I'm rereading MDZS and it just hit me that Wei Wuxian's first impression upon meeting Lan Yuan post-resurrection was that he was a "good sprout"
You guys... you guys... that's his little radish... that's his good little sprout....
Wei Wuxian: The Wen Remnants? No, you misheard. These are the Wei Remnants
Jin Guangshan: Do you think we're stupid!?
Wei Wuxian: That's a trick question. They can't be Wens because, according to you, the only Wens left were soldiers and cultivaters. These guys are clearly elderly and healers. Meet my older sister Wei Qing
Wen Qing with a slightly different hair style: This one is honored to meet such esteemed cultivators
Wei Wuxian: And my twin (but still younger) brother, Wei Ning
Fierce corpse Wen Ning with makeup poorly applied: Thank you for visiting our humble village
Jin Guangshan: You except everyone here to believe your blatant lies!?
Wei Wuxian: Everyone here pretends to believe your blatant lies about only having one bastard. Why is your lie so much more believable than mine?
marginalized men: i don’t like jokes about hating all men. i recognize where they come from but they make me feel unsafe. the way im degraded for my manhood’s interactions with other identities doesnt mean that women have it easier, but i would also like to feel safe.
butch transmascs: yeah i had to fight for my masculinity to be accepted and am still struggling to find room in feminist spaces without having to be butch and trans and a man. i need that activism and i’d like my experiences to be considered by people in that space. i dont like being treated as a gender traitor or lesser now that ive transitioned.
dozens of bloggers on their way to get thousands of notes: i cant believe #notallmen is coming back. these people just hate women. intersectionality and solidarity is a distraction from real issues. women are facing these real problems while you guys primarily trans men and men of color are complaining about jokes.
reblog if you’ve read fanfictions that are more professional, better written than some actual novels. I’m trying to see something
classiccccc
Something I love about WWX is that he never regrets saving the Wens. The strength of his conviction is just…inspiring.
And it’s not that he just accepts what happened in his first life. We see several moments where he’s sarcastic or otherwise recognizes the hypocrisy of the sects. We see others when he recalls the pain he endured. Even after his resurrection, he’s still not okay with how the sects treated him then and still treat him now.
It’s also not that he’s just not the type to regret his decisions. I think that’s part of it, but we saw in his conversation with JC about the core transfer that he had to persuade himself he was okay with it. He is a person who looks forward rather than backwards, but that’s a deliberate action as well as a natural perspective.
“But, let the self judge the right and the wrong, let others decide to praise or to blame, let gains and losses remain uncommented on.”
This is a hard philosophy to hold to! When someone has encountered a major loss, it’s pretty natural to wish it hadn’t happened or think about what they could have done differently. And WWX lost terribly, but he never thinks he shouldn’t have saved the Wens. He told us that whether he won or lost didn’t matter because he knew what the right thing to do was, and his resolution was put to the test, but he kept it.
It’s especially impressive because for almost the entire story, he doesn’t even know that A-Yuan survived. He goes through the story thinking he only managed to save Wen Ning, who still suffered terribly. But he never thinks that his sacrifice was in vain, and therefore it was meaningless. It wasn’t meaningless to do the right thing, even if it didn’t work out. This kind of conviction is just…really impressive.
I am in love with the idea of Hua Cheng being intrinsically connected to Ghost City in such a way that he can subconsciously manipulate it.
Ghost City’s streets are winding and confusing, but when Hua Chengzhu walks through his territory, the streets straighten themselves out, creating a clear path for him. Strangely enough, Hua Cheng doesn’t realize this until Yin Yu meekly asks for directions to a certain location in Ghost City, still settling into his new position as a servant to a Ghost King. Hua Cheng, annoyed, snappishly tells him that it’s literally down the street and four buildings down, and that if Yin Yu couldn’t find it, then he was too blind to manage the administrative areas of his city. Yin Yu, confused and intimidated, shakily tells Hua Cheng that there are no roads or buildings in the vicinity of Paradise Manor, and that when the street does start, it winds in three different directions. Hua Cheng gives him an incredulous look and tells him to just do as he’s ordered. Yin Yu walks away defeated.
