Prompt: qualcosa che all’inizio è unito e alla fine diviso
Missione: m3 (week 3)
Parole: 6015
Rating: arancione / M
Warnings: major character death, mention of corpses
To be honest, he never really understood how bonds form. It may be that he has never been too close to people in general or, maybe, he simply didn't manage to get why humans try to find each other along the way in order to not be alone. He observed them for a long time (he still does) but it didn't help to figure out most of their needs. Not that he has to. But sometimes, when he hears their prayers especially during the Lantern Rite, he wonders why they ask for other humans' company or why they sound so... lonely. Xiao has been alone for years at this point, former Yaksha like him long gone. Rex Lapis still is somewhere around the Liyue area of course, but the more time passes, the less they meet - it's not like Xiao expects the Geo Archon to be always there. And, after all, he's busy respecting their contract.
Despite this, he's sure that Rex Lapis would probably be able to explain it to him, with the knowledge the other has about all the things. Xiao supposes that probably he had a special bond in the past - he had a lot of them, maybe: can the same fate you share with others who are supposed to protect the land be considered a bond? Does their death means they are not linked anymore in any way? There's been a time when Xiao thought about all this deeply but in the end, he understood that it was useless: they are not there. They won't come back.
He's alone.
The night has fallen on Liyue Harbor hours ago and not a single light is visible from the peek where he stands, watching over a quiet city that will wake up in a couple of hours. Darkness didn't bother him too much, evil intents were not felt and not a single soul is crying. That's a good night, all in all. He can rest for a bit, but he prefers to not leave the place where he stays now— it's easier to see everything like this. He moves to reach one of the few trees over there and sits down, the dew on the grass slightly wetting his clothes. He puts his back against the trunk and looks up at the sky. If he focus on the horizon, he can see a timid shade of light blue that gives advance notice of the morning coming soon.
A vague feeling of something pulling his finger catches his attention. Golden eyes wander towards his own hand and focus on the little finger. The familiar thread he has always had there is still in place, tightly tied. It's been so long since someone has been connected to him through it that Xiao almost forgot having it in the first place. Too many years passed for him to clearly remember the face or the identity of that someone. Or, at least, this is what he told to whoever asked him— to Ganyu, that simply mentioned its existence without the slightest ill intention, to Ningguang who he doesn't particularly like anyway and he would tell the same thing to Rex Lapis if he asked. Luckily, the Geo Archon never did. Xiao supposes it's because he doesn't need to listen to his reply to know exactly what it is and who was on the other end of the thread before. Sometimes Xiao hates the feeling of being seen through because he knows there's nothing he can do about Rex Lapis.
The thread is pulling again. Almost too subtle to be noticed, but it does. Xiao follows it with his eyes: the small knot that never once loosened, the contrast between the red and the green grass. The thing with the thread is that it's basically impossible to see where it ends unless the other person is very close. But there's no person anymore.
For the third time, he feels his little finger being pulled. And he knows, somehow, that a new bond just formed. Who's the other person his fate has been linked to?
*
For days what Xiao does is observe the thread every now and then, as if to make sure that it's still there. It is, but it never pulls again, to the point that Xiao supposes it's been nothing but his imagination or his mind playing with him. So he goes back to ignore it— he has never been the one who likes to dwell in the past, or at least it's something he wants to tell himself and the others so interested in him that they feel like asking too personal questions. The reality is quite different because, in a sense, he is made of the past: of his contract with Rex Lapis; of shared fate with other Yakshas; of enemies he slaughtered and that made him the Vigilant he is now; of Liyue, because he exists for the people and the land.
In his mind, there is also a small place for a single person of the past, the one he can't clearly remember even when he wants it badly. But year after year, it's like even the desire has done nothing but weaken. Xiao is not even sure if he wants to remember anymore.
When he's about to completely forget it, the thread pulls. It's weak, but it's there. And Xiao can't leave Liyue just because it's starting to wonder if his mind finally broke and it's making fun of him. Anyway even if he wanted to try to follow the string to the other hand, he couldn't do it because he's under a contract he can't sever so easily. So he looks for Rex Lapis, waits for him to be apart from all those humans the Geo Archon keeps mingling with and approaches him. He's not surprised when the god makes it obvious that he noticed Xiao's arrival since the beginning.
