In order to defend himself if ol’ fuddy-duddy and lil’ fuddy-duddy came to drag him out of his bed in the middle of the night, Wei WuXian slept while clinging on to his sword. Yet, the night went smoothly. On the second day, Nie HuaiSang came to him with an overjoyed expression, “Wei-xiong, you really struck it lucky. The old man went to our sect’s Discussion Conference last night, so we don’t have classes for a few days!”

"Lucky strike indeed." said Wen Rouhan.

"He is going to cause troubles." muttered Lan Qiren.

Now that the old one is gone, the young one can be easily taken care of! Wei WuXian quickly climbed up, beaming as he put on his boots, “A lucky strike, indeed, almost as if Heaven is blessing me with its clouds.”

Jiang Cheng stood on the side, carefully cleaning his sword, and threw cold water on this notion, “When he comes back, you’re still gonna get your punishment.”

"Of course Jiang Cheng always kills the mood." said Wei Wuxian.

"Yeah he always spoils the fun." Nie Huaisang agreed.

Wei WuXian responded, “Why would a living person worry about what happens after they die? I’ll just live freely as long as possible. Let’s go. I refuse to believe that I can’t find any pheasants on this mountain of the Lan Sect.”

"You always thought of hunting pheasants." said Jin Zixuan.

"Because it was fun." said Wei Wuxian.

The three walked together, passing through the reception room of the Cloud Recesses. Suddenly, Wei WuXian stopped in his tracks and exclaimed, “There are two lil’ fuddy… Lan Zhan-s!”

A few people walked out of the room. Of the two youths at the front, both looked as if they were carved out of ice and jade, both wore the same snow-white robes, and both had sword tassels which swayed in the breeze, alongside ribbons on their clothes. The only differences were their ambiences and facial expressions. Wei WuXian could tell at once that, if the one with a stern face was Lan WangJi, the gentle one must be the other Jade of the Lan Sect—ZeWu-Jun, Lan XiChen.

"Lan Zhan is so good-looking." Wei Wuxian said dreamily.

"So bad they are already claimed." said a female cultivator with a pout.

"It's not like they will give attention to you even if they aren't claimed." her friend said.

As Lan WangJi saw Wei WuXian, he scrunched his brows, giving him a glare in an almost “glowering” fashion. As if he would be tainted if he looked a moment longer, he moved his gaze away and stared into the distance. On the other hand, Lan XiChen smiled, “And you are…?”

"Your brother-in-law." exclaimed Wei Wuxian.

Lan Xichen smiled.

"Lan Wangji seemed to hate you." said Jiang Cheng.

"No." said Lan Wangji.

Jiang Cheng just raised his brow at him.

Jiang Cheng showed his respect with a salute, “Jiang WanYin of Yunmeng.”

"You should've have introduced yourself as the future wife." teased Wei Wuxian.

"Wife? I will never be a wife!" exclaimed Jiang Cheng.

"Really? I don't think so." said Wei Wuxian with a grin.

Wei WuXian followed, “Wei WuXian of Yunmeng.”

Lan XiChen returned the salute. Nie HuaiSang whispered in the volume of a gnat, “Brother XiChen.”

Lan XiChen turned to him, “HuaiSang, a while ago, as I returned from Qinghe, your brother asked of your studies. How is it? This year, will you be able to pass?”

"I think so." said Nie Huaisang glancing at his brother.

"I don't want to come again next year." he added making his friends laughed at him.

Nie HuaiSang replied, “Generally speaking, yes…” He seemed like a wilted cucumber, looking at Wei WuXian in a helpless way. Wei WuXian grinned, “ZeWu-Jun, what are you two going out for?”

Lan XiChen, “To exterminate a water ghoul. We were short of hands, so I came back to find WangJi.”

"Water ghoul? We're finally going to witness ir guys." said Jingyi in happiness.

"Yes, it will be exciting!" exclaimed Zizhen.

The juniors was cheering making everyone looked at them with a confused face.

"Are they okay?" asked Nie Huaisang.

Lan WangJi spoke coldly, “Brother, we do not need to engage in small talk. This matter permits no delay; it is time for us to depart.”

Wei WuXian hurried, “Wait, wait, wait. I know how to catch water ghouls. ZeWu-Jun, why don’t you take us along?”

Lan XiChen smiled without words. Lan WangJi declared, “It is against the rules.”

"How is that against the rules? Zewu-jun please take us with you." Wei Wuxian said with a pleading eyes.

"He can do nothing." said Jiang Cheng.

