Yin Long was swiftly escorted to the dungeon of the Lang clan that located two transmission stations to the south of the estate, it was a trip that would take about three hours in total. Quite a few citizens lined the streets as Yin Long was led away, news of his crimes had already spread at an alarming speed. The news had even been twisted somewhat, various rumors about other crimes he had committed also spreading out. The speed at which the news spread only served to further Yin Long's guess that the one who set him up had a pretty high position in the clan, otherwise there was no way they could spread the news this quickly through a city as large as this.
Three hours after leaving the Lang clan estate, Yin Long and his group arrived in front of the dungeon, a two-story stone building that was completely square and only had windows on the second floor. Lang Cui pushed open the sturdy stone door and led Yin Long into the house, revealing that the entire first floor consisted of a single room that only contained a staircase to the second floor as well as a stone door in the floor.
He pulled open the stone door and led Yin Long down the wooden stairs that were revealed, bringing him into a hallway lit up by torches hanging along the wall. The hallway moved in a winding manner as it spiraled downward, metal doors lining both sides of the hallway. Yin Long was led to the very bottom of the dungeon and guided into a five-meter wide and long cell that only contained a single wooden bed. Lang Cui removed Yin Long's chains, giving him a curt bow from outside the room.
"Please remain here, Young Master, you may have confessed but there are still more investigations we must perform to learn the full truth of the matter. Once we have learned everything we will hold a trial to determine your punishment."
Lang Cui closed the metal door after he finished talking and left Yin Long alone in the room with only a small white crystal embedded in the ceiling serving as a source of light. Yin Long sat down on the wooden bed and leaned against the wall, resting his hands behind his head while muttering to himself.
"Haah, even after killing so many corrupt people there are still others willing to lower the strength of their own clan just to promote themselves. No wonder the clan has degraded so much despite once ruling three entire provinces. Little Huo, let's hope things don't go completely awry, otherwise, I hope you can forgive me for hurting you."
If there was one thing that Yin Long had gotten rather good at after working as the shadow of the Lang clan for over six years then it was to quickly come up plans. Right now he had a few plans running through his mind that he could use, but there was no point in setting any of them into motion just yet, he had to wait for a bit first.
There was no way of telling the passage of time within the underground cell, he could only look at how often he was fed to guess at how much time passed. By the time he received his third meal, probably about a day and a half after he was arrested, Lang Ru stepped into his dungeon and looking at him with complex emotions.
"Did you really do it? If so, why would you?"
Yin Long was sitting on the bed with his legs crossed while leaning against the wall, both his eyes crossed as he was quietly cultivating. He opened one eye to peek at Lang Ru, his eye not revealing the slightest trace of emotion.
"What a pointless question. I've already admitted to it, have I not? As for that second question? Everything I do, I do for the thing that father and mother treasured so greatly for so many years."
Yin Long closed his eye again when he finished talking, ignoring Lang Ru no matter what else she said. In the end, Lang Ru could only look at him with complex emotions again before leaving, gently rubbing the acorn-shaped interspatial ring she had received when their parents had gifted them all interspatial rings.
After Lang Ru left, Yin Long spent another day and a half in silence before he received another visitor. But this time the visitor that came was the one that he had been waiting for, meaning that now it was time for him to figure out which of his plans would be best to put in motion. With these thoughts in mind, he opened both eyes and turned to face the one that entered the room by actually rising from the floor as if he was one with the stone, the bald Jiu Meiyu.
"You've really stepped in it now, huh? New rumors are popping up every day, the entire city is practically on the verge of spitting on your very name for the countless crimes you've supposedly committed. I'll give the instigator one word of praise, they're creative when it comes to rumors. Oh, I heard you lashed out quite harshly at your sister?"
Jiu Meiyu swiped his interspatial ring and took out a chair, taking a seat before tossing Yin Long a light yellow gourd of wine. This gourd of wine was a bit different from most gourds, it worked like an interspatial ring so it could contain vast amounts of liquid. As such, there was no need to worry about the gourd running empty within a short period of time. Yin Long caught the gourd and took a sip of the wine, which was a touch too sour for his liking, and shrugged his shoulders.