"What a rare occurrence, for you to look for me so close to Liyue Harbor." it's the greeting the Yaksha gets, welcomed by complete silence. Rex Lapis doesn't seem bothered though (has he ever been?) and simply stays where he is, standing close to one of the Geo Archon's statues, crossed arms against his chest and amber eyes observing the city. There are far enough to not be noticed by humans, but not so much that they can't catch suspicious people or presences approaching. Xiao never thought about it, but maybe his habit of choosing places that make it easy for him to watch over what he's supposed to protect is something he took from Rex Lapis himself. He decides to ignore the thought for now.
Now that he’s here he’s not sure this is a good idea. In fact, was it necessary to come to Rex Lapis and ask for his opinion on the matter? It’s not like Xiao expects him to give him permission to cease the contract and just go wherever he wants to or to look for the person who is at the other end of the string. If there is something the Geo Archon treasures above everything else, it’s the concept of contracts itself. How could he ever tell him to just let it go and leave Liyue? And truth to be told, Xiao would never ask for it, no matter how curious he is about the person that is now linked to him.
“I suppose you wanted to ask me something?” Rex Lapis says, eyes on him as if to see through him. Xiao doesn’t really like the feeling, but he knows that it’s unavoidable. The Geo Archon is too old to not be able to understand most of what he sees and hears, and Xiao is nothing but a small child in comparison, someone the Archon observed as he grew up as an Adepti. He knows his role better than anyone else and, unfortunately, his character too. To lie in front of him is simply impossible.
“…It’s nothing important.” he replies. Not out of cowardice, but because it feels stupid now that he’s there and that he has the chance to ask. Rex Lapis doesn’t insist. He only looks at him for a few seconds more and then just goes back to observe Liyue Harbor. Xiao doesn’t know what he expected or if he would have preferred more questions. For now, he chooses to keep quiet and just sits there, like he would do if by himself like any other night. Time passes, slowly but comfortably. At some point Xiao almost forgets the reason why he came and, for sure, he wouldn’t even mention it if the thread didn’t pull right now. He can’t help but look at it, his little finger feeling numb.
“So there’s someone on the other end of it.” Rex Lapis says and it’s not a question, he’s just stating a truth. Something that Xiao can’t deny in any way. Part of him really wants to yet, again, has he ever been able to lie to the Geo Archon? “Are you curious about who the person is?”
“I’m not.” he replies, way too quickly “Anyway it’s not like I can look for them or like I want them here in Liyue. The thread has been still for too many years anyway. The other person doesn’t want this as much as I don’t, too.” because, after all, isn’t this also a possibility? When fates intertwine it’s not like the people involved necessarily want to stay together for all their lives or to follow what destiny decided for them. In fact, it’s not even that rare that destined people never cross paths despite the red string connecting them.
Rex Lapis smiles. It’s a gentle, understanding, vague curve of his lips― how can he be so calm? Will a time come when Xiao will be the same, untouched by what he sees and hears as if it’s nothing, able to make the right decisions and to stay among humans without being swept by their emotions? Sometimes he’s sure he already managed it, but then night and darkness bring nothing but cries and suffering and evilness. When it happens, Xiao thinks those things will never leave him alone no matter how many thousand years pass.
“Unfortunately, bonds are not so easy.” he offers, wise words Xiao doesn’t get. Not completely. Maybe it shows on his face, because Rex Lapis doesn’t stop at that “Being tied to the fate of another being means you will, for sure, cross paths with them. You may choose what to do after it happens, of course. To treasure it or to not do anything at all, but fate will keep giving you chances to stay together. Naturally, it will also depend on what the other person wants to do.” he carefully explains, his eyes on Xiao the whole time, making it more than difficult to evade the topic.
Would he be able to toss the fate away even after meeting the person?
“I think” Rex Lapis keeps talking “that in your case, the person on the other end of the string might have had a very good reason to not look for you until now or to not let you know they are actually there.”
Xiao looks at him directly in the eyes for the first time since the Geo Archon started to talk to him as if he wants to convince him to not discard whatever this fate wants out of him without thinking about it a bit more. He’s expecting something, an explanation, some kind of revelation. And it comes: brutal, sincere, frightening.
“They might have just been born.”