"No! Brother-in-law please take us." Wei Wuxian whined, tugging Lan Xichen's robes.

Lan Xichen can only smile helplessly not knowing what to do.

Wei WuXian, “How is it against the rules? We used to catch water ghouls all the time in Yunmeng. Besides, we don’t have classes these days anyways.”

Yunmeng was abundant in lakes and water, so it teemed with water ghouls. It was true that people of the Jiang Sect were adept at this, and Jiang Cheng also wanted to make up for the face which the YunmengJiang Sect lost during this stay at the Lan Sect, “That’s right. ZeWu-Jun, we’d definitely be of help.”

"Now your husband said that so you must take us." said Wei Wuxian.

"Why do you want to join?" asked Jin Zixuan.

"Catching water ghouls is fun." Wei Wuxian answered.

“It is not necessary. The GusuLan Sect is also…” Before Lan WangJi finished talking, Lan XiChen spoke while smiling, “Sure, then. Many thanks for your help. Do some preparations, and we can depart together. HuaiSang, are you coming as well?”

"Why Lan Zhan seemed to hate the idea of us coming along?" asked Wei Wuxian.

"Because he doesn't want to be with you." said Jiang Cheng.

"But still thanks to brother-in-law for bringing us along." said Wei Wuxian.

Nie HuaiSang also wanted to join in, but he had been reminded of his older brother as he met Lan XiChen. Cringing silently, he didn’t dare to have fun, “I’ll pass and go back so that I can review…” With this act, he hoped that Lan XiChen would put in some good words for him to his brother. Wei WuXian and Jiang Cheng went back to their rooms to prepare.

"Really?" asked Nie Mingjue.

"I doubt that you will review alone." he added.

His friends snickered at him.

Lan WangJi looked at them from behind, his brows knitted with confusion, “Brother, why did you decide to bring them? Exterminating ghouls is not suited for joking around.”

"Joking around? Do you really think of us like that?" asked Jiang Cheng.

"Lan Zhan, I didn't expect for you to think of us like that." said Wei Wuxian scootting away from the man.

"Wei Ying." Lan Wangji can only say feeling sad that the man is avoiding him.

Lan XiChen answered, “The head disciple and only son of Sect Leader Jiang are quite well-known in Yunmeng. It is likely that they know more than joking around.”

Although Lan WangJi didn’t express his opinion, the phrase “I beg to differ” was written all over his face.

"Thank you for defending us, brother-in-law." said Wei Wuxian.

Jiang scoffed saying, "Of course he will defend us, he is more better than that man of yours."

Lan Xichen smiled so bright at him.

Lan XiChen spoke again, “And, also, you wish for him to go as well, do you not?”

Lan WangJi was stunned.

Lan XiChen, “I only agreed because you looked as if you wanted the head disciple of Sect Leader Jiang to come with you.”

"Really?" asked Wei Wuxian.

"Yes, Wuxian. He really wants you to come along." answered Lan Xichen.

"Not only him." said Qingheng-jun.

"What do you mean?" asked Wei Wuxian.

"Xichen agreed because he wants Jiang Wanyin to come but also because Lan Wangji wants you to come as well." he answered.

"What a nice brother-in-laws I have." said Jiang Yanli teasing his brothers.

A silence fell upon them, as if the air was frozen solid.

Only after a while did Lan WangJi finally respond, speaking with great difficulty, “There was no such thing.”

"Still denying it eh." teased Wei Wuxian.

He wanted to defend himself further, but Wei WuXian and Jiang Cheng already grabbed their swords and headed over, so Lan WangJi had to shut his mouth. The group mounted their swords and set off.

The place where the water ghouls haunted was named Caiyi Town, about ten kilometers away from the Cloud Recesses.

Caiyi Town was connected with paths of water. It was either a net of rivers densely covering the town, or dwellings packed on either sides of the web-like water paths. The houses had white walls and grey roofs, and the rivers were filled with boats of baskets and people. On the banks, they sold flowers, fruits, bamboo crafts, pastries, tea, and silk.

"What a beautiful place. I will visit there next time." said a rouge cultivator.

"Yunmeng is much more fun than this." said a Jiang disciple.

"Gusu is calm and serene while Yunmeng is active and bustling place." said Jiang Fengmian.

"And full of spicy foods." Jin Ling added.

