Chapter 1

After leaving Cloud Recesses with Lan Zhan towards Burial Mounds, We Ying hadn't expected to find all the junior disciples tied up and arguing with each other. Had they no self preservation? The kids were all staring at them in disbelief and relief. After setting them all free and checking them over, Lan Zhan asked his juniors for an explanation. After finding out that they were all led here separately and then ambushed by a group of Ghost Masked men, Wei Ying said,

" Maybe we should just stay here and see what happens next, after all there must be a reason for bringing all the heirs of the sects and holding them up here."

"But...stay here?" someone squeaked.

"Why?" Wei Ying asked, mischief lined his every word. " Are you afraid?"

When Jin LIng tried to approach him, he was blocked by a wall of white. ' How protective ' Wei Ying thought. Aloud he said," What are you doing surrounding him like that?"

"Master Jin?" Shizui said softly but stayed firmly in front of him. After Lan JinYi`s, " Do you want to stab him again?", he saw just guilt and pain in his young nephew`s eyes.

A soft " Lan Zhan, don't " had him and the juniors moving out of his way . " He is not going to hurt me." at the same time Jin LIng said," I'm not going to hurt him. I just...want to...

talk...to understand..."

At that moment his nephew looked like the young confused teenager he really was. " Apologize you mean?" JInYi persisted.

"This place really is dreadful, we should try to find a way out." said Zizhen trying to mediate.

"Why, some one is sure to come here sooner or later, Why not wait and see?" Wei Ying said. Shizui had a thoughtful look on his face. " May be we can wait and find why we were captured in the first place? There must be reason for that, after all they just tied us up...they didn't hurt or worse, kill us. There must be a reason for that. We can find out who wants us here and why."

" He is right, and you shouldn't be wandering this place after dark anyway." When someone asked why, Wei Wuxian just said " Look outside."

When they did, everyone was surprised and shocked to see a formation, like a guard, for where they were.

" What are they doing. Its the shield formation... are they protecting us? but... why are they doing that?" Lan JInyi asked shocked, eyes wide.

Outside, the corpses were in one of the simplest formation of a shield in layers. the howling winds and their cries did not help reduce their fright effect of the place.

A soft voice answered them but in the quiet of the night, everyone standing there heard it " They know I'm here and are happy to welcome me. And I once protected them, the seek to protect me now." At everyone's inquisitive gaze, he replied," since I don't have the Tiger Seal, I don't control them, so please do me a favour and stay inside and as far away from the entrance as possible. And don't be afraid, as long as I'm here, nothing can hurt you. We should move deeper inside, away from the doors."

As they moved to go deeper in the cave, Wei Wuxian was lost in memories of his time here - the first time when he was thrown here by Wen Chao and the second time when he brought a group of old and tired Wen remnants ... away from the Jin sect`s atrocities. Something must have shown on his face, for at the next instant Lan Zhan was at his side and surpisingly Jin Ling on his other side, both of them wearing the same worrying expression. It was funnily enough adorable so he said," I'm ok, just some old memories."

After making a small fire, everyone settled around it, resigning to the fact that they would have to go without food and water for atleast one night. Wen Ning, Wei Ying and Lan Zhan were sitting a bit away from all the kids. To the first two it was a little bit nostalgic and a bit painful, being here, people around fire talking and relaxing before going to their huts to retire for the night. Wei Ying dared not sleep fearing that if he had his regular nightmare, it would incite the corpses outside too. This had been a home not just to the dead but also for the living, for however a short time. Now they just had to wait for morning to come to get the kids out to safety but both Lan Zhan and he thought they would have to face a confrontation before that.