Wei Wuxian’s teeth always ached when he saw people from the Lan family. He used to slander their uniforms as “wearing mourning clothes” in his mind, so he would never mistake them.

Madam Mo hadn’t seen this nephew for a long time, and it took her a while to recover from her shock. Recognizing the heavily made-up person, she felt annoyed and didn’t want to lose her composure immediately. She lowered her voice and said to her husband, “Who let him out? Take him back!”

Her husband hurriedly responded with a forced smile, looking unhappy, and got up to grab him. However, Wei Wuxian suddenly lay down on the ground, his limbs stuck firmly to the ground. He tried pushing and dragging but couldn’t move him. He called in several servants to drag him as well, but to no avail. If it weren’t for the outsiders, he would have kicked him already. Seeing Madam Mo’s face turning uglier, he was also sweating profusely, and scolded, “You crazy fool! If you don’t go back, see how I deal with you!”

Although everyone in the Mo Family Manor knew that there was a young master in the Mo family who had gone mad, Mo Xuanyu had been hiding in his dark room for several years, not daring to see anyone. Seeing his makeup and behavior as if he were a demon, the people present started whispering to each other, fearing that there would be a good show to watch.

Wei Wuxian said, “It’s okay for me to go back.” He pointed directly at Mo Ziyuan, “You make him return the things he stole from me first.”

Mo Ziyuan never expected this madman to have such courage. He had only been taught a lesson yesterday, and today he dared to come here and make accusations. His face was flushed as he said, “You’re talking nonsense! When did I steal your things? Do I even need to steal your things?”

Wei Wuxian said, “Yes, yes, yes! You didn’t steal, you robbed!”

Now Madam Mo could see that Mo Xuanyu clearly had come prepared, and that his mind was clear. He was intentionally trying to make them lose face, and she couldn’t help but feel both shocked and angry. “Are you deliberately causing trouble here today, isn’t it?!”

Wei Wuxian asked blankly, “He stole and robbed my things, and I came to get them back. Is that causing trouble?”

Before Madam Mo could answer, Mo Ziyuan became anxious and kicked him. One of the young men in white robes carrying a sword slightly moved his fingers. Mo Ziyuan lost his balance and the kick only grazed past him. He fell down himself. Wei Wuxian rolled around as if he had really been kicked, and even pulled open his collar. On his chest was the exact footprint Mo Ziyuan had kicked the day before.

The townspeople of the Mo Family Manor were watching the show with great interest and excitement: It wasn’t possible for Mo Xuanyu to have kicked that footprint on himself, and no matter what, he was of the Mo family’s bloodline. This family was too cruel. When he first returned, he was clearly not this crazy, so he must have been forced to go mad. Regardless, it was good to have some entertainment, and it wouldn’t affect them anyway. This show was better than the arrival of the cultivation sect’s messengers!

With so many eyes staring, unable to hit him or chase him away, Madam Mo had a lump of resentment stuck in her throat. She had to force herself to smooth things over and said lightly, “What stealing, what robbing? Why make it so unpleasant to hear? We are all family, he just borrowed them to have a look. A-Yuan is your younger brother, what’s wrong with him taking a few things of yours? As an older brother, are you so petty? Why make such a big deal out of such a small matter and act like a child? It’s not like he won’t return them to you.”

The young men in white robes looked at each other in bewilderment, and a young man who was drinking tea nearly choked. Growing up in the Gusu Lan Sect, they were constantly exposed to poetic and beautiful things. They had probably never seen such a farce, nor had they heard such a ridiculous statement. Today, they were probably gaining some new insights. Wei Wuxian laughed wildly in his heart, and stretched out his hand, “Then return them.”

Of course, Mo Ziyuan couldn’t return them. He had already thrown away or broken them. Even if he could return them, he was unwilling to do so. His face was pale as he shouted, “Mother!” He gave her a threatening look, asking, ‘Are you just going to let him humiliate me like this?’