Gusu was in the Jiangnan area, and all the voices one could hear were soft and gentle. As two boats crashed into each other, and a few jars of rice wine were spilled, even the arguments of the two boatmen sounded like chirps of the oriole. Although Yunmeng had many lakes, there weren’t a lot of small towns with so much water. Wei WuXian found it quite interesting. He bought two jars of rice wine and gave one to Jiang Cheng, “Gusu people talk in such a sugary way. How is this arguing? If they see how Yunmeng people argue, they might be scared to death… Why are you looking at me, Lan Zhan? It’s not that I’m too stingy to buy you any—aren’t people from your sect prohibited from drinking alcohol?”

"He is looking at you because you're drinking alcohol." said Jin Zixuan.

"Me and Jiang Cheng, but why is he only finding fault in me?" asked Wei Wuxian.

"Maybe he just want to look at you." said Wen Rouhan.

"And besides, why are they arguing like that?" he asked.

"They are not hot-tempered like Jiang Cheng." said Wei Wuxian receiving a glare from the said man.

Having only stayed for a short time, the group boarded ten-or-so narrow boats, and rowed toward where the water ghouls gathered. Gradually, the number of houses on the banks decreased, and the river path became quieter as well. Wei WuXian and Jiang Cheng each had a boat, competing who could row faster while listening to events in the area that concerned water ghouls.

"It looks fun." said Nie Huaisang with a pout, already regretting not coming along with his friends.

This water path led to a large lake ahead of them, named Biling Lake. Caiyi Town hadn’t been haunted by water ghouls ever since tens of years ago, yet, for the past few months, people had started to fall into this path and Biling Lake. Boats which carried goods also sunk without any reasons. A few days ago, Lan XiChen casted a few nets over this area. He expected to catch one or two water ghouls, but got about a dozen instead. He cleaned the corpses and carried them to a nearby part of the town, only to find that some corpses were not familiar to any of the local people, and remained unclaimed. Yesterday, he set up the net formation again, and caught quite a few again.

"I don't think it's just a simple issue like water ghouls. There is something more of it." said Qingheng-jun.

Wei WuXian spoke, “It doesn’t seem like that the corpses drowned somewhere else and floated here either. Water ghouls are picky about their area. Most of the time, the only place they settle on is the place they drowned at, and they usually don’t leave there.”

Lan XiChen nodded, “That is correct. This was why I thought that it was no trivial matter, and asked WangJi to come along, in case something happens.”

"This is gonna be fun." said Zizhen.

"I will learn a lot of things from here." said Jingyi holding another paper for his notes.

Wei WuXian asked, “ZeWu-Jun, water ghouls are really clever. If we use the boats and take our time like this, isn’t it possible that they’ll hide underwater and not come out? Won’t we have to keep on searching forever? What if we can’t find them?”

Lan WangJi replied, “We will wait until we find them. After all, we do what we must.”

Wei WuXian, “Just by using nets?”

"There is no other methods in catching a water ghoul." said Jiang Fengmian.

Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng gave each other a look.

Lan XiChen, “That is right. Does the YunmengJiang Sect have other methods?”

Wei WuXian smiled but didn’t respond. Of course, the YunmengJiang Sect used nets as well. But, because he was a good swimmer, he had always jumped into the river and dragged water ghouls out. However, this method was too dangerous; he definitely couldn’t do it in front of the Lan Sect’s people. If it travelled into Lan QiRen’s ears, he would definitely face another lecture. He switched the topic, “It’d be great if there’s something that can attract the water ghouls like a fishing bait. Or something that can point out their directions, like a compass.”

"Wei Ying!" sais Lan Wangji, holding the man's hand tightly.

"A-niang, you should not put yourself to danger said Lan Sizhui.

Wei Wuxian gulped and looked at his brother who seems to enjoy him watching him getting a lecture.

"Don't lecture me. It was me and Jiang Cheng." he said making the man avoid the look of his own son and husband.

"A-xian, a-cheng." said Jiang Yanli.

"We won't do it again." the sibling said while looking down.

"So this is where he got an idea of makong the compass?" asked MianMian.

"No, he already have that idea since we where thirteen." said Jiang Cheng.

Jiang Cheng spoke, “Look down at the water and concentrate on finding them. You’re letting your imagination run again.”

Wei WuXian, “Cultivation and riding on swords also used to be just imagination!”

As he looked down, he happened to be able to see the bottom of the boat which Lan WangJi was on. An idea flashed across his head, and he shouted, “Lan Zhan, look at me!”

"You really can't focus on finding the water ghouls without annoying him, do you?" asked Jin Zixuan in disbelief.

"Jin-xiong is right. During that time you should really focus on the water, Wei-xiong." said Nie Huaisang.