*
Years pass. So many that Xiao sometimes forgets about someone being on the other end of the string. There are days and nights when he’s too busy to make amends for what his cursed karma causes in Liyue, especially around the Harbor and Wangshu Inn where he stays. After hours of fighting as his curse seems to devour him, when he can finally rest and the sun is about to shine, Xiao stops and glances at the string around his finger. Most of the times nothing comes out of it, only stillness and silence. But on rare occasions, there is a vague pulling and Xiao feels slightly warmer inside. Why this happens, he doesn’t know― he tries to ignore it when he has the impression that the warmth is making him weaker in a way that he doesn’t fully understand but that he can perceive. He never spoke about it with Rex Lapis after the first time.
Liyue Harbor is as lively as always, and Wangshu Inn is getting some more customers as it always does at certain times of the year. Xiao is downstairs, where most of the customers don’t bother to go, half-hidden behind a room divider, sitting at a small table where the chef lets him stay to have lunch. They never interact much, as Xiao is not exactly interested in playing friends, but they manage. As in: they mind their own businesses. Anyway, the poor chef is too busy most of the day to bother about him.
If he’s not there in the kitchen, he’s on the terrace. And usually, Verr Goldet doesn’t talk to him if not necessary. She still tries to make him… interact. Participate. Sometimes it sounds like she wants him to be part of something Xiao knows is totally out of question for him― there’s no way he, as the Vigilant Yaksha, can easily pretend he’s not cursed or that he can live like a normal human. He really can’t understand why she seems to care so much.
Despite him not being upstairs, he can still grasp part of the conversations between her and the rest of the inn staff. He hears her as she talks about a Traveler who volunteered to solve some problems with hilichurls. If he has to be honest, it is surprising: not a traveler being there per se, but the fact that they offered for such a boring job considering they have nothing to do with Liyue to begin with. So there are still some humans that sacrifice themselves for others in need of help. A small pulling at his little finger manages to catch his attention. Whatever Verr adds about said traveler, goes unnoticed.
*
Apparently, the traveler helped a lot, not only with the few hilichurls that were giving Verr a headache, but with a lot of small commissions basically everyone asked them to involve themselves in. Xiao can’t understand why they bother, but it’s not his business and for sure he has no intention of trying to figure out more about them. At least this is what he wanted to do― let this whole traveler new thing to pass as the seasons do and nothing more. Verr Goldet managed to ruin his plans by sending the person there on the terrace to talk to him.
The traveler is a boy, quite young. He’s with a sort of… floating thing that can speak and that talks a lot. It’s a funny creature. He has long hair the same colour as the sun and kind eyes. Too kind for his own good, Xiao is sure of it. He has seen too many people like him, destined to suffer in the end and rarely rewarded for their empathy. The boy name is Aether. At least, it’s how his companion addresses him. Apparently, Aether wants to ask for his help about something, a commission he accepted maybe. In the beginning, Xiao isn’t even willing to listen to him, because he hears prayers every day and, above all, he doesn’t do teamwork. He is alone, and that is how it will always be. It doesn’t matter if the floating creature considers him too cold or even impolite.
But Aether insists, in a not too annoying way but persistent nonetheless. Xiao sighs, lets his golden eyes abandon the horizon he was staring at and move until he can take a proper look at this stubborn traveler. It would be easy, to scare him and make it so that he will never come near him again; it would be extremely simple to pretend he is not the good guardian the other seem to have mistaken him for.
If only the red string at his little finger wouldn’t pull now. If only the other end of it wasn’t tied at Aether’s one.
*
It comes as a bigger shock than Xiao thought it would be. In the end, he quickly helped them only to be left alone with his thoughts― he didn’t go back to Wangshu Inn, quite sure that Aether and Paimon would have found him too easily. He stayed away from the inn during the night since he is used to go around defeating all the threats he can, and went there only after having caught a glimpse of those two in the Harbor.
Since the beginning, he noticed that Aether is not conscious of the string. Must have never felt it nor seen it. Xiao basically decided that it’s all there is to it: not like he can go to someone and tell them their fates are connected forever or at least until death decides otherwise. First of all, it is not even that easy to believe in such a thing (he ignores the voice inside him that whispers Aether would believe you. He’s too kind to think you are a liar), and secondly, Xiao is not here to convince anyone. There’s nothing he wants from this bond and, for sure, there is nothing neither of them can gain from it. Being tied to the fate of a human? No, thank you.
