He does not say "easy enough", even if it's the first thought in his head. A-Yao would not be telling him this if simple cultivation techniques could keep such a curse at bay.

He watches the other man's face now, reads the discomfort in his features, and Xichen's worried furrow makes a return.

"A-Yao," and his tone is plaintive and gentle all the same, "what are you not telling me...?"