角色故事•二（解锁条件：角色等级40）
那一日，玉阙仙舟的瞰云镜下，符玄拜见业师。但她无法置信眼前之人就是族中长辈奉若神人的太卜：男人穿着半旧的飞行士短打，行止无仪地箕坐在地，专注望向投影阵列里不断变化交织的光点。
「末学符玄，向太卜大人问安。」犹豫半天，少女开口。
男人目不稍动，只是竖起一指，示意她看向图示。符玄留意到他的手不知为何被换成了木制机巧。「玉阙的鸣珂卫正在塔拉萨布防，策应曜青舰队围剿孽物。你应该有所耳闻吧？不过，命中注定他们赢不了这一战。」
「哦？曜青舰队武德昭昭，罕逢敌手。按战报所示，我军人数和战舰倍于步离人的猎群。怎么会有攻而不克的道理？」
「问得好。看来你不是一个轻易认命的学徒。」男人起身拍了拍沾灰的衣摆。「卜者知命而不认命，尝试在不同的可能中寻求最优的选择，这很好。不过有时候，无论你怎么选，命运都只有摆在面前的一条道路。当推占完毕时，面前只剩下凶与大凶两个不同结果时，你会怎么选？」
「…两害相权，自然是取其轻者。这是卜筮学的第一课。」
「但若以人类的眼界，无法权衡轻重呢？」男人转过身来。
「这次推占，是由新布成的阵法『十方光映法界』演算所得。结果有二：借调曜青仙舟的鹤羽卫，或是改调方壶仙舟的玄珠卫，二者可择其一。取鹤羽卫，固然能仗其兵势，强攻一时，但此后再无告捷之机。取玄珠卫，则必须忍受方壶所处之地间关迢迢，要将战期拖延六个月之久，忍受敌人多次反扑，损兵折卒自不必提。但能坚持守势直至援军到来，便有胜利的可能。」
「想来他们选了前者。」
「是啊。卜算结果只能参赞谋略，却不能代替将军下决定。他选了眼前损害最小的方案。但我也没算错，这场失败是命中注定的结果。」
「按兵书倍则战之的原则，调用曜青的军力也未必是下下之选。何况，世无定事，太卜怎么就能如此肯定，说的好像一切必然会发生？」
「世无定事？」男人重重叹了口气。「我原本也这么想…最初得出占卜结果时，以为是计算出了差错，但重演之后，结果并无变化。于是我决心亲自上场求证。」
「这几周以来，我深入塔拉萨，与孽物作战，取得当地的水居者文明的信任。得到了一条惊人的消息：受其月亮扰动，一个月后，被塔拉萨人称为『恶魔潮』的大潮汛即将降临。」
「若无方壶持明的云吟师相助，无人能在那般恶劣的环境下与怪物持续战斗。这条情报不见载于任何博物志，也不载于我军的智库。而为了多此一举地证实它，我付出了这只手作为代价。」
男人苦笑着高举木手晃了晃。「有时候，命运的道路自始至终只有一条。一切都是命中注定的。」
Character Story: Part II
• Unlocked at Character Level 40
On that day, Fu Xuan sought her master beneath the Cloudpeer Telescope of the Xianzhou Yuque, but found herself unable to believe that the man before her was the master diviner her elders had regarded so reverently. He wore a somewhat aged pilot's outfit and was unceremoniously seated on the ground with his attention dedicated entirely to the shifting of the interwoven light rays in the array.
"Your humble student, Fu Xuan, comes bearing her respects, Master Diviner." Such were the words spoken by the girl after a period of hesitation.
The man's stare remained still. He but lifted a finger as a signal for her to regard the display. Fu Xuan noticed his hand had, for some reason, been changed to a wood-made ingenium. "The Yuque's Echojade Fleet are currently laying out a defense at Thalassa in coordination with the Yaoqing's encirclement and eradication of abominations. You should have heard of this, yes? However, they are fated to lose this battle."
"Huh? The Yaoqing is noted for its martial prowess and is rarely rivaled. According to intelligence, our forces outnumber and outmatch the borisin. How can victory be denied if an attack is commenced?"
"Well asked. You don't seem like an apprentice that just accepts things." The man stood up and patted down his dust-coated sleeves. "A diviner is aware of destiny, but not a slave to it. Testing different possibilities to find the best choice is wise. However, sometimes, though try you might to find the best option, destiny will only grant you a single path forward. After your divination is complete, when your only outcomes are the bad and the worse, what will you choose?"
"...When one is faced with two kinds of venom, naturally the choice is the one that possesses lesser harm. This is the first lesson of divination."
"But what if we are unable to judge the severity of these matters from the perspective of a human?" The man turned.
"This divination is gleaned from the newly arranged 'Deca-Light Reflection Barrier' matrix. There are two outcomes: To temporarily transfer the Heroncrest Fleet of the Xianzhou Yaoqing, or to draw from the manpower of the Ebonpearl Fleet of the Fanghu. Only one choice can be made. To use the Heroncrest Fleet means being able to press a strong offense for some time, but lose any hope of success thereafter. To use the Ebonpearl Fleet means we must endure the vast distances between us and the Fanghu and have the conflict drag on for six months. During this time, we must also withstand multiple counterattacks from the enemy, and I will neglect going over the losses that are certain to come. But should the defense hold until aid arrives, then victory may well become possible."
"They went with the first option, I presume?"
"Correct. Divination can provide counsel and guidance, but only the general can make the final decision. He chose the path that would lead to the smallest loss. This didn't invalidate my divination, of course — defeat was the predetermined outcome."
"The treatises on the art of war state that an advantage in numbers speaks favorably for initiating battle, and calling on the aid of Yaoqing's forces may not be the worst possible decision. Moreover, nothing is ever certain in this world. How can you be so sure, master diviner? How can you speak as if all have been predestined?"
"Nothing is ever certain in this world?" The man sighed heavily. "I thought the same thing when the divination results appeared... I thought there must have been an error in the calculations. However, the results did not change after the re-analysis. I therefore resolved to head to the battlefield and seek evidence myself."
"I had ventured deep into Thalassa the past few weeks, fought the abominations, and gained the trust of the local water dwellers. That was how I received a shocking piece of news: Within a month's time, a great tide known to the Thalassans as the 'Devil's Tide' — caused by the gravitational influence of their moon — will arrive."
"None will be able to keep fighting the abominations in such abyssal conditions without the help from the Fanghu Vidyadhara's cloudhymn magi. This piece of intel does not exist on any guide, nor is it recorded in our army's data bank. Only that, in order to validate my results in a moment of superfluous effort, I gave my hand as the price."
The man smiled bitterly and lifted his wooden hand in a wave. "Sometimes there is only ever one path in destiny. Everything is predetermined."
"By the way, you don't need to address me as master diviner. You should call me 'Teacher' from today onward."
