The soothsayer was a skeletal man. Wei Ying could see this because he wasn't wearing any clothes. He wanted to check if there were trousers worn under the table, but he didn't want to upset Lan Zhan.

His skin stretched taunt over his chest, bony arms on the table as he studied them. Wei Ying made himself stare back and it became a battle of wills, even though he wasn't sure of the outcome.

Salt and pepper hair was braided close to his skull in neat rows to flow loosely across his back until his waist. His sunken cheekbones and blackened hollows under his piercing eyes made an unforgettable picture.

Perhaps it wasn't a profitable occupation, he wondered, still maintaining eye contact, until the man chuckled. He looked away first.

"Young Master, what have you come to ask me?" He had a deep voice that was unusually calming.

Wei Ying decided to get to the point. He looked at Lan Zhan, who pulled out the knife and placed it on the table in front of him.

He glanced at it once before staring at Wei Ying.

"Do you know what this is?"

"A knife?" Wei Ying was beginning to doubt his abilities. Maybe he wasn't very good at his job...

"It's not just any knife. This knife has a name. And a twin." He leaned back, satisfied.

"How can you tell?" Wei Ying was shocked. "What is it's name?"

"His name. It is Hui Gai."

Wei Ying was having a hard time processing this.

"Would you like to meet him?"

What? What??

"Wait, you're telling me that the knife has a name and a body? And...and do I want to meet him?" Wei Ying really wanted a drink. Like, right now.

"You do not have to, but I am sensing he wishes to speak with you."

"How? How can you tell all this?" His leg was knocking against the table from stress.

Lan Zhan placed his warm hand on it, applying enough pressure to still the movement. Wei Ying smiled gratefully at him.

"What do we do?" He whispered to him. "On the one hand, I want to know, but if he's the knife, how friendly can he be?"

"He's not the knife," the soothsayer corrected. "He is a demon that resides within."

*****

Outside the hut, Jiang Cheng paced nervously. Right now, all he wanted was to feel the comforting arms of Lan Huan around him. Funny that, when given bad news, he did not think of Wei Ying, his own brother. The first person now was a kind, handsome man with a golden heart to match his core. He missed his boyfriend like his next breath.

Wen Ning liked the fierce Li Hua. Mainly because she didn't speak, or only when necessary, but that showed her intelligence. And she didn't seem to mind him. Now, they gravitated towards each other naturally, and no one felt it was odd. He admired the fact that she looked capable of defending herself.

JunJie Kang was in denial. His bad news was devastating and he really couldn't cope with what was to come. In his opinion, the best thing to do with what he had been told, was to ignore it. It hadn't happened yet. So who was to say that it might not? Surely, the future was dependent on variables? And these by their nature, were constantly changing. So in fact, he had nothing to worry about.

Chang Chao was a careful man. He had joined the Dragon Guard out of a single-minded goal. He was not going to fail now.
Yes, the coming time would be challenging, complete with the possibility of failure, but if he was true to himself, it would not matter. He sat back and allowed himself to enjoy the warm sunlight on his face.

*****

Wei Ying stared at the knife. There was a demon living inside it. There was a demon living inside it. No matter how much he said it in his mind, it wasn't going in.

Moreover, the Demon wanted to talk to him. How did you deal with that? Wei Ying looked at the soothsayer.

"What do you suggest?"

He stared back, serious for all of one second and then laughed out loudly.

"That is your choice to make. I do not influence."

Lan Zhan took his hand. "I am here. You do not have to do this."

"I know." Wei Ying struggled with putting his thoughts in order. "I'm getting the feeling that we may come to regret this, although whether that's if we do it or not. I hate indecision." He looked into Lan Zhan's eyes and said, "let's do it."

*****

Outside the hut, the companions were becoming impatient.

"How long does it take to tell a fortune?" JunJie Kang muttered.

"Not long for an idiot." Jiang Cheng hit back. He didn't know he could reach new levels of pettiness with this man.

Chang Chao held back his leader from outright attacking. Li Hua stood to attention, ready to fight.

"He's just trying to rile you up. Just ignore him." He told him.

JunJie Kang shook him off.

They were all on edge. It had been over an hour that Hanguang Jun and Wei WuXian had entered the hut. There was no sign of them coming out yet.

Just what was going on in there?