At the moment, Lan WangJi was keeping a sharp lookout. As he heard the words, he looked up, only to see Wei WuXian’s bamboo paddle sweep up a splash of water and strike it toward him. With a tap of his foot, Lan WangJi lightly hopped onto another boat, dodging the spray. He was quite angered, thinking to himself that, sure enough, Wei WuXian was here to fool around, “Pathetic!”

"Lan-er-gongzi is always right." said Meng Yao

"I have reason why I did that." said Wei Wuxian while looking intently at the screen.

However, Wei WuXian kicked the side of the boat which he was standing on, and tipped it over using the bamboo paddle. On the bottom of the boat, there were three water ghouls with swelling faces and ashen skin, tightly clinging onto the wooden boards!

"Ugh they look disgusting." said Zizhen.

"What do you expect, a pretty lady?" asked Jin Ling sarcastically.

A disciple who stood nearby immediately suppressed the three. Lan XiChen smiled, “Young Master Wei, how did you know that they were below the boats?”

Wei WuXian knocked on the side of the boat, “Simple! The displacement of water was wrong. He was the only person who stood on the boat, yet the displacement was greater than those of boats that carried two people. There must have been something on the bottom.”

"So intelligent." commented by a female disciple.

"Why do he notice even the small things?" asked Jin Zixun.

"Because he is smart." said Jin Ling, glaring at the man.

"It is not because of being smart. One must be observant of its surroundings when doing a night hunt or solving a situation." said Jiang Cheng.

Lan XiChen praised him, “You are experienced indeed.”

Wei WuXian’s paddle lightly glided through the water, and the boat’s speed quickened, so that he was right next to Lan WangJi’s boat. He spoke, “Lan Zhan, I didn’t splash water on you on purpose. Water ghouls are really clever. If I said it out loud, they would’ve heard it and got away. Hey, don’t ignore me. Why don’t you look at me, Second Young Master Lan?”

"Stop annoying him." said Jiang Cheng.

"He always want to have Wangji-xiong's attention all for himself." said Nie Huaisang with a tease.

Lan WangJi finally condescended and gave him a glance, “Why did you come?”

Wei WuXian spoke with sincerity, “I’m here to apologize to you. Last night was my fault. I was wrong.”

Lan WangJi’s countenance was slightly dark, most likely because he still didn’t forget how Wei WuXian “apologized” to him. Wei WuXian asked although he knew the answer, “Why do you look so gloomy? Don’t worry. Today, I’m really here to help.”

Jiang Cheng couldn’t watch the scene any longer, “If you want to help, then stop chattering and come here!”

"Way to spoil the fun, ChengCheng." said Wei Wuxian.

"He just said that because he can't talk to his husband." said Nie Huaisang teasing Jiang Cheng.

Jiang Cheng just looked at them in disbelief.

A disciple shouted, “The net moved!”

Sure enough, the ropes of the net started to wobble. Wei WuXian beamed, “It’s here, it’s here!”

"You're the only one enjoying it." said Jin Zixuan.

"At that kind of situation, you still have time to get excited." said Su She in disbelief but with a disgust showing in his face.

Thick, long hair formed veils of black satin, surging and swelling around the boats. Amid them, pairs of ghastly hands gripped onto the sides. Lan WangJi backhandedly drew his sword, Bichen, and severed ten-or-so wrists on the left of the boat, leaving only palms with fingers digging deep into the wood. As he was about to cut the ones on the right, a red light flashed past, and Wei WuXian’s sword was already back in its sheath.

The strange shifts of the water had ceased, and the net also became still once more. Although, a few moments ago, Wei WuXian’s sword attacked at an extremely fast speed, Lan WangJi could already tell that the sword he carried was of very high quality. He asked with a serious face, “What is the name of this sword?”

Wei WuXian answered, “Suibian.”

"Huh?" a lot of people asked.

The Jiang just snickered seeing their reactions.

Lan WangJi stared at him. Wei WuXian thought that he didn’t hear properly, so he repeated it again, “Suibian.”

Lan WangJi frowned and refused, “This sword has a spirit. Calling it as one pleases is disrespectful.”

"Lan-er-gonzi is right." said Su She.

"Oh shut up." said Jingyi.

Wei WuXian let out a sigh, “Think outside the box, won’t you? I wasn’t asking you to call it whatever you wanted to, but the name of my sword just happens to be ‘Suibian’. Here, look.” As he spoke, he passed the sword over for Lan WangJi to see the characters on the sword. Surrounded by lines and patterns, two ancient characters were carved onto the sheath. It was “Suibian”,