"Couldn't help it. Little Huo is fire, fierce and violent, if I didn't distract her like that then there is no telling what sort of havoc she would cause to free me. It also serves to form a bit of a rift between us, at least now people won't be too quick to insinuate that I killed those people on their orders. And like this, she'll be too focused on finding out the truth behind the matter and my actions to act too recklessly. At the same time, it helps me prepare just in case things have gone completely awry and I need to hurt her. Speaking of, how does it look?"
Everything Yin Long did was for his family, for the duty that his parents had left him when they passed, the last thing he wanted to do was hurt them. But if things went completely wrong then hurting them would be the only choice left, and he would pick it without hesitation or regret. Jiu Meiyu let out a long sigh before answering Yin Long's question, not mincing his words.
"Terrible. The evidence against you plus your confession was already pretty devastating, but they keep finding more and more things that point at you being the culprit. They've even started producing proof that you've killed a few other clan members and citizens that were actually killed by some of the people you assassinated. With how things are looking now, you are practically doomed to get the death sentence. Whoever has set you up has clearly prepared for quite some time, these aren't things that can be set up in a short amount of time."
Yin Long gave a short nod of his head upon hearing the response, falling into a short silence while he sipped the wine from the gourd. The taste was a bit too sour, but right now he savored it as much as he could. His pupils wavered slightly as they gazed vacantly at the ceiling, eventually turning determined as his shoulders loosened, as if a massive weight had just been removed. He shrugged his shoulders again, a content and peaceful smile actually surfacing on his face.
"Oh well, can't say I was expecting anything else. With how things went back there it was clear that the one who set things up didn't want to leave me with any escape routes. Jiu Meiyu, you can never visit me publicly, even visiting me like this carries some risks. You need to seem as if you have no ties with me, only like that will you be able to properly remain as the Lang clan's shadow. I'd like it if you could bring Lan Yun here once, but that should be the last time you or she ever come here, after that you pretend like you never even knew me. You understand what I mean, right?"
Yin Long looked directly at Jiu Meiyu, his black pupils perfectly clear and his face still carrying that carefree and even somewhat happy smile. Faced with such an expression, even the more than 3000 years old Jiu Meiyu felt his heart tremble slightly. He stood up and put away his chair, bowing deeply at Yin Long.
"Your will be done. Young Master Lang Yin, it has been an honor to work alongside you, I pray that you find your happiness."
Jiu Meiyu sank into the ground again and vanished after he finished his words, Yin Long calmly sipping the gourd while leaning against the cold wall of the cell. Jiu Meiyu didn't spend a lot of time carrying out Yin Long's order, he and Lan Yun appeared from the ground in Yin Long's cell a mere two hours later. Jiu Meiyu took out a chair and an earthenware plate for Lan Yun and then sank into the ground, leaving the two alone.
Lan Yun sat down on the chair and looked straight at Yin Long, who flung out his hand and threw the gourd to her. She caught the gourd and brought it to her lips, the tip still wet from having touched Yin Long's lips. She took several large gulps, drinking in a manner similar to an alcoholic who wanted to forget something. Looking at her crude way of drinking, Yin Long couldn't help but chuckle.
"Can't drink wine like that, you'll just be wasting it. You gotta drink it slow and savor the taste, allow each drop to enrapture you."
Lan Yun cut into Yin Long with a sharp glare and continued to gulp down the wine, leaving Yin Long with no choice but to let out another chuckle, a somewhat bitter one this time. He looked at her for a bit more before turning his gaze away, his eyes turning towards the ceiling.
"You shouldn't return to the Ten Flowers Pavilion after today, Jiu Meiyu will find a new job for you to do. I'll no longer be able to scare away all the lechers so there's no telling what sort of depraved things they'll do to you. Your talent is good, your instincts are sharp, and you are more than just a bit sensible. I can feel at ease with leaving the shadow of the Lang clan to you, you'll be able to take over without a problem."
As Yin Long spoke, he couldn't help but be reminded of the night that his parents died. When they spoke to him and left him the duty of taking care of his sisters, did they perhaps feel the same as he did right now? Lan Yun lowered the gourd, her hand clenching around it so hard that her knuckles turned white.
"It doesn't have to be like this. We can escape from here, we can flee from the entire Lang clan. Jiu Meiyu should be able to easily get us away from here, we can flee so far away that no one in the Lang clan will ever even be able to hear your name."