Hua Cheng secluding himself when the isolation of searching for a forgotten god creeps up on him. Ghost City, used to their lord disappearing in irregular intervals, doesn’t find it strange when no one has seen Hua Chengzhu for several days. Panic starts to set in, however, when dark clouds gather above the city and a torrent of blood rain falls from the sky like a bad omen. The ghosts become frantic, believing it to be an ominous sign that they had displeased their lord. Hua Cheng, who had locked himself in his room in Paradise Manor, weeps his despair and desperation into silky, crimson pillows to the sound of rain for three days straight. He never realized that he nearly caused a flood of blood in his own city. In fact, Yin Yu, who had taken up the responsibility of cleaning up the city, wisely chooses to say nothing on the matter when Hua Cheng eyes his blood soaked robes with a questioning glance. This happens rarely over the course of the next eight centuries, but it occurs often enough for the denizens of Ghost City to stop panicking when it happens. They call it ‘the crimson torment’ and have learned to be especially nice to their lord in the following days. Miraculously, the blood rain stops after Xie Lian shows up, and Ghost City is eternally grateful. Xie Lian learns about ‘the crimson torment’ before Hua Cheng does, hearing about it from a group of gossiping ghosts. But when Xie Lian asks Hua Cheng about it, concerned for his husband, Hua Cheng tells him that he was never aware that such a thing even happened.
Hua Cheng mindlessly sending out an attack towards a trouble making ghost in Ghost City. The attack is restrained and certainly not as powerful as it could be, but it sends the ghost flying into a wall anyways. Normally, that would be that, but Hua Cheng was particularly frustrated that day. The echoes of the ghost’s wailing pierces his mind and worsens an already bad headache. Xie Lian, who’s standing off to the side, hurriedly walks toward Hua Cheng and gently guides him away. Hua Cheng goes willingly and complacently, as he always will for his beloved husband. That doesn’t stop the murderous thoughts brewing in his head, though, and before he knows it, there is a slight rumble beneath his feet. His thoughts spiral out of control and he doesn’t notice the Earth quaking beneath him until the buildings and stalls around him collapse. It’s the first time that Hua Cheng is forced to acknowledge the subconscious control that he holds over Ghost City and that moment secretly mortifies him.
“What do you mean you didn’t bring the fob?” The bubble of Wei Ying’s bright pink bubblegum pops as he speaks.
“I mean I didn’t bring the fob,” Nie Huaisang shrugs.
“So then how did we get back in?” It’s three o’clock in the morning and they’re standing in the foyer of Jiang Cheng’s fancy apartment building, in front of an elevator that cannot be operated without a security fob. Their arms are laden with snacks and Wei Ying is chewing five different flavours of bubblegum together. It’s an interesting combination.
“The door was open.”
Wei Ying turns back to look at the main entrance. It was open when they stepped out of the building to go hunt for the unhealthiest, ungodliest snacks the local 24-hour convenience store could provide, and had remained open this whole time, right until the two of them stepped back inside.
“We'll just have to use the stairs then.”
“Jiang Cheng lives on the fourteenth floor,” Nie Huaisang screeches in alarm.
“Exactly.” Wei Ying pops his gum again. “Easy peasy!” But when he tries the door that leads to the stairwell, the door does not open. So he tries again. And again. But the door refuses to budge. “Don’t tell me we need a fob to use the stairs too.”
Beside him Nie Huaisang taps on a sign with a well manicured fingernail and reads, “The stairs cannot be accessed without a fob.”
“Fuck.” Wei Ying squints at the empty security desk. “Jiang Cheng will have to come down to let us in.”
“He’s going to be so pissed off,” Nie Huaisang says, but takes out his phone to message Jiang Cheng anyway.
Several minutes pass as they wait for Jiang Cheng to respond. Wei Ying watches as Nie Huaisang taps irriatedly at his phone, his frown getting deeper and deeper. “What is it?”
