The air is much cooler inside this dark space as their eyes adjust to the lack of light. Wei Ying remembers his golden butterfly spell, the one he used to use to entertain his shidis and shimeis back in Lotus Pier. It helps to light the way and thankfully just in time, because there is a steep staircase a few feet away.
"That's clever," Xue Yang comments, as they both feel their way and take one step at a time as they descend.
There's a strange smell, dank and earthy in spite of the mountainous rock that surrounds them. Wei Ying wrinkles his nose and does his best to navigate the steps that were definitely cut out for people with longer legs, not for a five year old child. Xue Yang isn't faring much better, and when they come to a narrow landing, they take a few moments to rest.
"It's okay if you don't want to tell me," Xue Yang says carefully, "but why do you want to kill off the old goat? Wen Ruohan."
"He's not a good man," Wei Ying replies, suddenly on edge.
"No, I get that. But I've been thinking. You're only five years old, and I don't think you've ever met Wen Ruohan, and neither has your other half. Not in this lifetime." Xue Yang is watching him intently as he speaks.
"What do you mean?" If he can avoid being truthful about all of this, then Wei Ying wants to go with the option that lets him get away with the minimum reveal. This is still Xue Yang, and in spite of his helping their agenda, Wei Ying still can't be sure if it's because he's genuinely loyal to them, or because of his love for killing.
"I don't like being lied to," Xue Yang says quietly.
In the darkness, his eyes are bright pools of liquid unblinkingly watching him back. Wei Ying shivers unconsciously.
"I don't think you'll believe me," he replies, just as softly.
"Alright, let's make this easier. What if I ask you questions and you can say yes or no?"
"Okay," Wei Ying agrees, throwing out the butterflies again as an excuse to keep moving, and not because he desperately wishes Lan Zhan was here now. Not just to protect him from Xue Yang, but because Xue Yang isn't wrong; Lan Zhan IS his other half. Also, Lan Zhan would be able to get away with a single 'Mn' and no one would be any the wiser on whether that was an affirmation or a negative.
"Are you from the future?"
Wei Ying can't help himself; he looks at Xue Yang immediately, and finds he's being watched with the same amount of scrutiny as a rule-breaking child in front of his mother. There's a triumphant smile on Xue Yang's face, and since he so effectively caught Wei Ying giving himself away by his reaction, there's no point in denying it.
"Sort of."
"Both of you, right? And Laoshi?"
Oh...it seems Xue Yang has been watching them far more closely than anyone had given him credit for.
"Yes. But you can't tell anyone. No one knows."
Xue Yang makes a wounded noise of disbelief. "As if," he scoffs. "Nobody will believe it, so don't worry. All of those assholes are so obsessed with themselves, that you're perfectly safe. But then, I'm gonna take another leap and say Wen Ruohan was a bad guy in whatever alternate universe you're from. Was he really bad? Like, worse than this one?"
"Yeah, he was really bad." Wei Ying thinks about the countless lives destroyed just because of one man's greed for power. "And worse than in this lifetime, only because nobody suspected him of trying to take over the whole Cultivation world until it was too late. We're just lucky to get this chance so we can stop him."