Yin Long lowered his gaze again when he heard the desperation-tinged words that Lan Yun forced through her teeth. Looking at her clenched hand, his mind started drifting once more before the smile on his face grew a bit wider.
"No more than a moth to the flame, that's what you called yourself, no? You'd chase me even if you ended up burnt, because that moment where you touched the flames would make your life brighter and more glorious than ever before. You know, I think I'm just the same. Even if it ends up burning me, I will chase after the happiness and safety of those close to me, because they are the only thing I have left. You and I are no more than moths to the flame, and now we are both about to get burned. But I'm afraid that your burning will hurt quite a bit more than mine."
In truth, Yin Long would be lying if he said that he didn't have any regrets. He regretted that he would have to end his training here, he regretted that he couldn't let his sword shine as brightly as it could, let it soar as high as it could. He also regretted that he couldn't find proper love, maybe even pop out a child or two that he could show off to his parents if he ever found a way to open a gate to the Celestial World. But such was life, some people simply ended up unlucky and had to enter the fire before others, Yin Long just so happened to be among those unlucky.
Lan Yun looked at the free and easy smile on Yin Long's face, momentarily losing herself in it. She had been with him for several years already, but every time they met it would be for work, there would always be someone to kill. As such, he had always been serious and dignified, the sharp and heroic blade of the Lang clan. This was the first time she got to see such a carefree smile, such a relaxed Yin Long.
And now she was about to lose it after seeing it just a single time, she was about to return to the time before she met him, where the only thing that mattered in her life was to become a proper tool that could be used by the Lang clan. He had treated her like a person and showed her that even those living in the shadow could be more than just tools, he was the first person to do so, even Jiu Meiyu had originally treated her as just a tool to gather information. And now she was about to lose him, the sense of loss enveloping her entire heart as she couldn't help but beg with teary eyes.
"Please...Don't do this...It doesn't have to end like this..."
Yin Long looked directly at Lan Yun, looked at his own reflection within the tears that rolled down her face. A sigh escaped his lips when he saw her state, but the determination within his pupils didn't waver.
"It really seems like I can't get out of this without harming all those close to me, what a terrible joke of an existence. But I must do this, it must end like this. There's no telling what Little Huo will do if I get sentenced to death, no telling what sort of rampage she'll go on. And that's just what those who set me up want, they want her to rampage and save me, they want to use this as a chance to undermine her. The same is true for if I escape, they can use it as a chance to blame her, to depose her. Can you imagine it, the clan leader working together with the man who killed so many good Lang clan members?"
Lan Yun opened her mouth in response to Yin Long's words, but he stood up from the bed before she could take, giving a slight shake of his head as he walked over.
"She'll never be able to retain her position or the trust of everyone else. So I must stay, I must stand tall as evil, and I must hurt her, I must hurt them all. But while I carry some regrets, I am also content. Like this I will be able to perform my duty as the big brother, like this I will be able to cement her position more than ever before."
Yin Long stopped right in front of Lan Yun, swiping his interspatial ring and taking out a small cloth. Lang Cui had searched his ring earlier and saw that there was nothing of note in it so they hadn't bothered taking it. Yin Long used one hand to wipe away Lan Yun's tears, placing the other on the earthenware plate she was holding.
"Farewell, Lan Yun. If there is a next life for us, I would like to travel with you as a friend and hone my sword, in the light this time."
Yin Long crushed the earthenware plate when he finished his words, unleashing the small array within it and allowing it to engulf Lan Yun, teleporting her away. He picked up the chair and the fragments that remained of the plate, storing them into his interspatial ring before taking a deep breath while gazing at the ceiling.
"Father, Mother, I don't think I can go to the Celestial World with this thing floating around in my soulsea, but don't worry, Big sis Ru and Little Huo will definitely come up to you one day in the far off future."
Yin Long finished his low mutter and walked up to the metal door, his carefree and easy expression sinking and turning as cold as it was when he beheaded the white-haired elder. This was the expression needed for the Lang clan traitor, this was the expression he needed to hurt his sister. He raised his arm and banged on the metal door, his voice echoing throughout the entire dungeon.
"Oy! Lang Cui, as the son of the previous clan leaders, I invoke the right granted to me by that title! I invoke the Throne Seekers Rite and challenge Lang Huo to a match to the death, let me show you who is truly worthy of leading this clan!"
I love this Character
I got some itachi wibes from this