“He hasn’t read any of my messages, but they’re all going through so I know his phone is on.”
“Maybe he’s in the shower or taking a shit, or something.” Although Wei Ying remembers Jiang Cheng complaining about the time of night and how much he wanted to sleep. “Try ringing him instead.”
Nie Huaisang nods and puts his phone to his ear. Wei Ying leans against the wall and waits.
And waits.
Eventually it becomes more than clear that Jiang Cheng is not going to pick up. “He’s probably fallen asleep,” Wei Ying groans and slides down the wall to slump onto the ground, nearly choking on his bubblegum. He spits the now discoloured lump out into a tissue with a grimace.
Nie Huaisang follows him down and buries his head in his knees. “What do we do now?”
“Break in?” Wei Ying suggests, and gets a disparaging look from Nie Huaisang in response. “What? I could totally break in! Remember when—”
“Yes, I remember,” Nie Huaisang cuts him off. “I know for certain that you’d be able to break in. But I’m really not in the mood to get arrested tonight, Wei Ying. Please.”
“Well, what else can we do?” He’s already eyeing the security system, thinking up ways he might be able to bypass it. A packet of gummies hits him square in the head. “Hey!” Wei Ying scowls at Nie Huaisang and tears into the packet. “If only Jiang Cheng had a girlfriend so we could call her to come let us in instead,” he says around a mouthful of gummy mush.
“Yeah, if only pigs could fly,” Nie Huaisang scoffs.
Wei Ying gasps, “I’m going to tell him you said that!”
“Right now I wouldn’t care if you told him I fucked his mom. As long as he wakes up and lets us in!”
“I’m going to tell her you said that,” Wei Ying tells him with a grimace, unable to stop images of Nie Huaisang and Jiang Cheng’s mom getting it on popping into his head.
“She’ll fuck us both up, and you know it.”
“That’s if we ever make it out of here alive. This whole building is a death trap!” Wei Ying gestures aggressively around the place. “What if there was a fire? Or the emergency services needed to get in? Or an axe murderer was chasing us? What would we do then?” He puts on an overly saccharine voice and bats his eyelashes, “Oh sorry, Mr Murderer. Please give me a moment while I go and fetch my fob.”
Nie Huaisang grabs the packet of gummies from him. “Rich people don’t give a fuck about safety regulations,” he shrugs. “The building has a gym, pool and a sauna.”
“A sauna?” Wei Ying perks up. “Why didn’t Jiang Cheng tell me?”
“Because he's a hater.”
“That he is.” Wei Ying fluffs up the large family pack of chips they’d bought and places it on the ground to use as a pillow. The marble floor is cold and hard beneath his outstretched body, but otherwise the building is mostly warm. He closes his eyes and settles in. He’s slept in much worse places than this.
“Are you really going to sleep here?” Nie Huaisang sounds appalled.
Wei Ying cracks one eye open. “You won’t let me break in, so what other choice do I have?”
After staring at him morosely for several long moments, Nie Huaisang sighs and balls his jacket up to make a pillow for himself. “Well, at least we’re not trapped in your apartment building. The rats would have eaten us alive.”
“They’d be better company than you,” Wei Ying huffs.
Instead of responding, Nie Huaisang sits back up and punches his balled up jacket several times. “This pillow is shit.”
Wei Ying’s own makeshift pillow crunches loudly under his head. “Should we sixty-nine instead?”
“What?!” Nie Huaisang shrieks, his face rapidly draining of all colour.
“As in, you sleep on my ass and I sleep on yours. Although I’m not quite sure how it’ll work.” He uses his hands to try and figure out the positions they would need to be in. “And my ass is way juicier—”
Nie Huaisang interrupts him with a gasp. “Brilliant idea!”
“What, sixty-nineing?”
“No.” He gives Wei Ying a disgusted look. “Using grindr.”
“What?!” Now it’s Wei Ying’s turn to shriek. “This is not the time nor the place for hookups!” He looks around at the confined space of the foyer in distress. “Are you planning to have sex in front of me?”