Madam Mo glared at him, telling him not to make the situation even more ugly. Who knew that Wei Wuxian would say again, “Speaking of which, not only should he not have stolen my things, he shouldn’t have done it in the middle of the night. Who doesn’t know, this young master here likes men, he doesn’t know shame, but I know to keep a proper distance.”

Madam Mo gasped, and loudly said, “What are you saying in front of everyone! You’re shameless, A-Yuan is your cousin!”

When it came to making a scene, Wei Wuxian was a master. In the past, when he made a scene, he still had to keep his dignity and not let people say he had no upbringing, but now that he was a madman anyway, why should he care about face? He could just throw a tantrum. He could do whatever made him feel good, he raised his neck and said, full of righteousness, “He clearly knows he’s my cousin but doesn’t avoid suspicion, so who is more shameless?! If you don’t want it, that’s your problem, but don’t ruin my reputation! I still need to find a good man!!!”

Mo Ziyuan screamed and lifted a chair to smash it. Wei Wuxian saw that he had finally blown up and scrambled to get up and dodge. The chair smashed to the ground and broke into pieces. The people surrounding the east hall, who were originally enjoying the misfortune of the Mo family, all scattered like birds and beasts, afraid of being hurt by accident. Wei Wuxian then ran towards the young men from the Lan family, who were almost dumbfounded, and shouted, “Did you all see that? Did you all see that? The thief is also a bully, they have no conscience!”

Mo Ziyuan wanted to chase after him and hit him, but the leading young man hurriedly stopped him, saying, “This… young master, please, let’s talk this out.”

Madam Mo saw that this young man was intentionally protecting the madman, and feeling wary, she forced a smile and said, “This is my younger sister’s son, he… he’s a little unwell. Everyone in the Mo Family Manor knows he’s a madman, and he always says strange things that can’t be taken seriously. Cultivator, please don’t…” Before she could finish, Wei Wuxian popped his head out from behind the young man, “Who said my words can’t be taken seriously? Anyone who steals from me again, I’ll cut off one of their hands!”

Mo Ziyuan had originally been held down by his father, but he was about to lose it again upon hearing that. Wei Wuxian scampered away like a fish. The young man hurriedly stood in front of the door, changing the topic, and speaking seriously, “Well… then we will borrow the west courtyard tonight. Please remember what I said before, after dusk, keep the doors tightly shut, don’t go out to move around, and do not approach that courtyard either.”

Madam Mo was trembling with anger, but with him blocking the way, she couldn’t push him away. She could only say, “Yes, yes, I understand, thank you, thank you…”

Mo Ziyuan said in disbelief, “Mom! That madman smeared me like that in front of everyone, and we’re just going to let it go?! You said, you said he was just a…”

Madam Mo shouted, “Shut up. Can’t you say whatever it is after we get back!”

Mo Ziyuan had never suffered such a loss, or been humiliated like this, and had never been scolded by his mother like this. He was filled with hatred, and roared, “That madman is going to die tonight!”

After Wei Wuxian finished causing trouble, he left the door, and wandered around the Mo Family Manor, shocking countless passersby. He was enjoying it, starting to understand the fun of being a madman. He was even becoming satisfied with his hanged-ghost makeup, feeling a little reluctant to wash it off. He thought, anyway, there’s no water, so don’t wash it. He straightened his hair, and glanced at his wrist. The scar didn’t show any signs of fading or improving. This meant that letting out some steam for Mo Xuanyu like that, that small revenge was far from enough.

Could it be that he really needed to exterminate the Mo family?

…Honestly, that wasn’t difficult at all.

While Wei Wuxian was pondering, he wandered back to the Mo family. As he was tiptoeing past the west courtyard, he saw several Lan family disciples standing on the rooftops and eaves, solemnly discussing something. He tiptoed back again and looked up at them expectantly.

Although the Gusu Lan Sect was one of the main families that laid siege to him, at that time these juniors were either not born yet or only a few years old, so it wasn’t their business at all. Wei Wuxian stopped and watched them, to see how they would handle things. As he was watching, he suddenly felt something was wrong.

Why were those black flags, standing on the rooftops and eaves, waving in the wind, so familiar?

