Severin's words struck deeply into Xiao's heart.
The Geo Archon needed him.
Liyue's people needed him.
His battles went unseen, unrecorded, unsung—
yet Liyue could not endure without him.
In that moment, Xiao understood something he had never truly acknowledged:
He mattered.
If he left, no one among the adepti—
not even Madame Ping, strongest among them—
could fill that void.
He exhaled softly.
For the first time in his long life, he felt the weight of his own irreplaceability.
The Past He Could Never Escape
In the age of the Archon War, Xiao had been young and ignorant.
A brutal god seized upon his weakness, bound him, and turned him into a slaughtering tool.
He devoured dreams.
He consumed ideals.
He watched the dying regrets of defeated gods dissolve into his being.
Some had longed for peace.
Some never wished to fight at all.
He saw their unwillingness.
Their sorrow.
Their hatred.
It tore at him.
One day, he was ordered to devour the dream of a certain Geo-aligned god.
But this dream was different.
It burned with conviction.
It promised contracts to the people.
It envisioned protection for all under heaven.
Xiao hesitated.
He could not devour it.
He would rather die.
Then the dream shattered.
"You have passed the test."
Before him stood Morax, spear in hand.
At Morax's feet lay the corpse of the blood-soaked tyrant who had enslaved him.
It had been a trial.
Had Xiao consumed that dream, Morax would have slain him as well.
"To prevent you from being enslaved again, you shall abandon your true name."
"From this day forth, you are 'Xiao'—a spirit tempered by suffering."
Thus he was reborn.
The Five Yaksha
Returning to Guili Assembly, he met the other four Yaksha.
They called him "Fifth Brother."
He had family.
Bosacius, the eldest, strong and boisterous.Menogias, the second, lover of garments and craft.Indarias, fiery and radiant.Bonanus, gentle as flowing water.
Bosacius dragged him into drinking rites and clapped his shoulder.
"You are not alone anymore. We fight beside you."
"Welcome home, Fifth Brother."
It was the first time Xiao had cried.
Menogias gifted him the Yaksha mask—
a fierce visage to terrify demons.
It also concealed Xiao's own distorted features when his true form emerged.
A subtle act of care.
Indarias dragged him through the streets laughing, loudly proclaiming:
"This is my little brother! If anyone bullies him, I'll burn them!"
She once teased:
"If you can't find a wife someday, Third Sister will marry you!"
He had fled, face burning red, while laughter followed him.
Bonanus, quiet and perceptive, found him alone on a rooftop once.
"Past cannot be corrected, but the future may yet be pursued."
"Open your heart."
"You will meet someone who understands you."
He had wept against her shoulder that night.
Warmth That Faded
Years later, when Morax was crowned Rex Lapis and Liyue prospered, a great "Night of a Hundred Demons" struck.
Xiao fought until collapse.
When he awoke—
His face had been painted like a cat.
Bosacius' mischief.
All four laughed as he fumed.
"Your reward, Fifth Brother."
"Let us protect Liyue together."
Then—
They died.
One by one.
Madness.
Corruption.
Sacrifice.
Now only he remained.
Return of Resolve
After meeting Severin, Xiao rediscovered something he had nearly lost—
His original purpose.
Liyue needed him.
Even if he were the last Yaksha alive, the mission endured.
He bore the wishes of his two brothers and two sisters.
He sighed.
"If they had learned the Heart Sutra Your Highness taught…"
"Perhaps they would not have perished."
"Alas… all things have changed."
A trace of boundless melancholy surfaced in his eyes.
Then—
Severin's voice cut gently through the silence.
"If you miss them so deeply…"
"Why not go see them?"
The wind seemed to still.
The adepti froze.
And Xiao looked up slowly.
For the first time—
Hope flickered in his golden eyes.
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