“No, you idiot,” Nie Huaisang says, pulling his phone out once again. “I’m gonna try and use it to find someone who lives in this building so that they can let us in.”
“That’s a great idea!” Wei Ying crawls over and makes grabby hands at him. “Huaisang, I could kiss you on the mouth!”
Nie Huaisang pushes him away. “You’re not my type, Wei Ying. How many times do I have to tell you?”
Wei Ying laughs, “Fuck off, I’m everyone’s type.” But his laughter quickly fizzles out when he sees the look on Nie Huaisang’s face. “What’s wrong?”
“My phone just died.” He flips it around to show Wei Ying his phone screen; completely dark and unresponsive.
Wei Ying takes Nie Huaisang’s jacket, wraps it around his own neck and says, “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t end it all right now.”
“Oh, don’t be overdramatic.” He waves a hand dismissively at Wei Ying. “We can just use your phone instead.”
The jacket falls limply out of Wei Ying’s hands. “But I’m not gay!”
“I’m not asking you to suck dick, just download the app.” When he makes no move to comply, Nie Huaisang snatches Wei Ying’s phone out of his hand and downloads the app for him. Wei Ying watches with terror as the unfamiliar black and yellow icon appears on his homescreen. It takes just a few clicks before he’s got a profile up and running for Wei Ying to use. “Here.”
Wei Ying takes his phone back from him with a visibly shaky hand. “What if they want sex?”
“Then you give them sex,” Nie Huaisang shrugs.
“What!”
“I’m just kidding.” He huddles close so that they can both go through the app together.
Wei Ying has no idea how grindr even works so he lets Nie Huaisang take the reins. But that doesn’t save him from having to see a throbbing hard penis in high definition right off the bat. He yells in fright and nearly tosses his phone into the wall.
“Don’t be a baby,” Nie Huaisang laughs. “It’s just a dick!”
“Yeah, well—” Wei Ying splutters. “Find someone less… aroused!”
Nie Huaisang snickers at him and then disparagingly narrates his way through a few profiles until he comes to a stop. “Oh, this guy looks normal. Message him.”
“Why should I—” he begins, but the rest of the words immediately die in his throat when he lays eyes on the profile. Fuck. The man on his phone screen is beautiful. Face of a movie star and built like an underwear model. Wei Ying can’t make himself look away from his golden eyes, or the terribly low-slung waistband of his sweatpants.
“Earth to Wei Ying!” Nie Huaisang punches him in the arm. “Message the guy. I’m pretty sure he lives somewhere in this building. He might be able to let us in.”
Wei Ying almost tells Nie Huaisang to message him himself and then realises that he doesn’t want that. For some strange, inexplicable reason, he wants to talk to the guy himself. Wei Ying swallows to wet his dry throat and croaks, “He’s too… He’s probably a catfish.”
“Who cares? It’s not like you’re looking to marry him,” Nie Huaisang rolls his eyes.
Wei Ying’s cheeks turn embarrassingly red. “What if he’s an axe murderer?” But he’s already typing out a message.
WY (03:55): Heyyy
“That’d be kinda hot, if you ask me,” Nie Huaisang says, biting his lip. Wei Ying gives him a disgusted look, but when he sees the guy’s picture again he can’t help but imagine him wielding an axe and covered in blood and woah. Wei Ying feels a bit dizzy.
Nie Huaisang reads the message he’s sent and nudges him. “Why are you messaging him like you do want dick after all? Tell him straight up that we’re trapped and need help.”
Wei Ying scowls at him but does as told.
WY (03:55): Do you live in lotus apartments?
WY (03:56): This might be a bit weird but my friend and I are trapped in the foyer on the ground floor cos we forgot to bring a fob
WY (03:56): Pls can u help us 🥺
Several long minutes pass but they don’t get a response from the guy, even though he’s definitely seen the messages. Wei Ying can’t help the pang of disappointment he feels.
“Maybe he thinks you’re lying to get into the building, or something. Just try someone else,” Nie Huaisang suggests.