Of course, Aether has to make this awfully hard by looking for him every now and then. The traveler everyone in Liyue Harbor has already grown fond of disappears in thin air for weeks, sometimes, and nobody seems to know where he goes. Then, just when Xiao gets used to not seeing him anywhere, Aether comes back and the Yaksha feels this weird instinct that makes him search for the human boy with his gaze despite his will to not do it.
And with Rex Lapis no longer there, Xiao can’t even ask for… not really a piece of advice but something like that. Not that the last time he did, Rex Lapis made his doubts disappear― if anything, he made it worse, telling him that bonds not only can’t be avoided but are not so easy to destroy. Yet they can fade away, weaken day after day. Unfortunately, Xiao has known very few of them, most of them ruled by Rex Lapis’ contracts no less. And breaking a contract with the ex Geo Archon has never been something wise to do. Xiao told him and Rex Lapis, last time he was able to meet with him, offered a small chuckle and a few words.
There is not a single bond in this world that cannot be severed, Xiao.
And if that's true, Xiao doesn’t want something easily destroyed. With all the evil karma he is surrounded by, how can he suppose to be able to protect that frail string linking him to a fragile human?
Despite his best intention though, which includes not interacting unless it's unavoidable, Xiao ends up understanding the hard way how much fate can play a game at the expenses of those influenced by it and, above all, with no way of stopping its flow. And this, needless to say, doesn't sit well with him. From what he can remember, destiny has always been there to ruin everything without giving him the chance to avoid at least some of it or to change it with his actions. Even when it came to decisions Xiao was sure he arbitrarily made, in the end a small annoying voice in his mind kept asking him are you sure you really chose this?
The worst part is that no, he is not sure. He made a contract with Rex Lapis, one that bound him to protect Liyue for... a very long time. But was it his choice? Was it really him looking for Rex Lapis or just fate making them meet? Did Rex Lapis see something in him that made Xiao someone worth the role of one of the Adepti or was he just meant to be because there was no other choice?
It's hard to completely discard fate when his karma is like it is and causes enough troubles for him and those around him. Yet, this specific part of his so-called destiny— to be obligated to share his life with someone, even— that is something he can't accept. But Aether makes all his efforts vain and all his rude and cruel retorts useless. It's as if the sharper his words get, the kinder Aether treats him. And it's unbearable.
More than the cries he hears in his mind every night.
*
The day comes, after months since their first meeting and a few weeks since the last time Aether has been seen in Liyue Harbor, when the Traveler comes to Wangshu Inn, looks for him and gives him a present. Xiao is already confused enough by the fact that the other still seems to be interested in being friends or whatever humans do with people they enjoy the company of, but a present is something he has never really received before. Prayers, yes. Offerings, sometimes. But other than those—
"Almond Tofu." Aether says, a smile on his lips that reminds him of a child who just cheated during a small game and that knows it, but still tries his best to mellow the person who caught him doing so. Xiao doesn't know how to interpret the curve of his lips, half apologetic and half reassuring, nor the present. Did someone told the human that Almond Tofu is his favourite food (and the only one he can actually appreciate and digest)? Is this bribe?
He carefully looks at it. Aether's hands still reaching out to him, patiently waiting for his response. In the end, he takes it, because the food per se is innocent. And because it smells quite good. The moment the plate passes from Aether's hands to his own, the small smile from before gets so big that Xiao stops for a few seconds only to look at it. Why does the human seem... so happy?
"I made it myself, so maybe it can't really be compared to chef Mao's or to what Wangshuu Inn can offer but..."
Xiao goes back to the dish and, slowly, takes one bite. The familiar, savoury taste explodes into his mouth, making it hard to not just keep eating. He's not fond of consuming food in front of everyone, after all. The night has already fallen on Liyue so he supposes Aether will not stay there any longer and will go back inside to have dinner if Wangshuu Inn is where he's going to stay. Yet, Aether is still standing in front of him, quite happy to just look at him as he eats.
"You should go inside." Xiao tells him and hopes Aether will get it and go. He doesn't. Seriously, do humans ever listen? "Can I keep you company?" Aether asks him instead. He keeps quiet, pondering. With the corner of his eye, he notices the string at the human's finger and something inside him just pushes, whatever the feeling can mean, and Xiao finds himself nodding before he can stop his body.
