"I know, I know," Xue Yang interrupted. "You don't want to talk about it, and I'm not gonna make you, Daozhang, don't worry." He had the hem of Xiao Xingchen's wide sleeve between his fingers—just enough to draw him in by, to keep him aware of his friend's physical presence. "Just let me guess. You don't even have to tell me if I'm right, if you don't want to."
He would, though, Xue Yang was sure.
Xiao Xingchen left her mountain intending to understand and improve the world. Song Lan left her temple to travel with Xiao Xingchen and pursue their ideals together. Unfortunately, the world held more things in it than either of them was truly prepared for, including Xue Yang and Jin Guangshan.
Xue Yang is alone in Yi City; he has Xiao Xingchen's body, his fragmented soul, and the fierce corpse of his erstwhile partner to kick around, but none of this is enough to stop him missing Xiao Xingchen himself. A late night gives him the idea for something that might help.