But Wei Ying doesn’t want to do that, so instead he snaps a picture of himself looking pleadingly up into the camera, eyes wide and lips pouted, the same look that always convinces Jiang Yanli to give him an extra helping of dessert. Then he takes a quick picture of Nie Huaisang where he’s once again slumped across the floor with his jacket over his face, the foyer easily recognisable in the background.
WY (04:06): I promise I’m not lying look
WY (04:06): [2 images attached.]
WY (04:06): PLEASE 🥹
WY (04:07): We’ve literally been stuck here for over an hour
He’s still typing when a blue reply bubble pops up on screen.
LZ (04:07): Coming.
WY (04:07): What?
WY (04:07): To help me?
WY (04:08): TO HELP ME RIGHT????
Wei Ying’s momentary relief quickly turns into panic when he doesn’t get any further replies from the guy. He stands and starts to pace around, ignoring Nie Huaisang’s huffing. When the light above the elevator lights up, indicating that someone is on their way down, he knows he should feel relieved that the guy is coming to help him, and not anything else. But instead he feels jittery all over. He’s not sure what would be worse, if the guy really is a catfish and looks nothing at all like his pictures, or if he looks exactly like them. The elevator pings. Wei Ying wipes his sweaty palms on his jeans and turns to face the metal doors as they slide open.
The man that steps out of the elevator is the farthest thing from a catfish. Six-foot-something tall and bathed in the warm glow of the foyer lights, he’s somehow even more attractive in person than he was in his pictures.
Wei Ying feels his breath catch in his throat. “Wow. Fuck.” The words spill out of his lips unbidden and Wei Ying has to slap his hands over his mouth to keep it shut.
The man slowly looks him up and down, amused. “Likewise.” His voice is deep and gravelly.
Wei Ying’s whole body heats up. “I mean— You’re not a catfish. You’re…” Beautiful. Breathtaking. A dream. Every single word that comes to mind cannot be voiced out loud.
“Lan Zhan,” the man offers.
“Lan Zhan,” Wei Ying repeats the name. It makes itself at home on his tongue. He licks his lips and sticks his hand out. “Wei Ying.”
Lan Zhan looks even more amused as he takes Wei Ying’s proffered hand. On anyone else the look might come across as cocky, over confident, but on him it just looks good. Instead of shaking Wei Ying’s hand he gives it a light squeeze, thumb stroking over the back of Wei Ying’s hand, and makes no move to let go. Wei Ying does not want him to.
“Ahem!” Nie Huaisang coughs loudly from behind.
Wei Ying reluctantly turns to look at him, still not letting go of Lan Zhan’s hand. Nie Huaisang has gathered all their snacks from the ground and is tapping his foot impatiently. He’s almost invisible behind all the junk food in his arms but he still manages to look irritated. Wei Ying rolls his eyes. “Thank you so much for coming to help us, Lan Zhan. We would’ve had to spend the whole night down here if it wasn’t for you.” His palm is so warm and large against Wei Ying’s. “You’re a saviour!”
“There is no need to thank me.” He tilts his head towards the elevator. “Which floor do you need?”
“Fourteen. My brother—” The word feels much lighter, easier than it used to, “—lives here. He’s probably fast asleep in his room right now with his phone on fucking silent. Me and Huaisang went out to get snacks and forgot to bring the spare fob with us.” He follows Lan Zhan into the elevator when the doors reopen, Nie Huaisang trailing along behind them. “What would we have done without you, Lan Zhan?” He bats his eyelashes. Just a little.
“Oh, I know you,” Nie Huaisang chimes.
Wei Ying doesn’t like the sound of that at all. Does he mean he’s come across Lan Zhan on grindr before and hooked up with him? He whips around to frown at Nie Huaisang and surreptitiously makes a very rude gesture to inquire whether the two of them have had relations before. A dick sucking gesture.
And then he looks up and realises that all four walls of the elevator have mirrors on them, and Lan Zhan has just seen him make that exact gesture. Wei Ying wants to die.