They sit on the terrace, not the best spot to eat together unless you actually have a table and chairs (but Aether doesn't eat at all); the human is a pleasant presence though, since he seems to respect Xiao's silence and doesn't look too uncomfortable because of it. Paimon tries to keep the conversation up because she's a natural at floating and chatting, but she gives up and interacts with Aether most of the time because Xiao doesn't really reply to most of her questions. Not because he wants to be cruel, but a lot of the things she mentions are from what she experienced with Aether, occasions Xiao knows nothing about. What catches his attention, at some point, is the mention of Liyue Harbor's Lantern Rite.
"Zhongli told us about it!" Paimon exclaims, looking at Aether. What Xiao recognises on his face, though, is a feeling he saw and felt too many times to count or to ignore: regret. Even Paimon seems to notice it and her floating calms down a lot.
"It's nothing, really." Aether replies when she asks him if everything is okay "I just... hoped I would be able to see the Lantern Rite with Lumine." he admits. That's how Xiao learns about him looking for his sister, his search for the Seven, his efforts to be reunited with his most important person. Xiao has never been hurt by monsters to the point of not being able to heal— yet it's as if a hole is suddenly there where his stomach is supposed to be. As if a long, sharp blade just pierced him and he's bleeding but without actual blood. It doesn't particularly hurt, but it does make him feel empty.
His eyes wander until they casually stop on his own hands. The string (still there, still connected) seems to make fun of him.
You should never forget, tells him the voice in his mind, this is why you shouldn't stay with this person.
He can't share his everything with someone that is definitely going to go away sooner or later. With someone that will end up being his priority while he will be the second option. As someone who is not human, and too many years old to be counted, Xiao's rationality tells him that it's to be expected and that it's fine. But the hole is still there. The emptiness is.
A vague, ancient sense of loss crawls on his back.
*
By the time the Lantern Rite actually makes all the people in Liyue Harbor busy, Xiao gave in: being apart from Aether is impossible, especially when the human keeps looking for him, bringing him things, sharing small adventures and discovers with him. Xiao told himself a lot of perfect words and reasonings, listened to the voices in his head every night, even those he actually wants to ignore. Especially those that remind him how much he has lost. Hasn't fate shown him that bonds can be severed and that it takes a split second to do so? Hasn't the other Yakshas' end been enough for him to learn?
It did. Yet, every time Aether is with him, that seems enough and Xiao hates his own weakness.
Aether comes back to Liyue after a brief period of time in Mondstadt and the moment he sets foot in Liyue Harbor, every single person seems to be in need of his help. It should be enough to keep him away but no, some of his commissions even involve Xiao. They first meet at night to fight some hilichurls surrounded by some sinister aura and Aether even joins him to fight them— he's good at fighting, that much Xiao must admit. His movements are good, his powers well synchronized with his sword attacks. They function incredibly well despite never having fought together before. But Xiao can't really ignore how attacking and defending feels so natural or that having Aether to his side makes it... easier. Fighting, resting, breathing. It's as if he's depending on it, and that is despicable, yet it's an unbearable attraction that has nothing to do with earthly desires. The fact that Xiao feels it, though, doesn't mean he has to tell Aether.
The second time they meet is because they have to take care of someone pretending to be an Adepti while extorting. It's nothing difficult to do, a small scare is all they need, but it makes them work together once again. He might tell Aether that the ritual is pretty simple yet tricky, but at the end of the day, there is no way he would ever allow something to hurt the human. The thought strikes him like a lightening would: I can't let this person suffer or be hurt. It's like being finally freed of something that has been there for year and, at the same time, it's so frightening that Xiao almost doesn't recognise the feeling he has always caused to others.
Fear.
"Here." Aether tells him, the same kind smile Xiao has grown fond of before he even noticed on his lips. He's holding a lantern. Not so surprising, but still unexpected. They parted way almost an hour ago when Xiao told him there was no way he was going closer to Liyue Harbor than they already were and that Aether and Paimon could just go to enjoy the Lantern Rite together. He looked at the lanterns being released and at the fireworks from there, the same peek where he is now and where he often stays all night to watch over the city. Why Aether has a lantern left in his hands, Xiao doesn't know. Paimon, he notices, is nowhere to be seen.