These kinds of flags were called “Summoning Flags.” If they were inserted into a living person, they would attract the Yin spirits, vengeful spirits, fierce corpses, and evil spirits within a certain range, and they would only attack the living person. Because the person who was stuck with the flag would turn into a literal target, they were also called “Target Flags.” They could also be inserted into houses, but there had to be living people in the house, then the attack range would expand to all the people in the house. Because the area where the flag was placed would be surrounded by Yin energy, as if a black wind was swirling around, it was also called the “Black Wind Flag.” These young men were setting up a flag array in the west courtyard and were not letting others come close. They definitely wanted to attract the walking corpses here and wipe them out in one fell swoop.

As for why they were so familiar… how could they not be familiar? The maker of Summoning Flags was none other than the Yi Ling Patriarch!

It seemed that even though the cultivation families shouted for his head, they were still using the things he made…

One of the disciples standing on the eaves saw him watching and said, “Go back, this is not a place for you.”

Although it was a dismissal, it was out of kindness, and the tone of voice was very different from the servants. Wei Wuxian took advantage of his unguardedness and jumped up to grab a flag.

The disciple was shocked and jumped down the wall to chase after him, “Don’t move, this is not something you should be touching!”

Wei Wuxian ran and shouted, disheveled, waving his arms and legs, looking like a complete madman, “No give it back! No give it back! I want this! I want it!”

The disciple caught up to him in a few steps and grabbed his arm, “Will you give it back? If you don’t, I’ll hit you!”

Wei Wuxian hugged the flag and wouldn’t let go. The leading young man, who was originally setting up the flag array, was startled by the commotion and also jumped lightly off the eaves, “Jingyi, forget it, just take it back nicely, why bother with him.”

Lan Jingyi said, “Sizhui, I didn’t really hit him! Look at him, he messed up the flag array!”

While they were pulling and tugging, Wei Wuxian had quickly checked the Summoning Flag in his hand. The pattern was drawn correctly, and the incantation was not missing. There were no mistakes, and using it wouldn’t cause problems. It was just that the person who drew the flag was inexperienced, and the drawn pattern could only attract the evil spirits and walking corpses within a maximum of five miles. However, that was enough.

Lan Sizhui smiled slightly at him, “Young Master Mo, it’s getting dark, and we are about to capture the walking corpses here. It will be dangerous at night, you should go back to your room quickly.”

Wei Wuxian sized up the young man, seeing that he was refined and elegant, with a handsome appearance and a slight smile on his lips, a very good seedling that was worth applauding, and approved of him in his heart. This boy had set up the flag array in an orderly manner, and his family education was also very good. He didn’t know who could bring up such a descendant in the terrifying place where the old-fashioned people of the Gusu Lan Sect gathered.

Lan Sizhui said again, “This flag…”

Before he could finish, Wei Wuxian threw the Summoning Flag on the ground, and snorted, “It’s just a broken flag, what’s so great about it! I can draw much better than you!”

After throwing it, he ran away. Several young men who were still leaning on the roof watching the fun laughed, almost falling off the eaves when they heard his audacious words. Lan Jingyi was also angry and laughed, picking up the Summoning Flag and patting off the dust, “He is really a madman!”

Lan Sizhui said, “Don’t say that. Come back and help.”

Wei Wuxian continued to wander around aimlessly for a while, and only returned to Mo Xuanyu’s small courtyard in the evening. The door bolt was broken, and the place was messy with no one to clean it up. He acted as if he couldn’t see it, picked a clean spot on the ground, and continued to meditate.

Who knew, he hadn’t even meditated until dawn when the noises outside pulled him out of his meditation state.

A series of messy footsteps mixed with cries and screams were quickly approaching. Wei Wuxian heard a few sentences repeated over and over again, “…Rush in, drag him out!” “Report to the officials!” “What officials? Beat him to death with our heads covered!”

He opened his eyes, and several servants had already broken in. The whole courtyard was brightly lit by fire, and someone shouted, “Drag this murdering madman to the main hall, and make him pay with his life!”