“No,” Nie Huaisang shakes his head. “We’ve just bumped into each other a couple of times when I’ve come to visit Jiang Cheng.”
“Oh.” Wei Ying turns back to face Lan Zhan with a sheepish smile, running his hand through his hair. “I see.”
Lan Zhan’s pretty eyes track the movement of his hand. “I have not seen you around before.”
“Yeah, um.” Wei Ying eyes the phone in Lan Zhan’s hand. He figures he has to explain himself now. “I’m not, I’m not really—” But the rest of his sentence feels stuck in his throat. It had been perfectly easy to yell, ‘I’m not gay!’ at Nie Huaisang but now Wei Ying struggles. “I’m not on grindr,” he says instead. “I only downloaded it to find someone who could let us into the building. I don’t—” and this bit feels important for some reason. “I don’t do hookups.”
“Mn.” The intensity of Lan Zhan’s gaze does not waver. “But I meant that I have not seen you around in the building before.”
“Oh!” Wei Ying wants to punch himself in the head. “Of course. Yes, I— My brother. Jiang Cheng. We’re good now, but we fell out a few years back. So this is my first time visiting his place.”
“That explains it,” Lan Zhan nods. “I would have remembered a face like yours.”
Wei Ying’s heart does something funny in his chest.
“Can someone please hit the button?” Nie Huaisang groans.
Wei Ying nearly jumps out of his skin. He’d forgotten there was someone else in the elevator with them. It’s impossible to look away from Lan Zhan, despite Nie Huaisang’s huffing and moaning. Like there’s a magnet beneath the surface of his skin, somewhere inside his ribcage, pulling him towards the man.
The elevator hardly even jolts as it begins its ascent upwards, but Wei Ying stumbles anyway, a step and a half closer to Lan Zhan. Lan Zhan steadies him with a hand around his waist, warm through the thin, threadbare cotton of his two sizes too small t-shirt. Wei Ying looks up at him through his eyelashes, his own hand coming to rest on Lan Zhan’s chest, sturdy and firm under his tentative fingers.
“Which floor do you live on, Lan Zhan?” he asks. His voice comes out low, murmured in the air between them.
“Thirteen.” Lan Zhan’s hand slowly travels further along his waist, slipping just slightly underneath his shirt.
“Right below us!” Wei Ying gasps. The gasp is less to do with Lan Zhan’s words and more to do with the touch of his hand. “Lan Zhan…” he breathes, watching Lan Zhan watch him chew at his bottom lip. “Do you think it’s fate?”
“Maybe.” There is laughter in Lan Zhan’s eyes, but it doesn’t feel mocking. It feels indulgent, good enough to drown in.
“Yo, what the fuck…” Somewhere far away Nie Huaisang sounds like he’s drowning in disbelief. Wei Ying has never found it easier to ignore him.
The elevator pings as it comes to a stop, breaking Wei Ying out of his reverie. Lan Zhan follows them out onto Jiang Cheng’s floor to let them through the final set of doors with his fob. Nie Huaisang is quick to push past them and make his way into Jiang Cheng’s unlocked apartment, muttering something distinctly homophobic under his breath and slamming the door shut behind him.
Wei Ying on the other hand, loiters in the hallway, unwilling to part ways with Lan Zhan. He doesn’t know how to draw this out any further without saying anything, but for the first time in his whole life words are evading him entirely. When he looks up at Lan Zhan, he finds him already looking back at Wei Ying, still as indulgent, still as beautiful.
“It’s not my apartment or I would invite you inside…” he finally says, mustering up as much courage as he can. His intention could not be any clearer. He can feel as his face heats up with a vivid blush.
“It is late—”
“Of course.” Wei Ying’s heart sinks. “Yes, of course. Sorry…” he laughs awkwardly. Lan Zhan had only come to help them and here was Wei Ying, practically throwing himself at the man. “Thank you so much for helping us, Lan Zhan. I won’t keep you any longer.” He thinks about getting Lan Zhan a box of chocolates or something of the sort tomorrow to thank him properly for his help. At least it’ll give him a reason to see him again. He really hopes it won’t come across as too desperate. “Thank—”
“Wei Ying,” Lan Zhan interrupts his awkward rambling. “What I mean to say is that nothing will be open at this time of night. Will you let me take you out tomorrow?”