"You are alone." he says, as if he didn't hear Aether's single word or didn't notice the small gesture to give him the lantern. Yet, nothing seems to discourage the human, that much Xiao already learnt about him. "Paimon is enjoying a lot of food." is the only explanation Aether gives him "But I wanted to release one of these with you." he adds. This confuses the Yaksha.
"...I saw the others." "Yes, I thought so. But it's not the same. I... want you to send your wish as well." Aether admits, an apologetic smile, eyes shining thanks to the light of the lantern. At this point, Xiao is quite sure the human made it himself. So how is he supposed to... react?
"Do you not like the idea, after all?" Aether inquires, but Xiao's attention is on the lantern. Has he ever made a wish upon one of these? Has someone ever built one just for him? The emptiness he felt at some point while having Aether next to him, suddenly disappears. Something, Xiao doesn't know what exactly, fills it to the point of overflowing. The trembling in his chest... is it his heart?
"I'm—" "No." Xiao interrupts him, amber eyes glued to the lantern. He can even see Aether's end of the string "It's okay." he adds, mouth dry and lack of words. Not that he's never been a chatterbox, anyway.
Aether beams. His expression looks so happy Xiao wonders if this was all it took to make him smile like that. If this is the fate he has to bend to. Maybe it's less horrible than he thought. Maybe it doesn't have anything to do with his karma or former Yakshas, or— maybe the fact that he fought for so many years counts.
Aether offers him the lantern again: "Make a wish." he tells him, encourages him. Xiao moves his hand a bit, but only takes a part of the lantern "You too." he offers. His voice might sound quieter, softer, but he doesn't mind it now. Aether looks confused and surprised at the same time, though.
"I thought it was one wish per lantern." "Maybe. But my wish is a small one. There is enough room for yours too." he adds as he hears Aether laughs. It's a small sound, nothing too nosy, but it's so dear to him that it hurts. They release the lantern and Xiao's eyes look at the string that connects their hands, now so close to each other.
May your fate never be corrupted by mine.
*
They spend so much time together that Xiao surrenders— to his fate, to this bond, to Aether's kindness, to how the human becomes his priority in a way Xiao would never be able to explain. If Rex Lapis was here, Xiao thinks he would quietly chuckle before giving some sort of I told you it was not so easy, Xiao talk. It's enough time for Aether to find his sister and take her to Liyue so that Xiao can meet her. They are quite similar but, at the same time, completely different in his eyes. Since their first meeting, Xiao thought that she probably understood how much her brother was an important existence for him, even if she might have not completely grasped the situation.
The fights didn't cease. If anything, a greater enemy came, something that made the simple monsters and his cursed karma look like a piece of cake, a child's game. When Aether is away, he can't help but feel restless, despite knowing his place and that he can't leave, no matter how much his body ache when too much distance goes between them. Xiao has always known after all, since the day Aether came to his world and was nothing but an infant: whoever was at the end of the string, there was no way for Xiao and his contract to follow him wherever he would choose to go.
It happens without the slightest warning. The night has fallen over Liyue as usual, the lights in the city are all off. The quietness the darkness brings can be almost comforting, but the cries get louder and louder. Nothing about this changed and probably it never will: monsters appear, evilness spreads and souls can't rest in peace. The Vigilant Yaksha still keeps his promise, respects his contract and fights, fights, fights— then a sudden, terrible pain suddenly seems to pierce his body and soul. This is nothing he has ever felt before, not even when the other Yaskhas disappeared one by one, destroying each other or losing themselves and succumbing to the darkness and the heavy feelings the world let them shoulder.
Xiao's memories might be vague, but what he felt makes his mind clear and this, this it's a sense of loss he has never felt. Fear overcomes it, together with uncontrollable rage. An Abyss mage surfaces in front of him, from who knows where. He doesn't even have to think before his body moves by itself.
*
Rests of monsters that could be considered corpses are all scattered around him. Water wets his feet but he couldn't care less. The moon is up in the sky, not a single cloud left. It's an awfully quiet night, now that all the cries stopped. The only thing he can hear is his breath.
The Yaksha's mask disappears, his corrupted karma still slightly around him. He's probably hurt somewhere, but there is no pain— not one that can surpass the feeling that is still there, devouring his heart or whatever is supposed to be there at this point.
The string tied to his little finger is not connected to anyone anymore.
There is not a single bond in this world that cannot be severed, Xiao. Death is something not even a god can control.