Chapter 692

Xue Song Zi threatens to expose Hei Cheng. Hei Cheng answers that Su Xian Er was actually Snowy Mountain’s own pawn sent to infiltrate Hei tribe: the Night Elopement was Snowy Mountain’s own conspiracy, and Su tribe’s later destruction was Snowy Mountain covering its tracks. Xue Song Zi says he has never heard this. Hei Cheng says Snowy Mountain has only three decision makers, and hands over an east window Gu holding the proof. Xue Song Zi casts his consciousness into it and breaks into a cold sweat. ^{ch. 692}

Hei Cheng recounts his history. Recognized young as a Gu Immortal seed, he fell into the conspiracy through ignorance, married Su Xian Er, and had Hei Lou Lan, until a Gu Immortal handed him this evidence one day. The evidence changes everything, since scheming against a wife planted by the demonic path earns praise rather than blame. Xue Song Zi accuses Hei Cheng of setting him up, realizing he has been entrapped rather than holding leverage. He had naively followed Hei Cheng into hunting Hei Lou Lan and fighting Fairy Li Shan. ^{ch. 692}

Hei Cheng adds a further piece of evidence, suspecting Fairy Li Shan and Su Xian Er share blood. He holds Su Xian Er’s blood and Hei Lou Lan’s for a future reckoning with Snowy Mountain. Xue Song Zi concedes that Hei Cheng outplayed him. He grants that Hei Cheng’s moves against Hei Lou Lan could pass as a father correcting a daughter, so long as the yin-yang life extension method is never used on her. But the plan is stalled anyway, since Hei Lou Lan has joined a central continent force and become a strength path extreme physique immortal. Hei Cheng falls silent. ^{ch. 692}

Xue Song Zi presses on: Hei Cheng harmed Su Xian Er, and Hei Lou Lan’s hatred runs deep. A female voice interrupts, saying that cooperating with her side is their only hope of victory. Xue Song Zi is startled, then recognizes her as Fairy Jiang Yu. Northern plains knows her as Hei Cheng’s twenty seventh concubine, a dark path Gu Immortal who holds dark limit Immortal Gu. That same Gu let Hei Lou Lan survive the Great Strength True Martial Physique without exploding, by sealing its aura. ^{ch. 692}

Hei Cheng’s manner turns cold at the sight of her. He answers only that he had expected her. Fairy Jiang Yu reminds him that years earlier, when she first brought evidence of the Night Elopement, she promised to appear when he needed her. Xue Song Zi senses she represents some mysterious force, since it was her notice that first alerted Hei Cheng to the deceit. Hei Cheng is uneasy that she reached him this closely undetected. ^{ch. 692}

Hei Cheng privately disdains Fang Yuan’s myriad self army. He cannot face it head on, but it failed to run him down. Xue Song Zi is equally unworried about facing Fang Yuan again, since the move costs too much essence. What worries Hei Cheng instead is Fang Yuan’s backing: Immortal Crane Sect and central continent’s Gu Immortals. Xue Song Zi shares the same fear, and neither man knows that Immortal Crane Sect actually means to move against Fang Yuan. ^{ch. 692}

Hei Cheng asks Jiang Yu, as a matter of good faith, which force she represents. She tells the truth: Shadow Sect, spread through all five regions. Hei Cheng and Xue Song Zi glance at each other. ^{ch. 692}

At Hu Immortal blessed land, Fang Yuan counts his remaining wealth. He holds twenty eight beads of green grape immortal essence and half an immortal essence stone, down from ninety one beads before Hei Lou Lan’s tribulation battle. He had used myriad self nearly fifty times to raise an army of close to five hundred thousand strength path phantoms. He still owes Fairy Li Shan fifteen immortal essence stones, which he can delay, and fifteen more to Lang Ya land spirit at ten percent interest, a debt that grows every month. ^{ch. 692}

Under the alliance’s terms, whichever side helps the other is compensated double. This time he gained far more than he paid. His strength path realm reached grandmaster, his transformation path rose to master, and his flying attainment reached quasi-grandmaster. These gains outweighed his cost enough that Fairy Li Shan owed him nothing further. Fang Yuan suspects Hei Lou Lan engineered the fight to exhaust him with the Demon Venerable’s true meaning. He calls it an upright plot he would have dived into again anyway. ^{ch. 692}