“Out?” Wei Ying’s mind screeches to a halt.
“For lunch,” Lan Zhan says. “Or dinner, if you’d prefer.”
“Oh. You…” Wei Ying blinks. Hope bubbles all through his body and pours out of his big, stupid mouth, “So you’re not going to just hit it and quit it?”
“No. Not unless that is what you’re looking for?” Lan Zhan quirks a brow up in question.
“No,” Wei Ying is quick to correct. “No, no. A date.” And it is with no small amount of astonishment that Wei Ying realises he is feeling shy. Something he has never, ever felt before. “A date, right?” he asks hesitantly.
“A date,” Lan Zhan confirms with a smile.
Mdzs as a d&d game.
Dm: You are dropped into the Burial Mounds
Wwx: Can I survive this?
Dm: Make a constitution roll
Wwx: Nat 20
Dm: Alright, you survive. Now tell me how
Jc: I try to prove that it's Wei Wuxian
Dm: Roll for perception and charisma
Jc: 15 and 3
Dm: While there is almost no doubt in your mind that Mo Xuanyu is actually Wei Wuxian, you have no real means to prove it. You have to let the group leave
Lwj: I drag Wei Ying to the inn
Wwx: Hey! How come he gets to know who I am without a perception check?
Dm: Because you practically told him
Lwj: I would like to seduce Wei Ying
Dm: Roll for charisma
Lwj: 18
Dm: Alright. You tell Wei Wuxian in as simple terms as your drunk self can manage, how much he means to you. Wei Wuxian, roll for perception
Wwx: My dice just rolled off the table and into the trash
Dm: Unfortunately, the love of your life is stupid
A lot of people seem to think that Wei Wuxian in Yiling Laozu era may be a weak and helpless man, because they think without a Golden Core he would be vulnerable.
But let's see the fact written in the novel.
Lan Wangji's hand strength is unquestionable. Bichen seems thin but actually a very heavy sword. Lan Wangji only guessed that WWX's spiritual energy is damaged, yet he thought WWX still has his golden core regardless. Conclusion: whenever Lan Wangji used Bichen to confront Wei Wuxian, it may not be a deadly strike but will never be light either, especially in Nightless City when Lan Wangji looked like he wanted to destroy ChenQing.
With the fact above, Wei Wuxian can actually parry Bichen's strike using one hand with ChenQing during their quarrels. So...if He is a weak and helpless man, his arm would have been dislocated or broken since long ago, unable to receive Bichen's strikes.
Next facts. During the Bloodbath in Nightless City an arrow was shot and embedded in his chest, yet Wei Wuxian shot back the arrow without using any bow, directly hit the culprit's chest and killed him on the spot.
Needless to say, how much the power used to shoot a cultivator on their vital and able to kill them directly. Afterward, Wei Wuxian was still able to play ChenQing, control the fierce corpses, and fought with Lan Wangji like he wasn't hurt in the slightest.
He was able to strangle and broke the neck of that cultivator who killed Jiang Yanli. A cultivator who has golden core and has their body tempered and trained, not just like any other mortal, had their neck broken using only a hand's grip.
In the condition when Wei Wuxian had just been shot by an arrow in his chest, and had just been lifted up from being grounded on the stone bed for 3 days by Wen Qing, probably hadn't eaten anything during those days and directly go to Lanling to see Jiang Yanli and directly go to Nightless City afterward. In that situation, Wei Wuxian still had that much strength.
So, even without a golden core, Yiling Laozu Wei Wuxian was still as strong as a cow, lol.
That's only his physical fitness, not him using his Demonic Cultivation to control ghosts or demons.
Yiling Laozu Wei Wuxian is never a Weak and helpless man.