Hearing Fang Yuan say "it's still not enough," Hei Loulan let out a displeased cold snort. "Fang Yuan, you don't understand the situation in the Northern Plains very well, so let me tell you. Not long ago, the Northern Plains' foremost Wisdom Path Gu Immortal, Dongfang Changfan, invited the major superpowers and proactively performed divinations for them, on the condition that they ally with the Dongfang tribe and refrain from targeting or suppressing the Dongfang tribe for fifty years after his death."
"Oh?" Fang Yuan's gaze sharpened. "Such a thing happened? Then what exactly did he divine?"
"They say Dongfang Changfan performed one divination for each family, covering Gu recipes, locations where Immortal Gu would appear, key techniques for slaying Desolate Beasts, and more. He has already divined a great deal about you, though I naturally don't know the specifics. But everyone now knows you are not a native Northern Plains Gu Master. And yet you have Northern Plains Gu Masters by your side, colluding with you." Hei Loulan replied.
Tai Bai Yun Sheng, listening from the side, couldn't help but contract his pupils, saying with some apprehension, "He's already managed to divine so much? As expected of Dongfang Changfan..."
Hei Loulan chuckled coldly and continued, "Fang Yuan, our lives are tied together! If I die, I can't guarantee I won't hand you and Tai Bai Yun Sheng over. Also — is the Zhi Hui Gu in your possession?"
Tai Bai Yun Sheng's expression shifted slightly. He was about to deny it but held back the impulse.
Fang Yuan smiled calmly. "How is that possible! The Zhi Hui Gu was already destroyed by the Great Unity Wind Curtain. How could I have brought it here?"
Tai Bai Yun Sheng silently praised Fang Yuan in his heart. His lying skill was truly something to marvel at. His tone, his expression — not a single crack, filled with regret and wistfulness, as though he had truly missed out on the Zhi Hui Gu.
Hei Loulan couldn't spot the flaw either. But in the next moment, she narrowed her eyes and spoke in a roguish tone, "I don't care whether you truly lost the Zhi Hui Gu or not. I only know that the Zhi Hui Gu could have been compelled by survival to seek you out willingly. Heh heh, don't rush to deny it. You surely understand what I mean — hiding in the Central Continent is not safe for you. Regardless of whether the Zhi Hui Gu is truly in your possession, the moment I leak the news that you have the Zhi Hui Gu, it won't matter if you hide at the ends of the earth! Every Gu Immortal in the world will frantically hunt you down until they get to the bottom of the truth."
"So you're threatening me?" Fang Yuan's expression turned cold as he slowly rose to his feet.
"Hei Loulan. You've got some nerve. Do you realize you're currently inside Soul-Swaying Mountain? If we give the word, the Earth Spirit will fully activate Soul-Swaying Mountain. You'll just die here." Tai Bai Yun Sheng shouted sternly.
But Hei Loulan threw her head back and laughed aloud, without a trace of fear. "Hahaha, even if this were a dragon's lair or a tiger's den, what could you do to me? Before I left, I made arrangements. If I don't return within three days, then the entire Northern Plains will learn that you two — master and junior brother — are the true culprits behind the collapse of the Northern Plains' True Yang Tower! And I'll tell the world that the Zhi Hui Gu is in your hands!"
Tai Bai Yun Sheng's expression froze. Hei Loulan had indeed come prepared, and this move struck precisely at his weak point.
But at that moment, a single dark sentence from Fang Yuan brought Hei Loulan's laughter to an abrupt halt. "Hei Loulan, I know you're not afraid of death. But have you forgotten your deep grudge and bitter hatred?"
Hei Loulan's face changed, and her imposing air deflated. Her gaze struck like lightning as she stared directly at Fang Yuan. "Name your conditions."
"The first condition — you must agree to return the Ding Xian You to its rightful owner. Return it to me." Then Fang Yuan held up four fingers. "Second, after we form our alliance, during your quest for revenge, the spoils will be split sixty-forty in my favor. After all, Tai Bai Yun Sheng and I are two Gu Immortals."
Hei Loulan let out a cold snort. "You think only you have allies, and I don't? Fine, I'll agree to this."
She hesitated inwardly for a moment, but ultimately chose a slight concession, despite her character always having been forceful.
Fang Yuan smiled faintly. From this much, he could already see the other party's sincerity in cooperating. He continued, "Last, I must know the full story behind everything. The reason you want to kill your own biological father."
Hei Loulan was silent for a moment, then promptly agreed. "You really are suspicious, aren't you? Fine, I can satisfy this third condition as well. In truth, there's nothing unspeakable about it."
Next, through their conversation, Fang Yuan finally learned the secret of Hei Loulan's revenge.
It turned out that the root of all this lay in the Eighty-Eight Angle True Yang Tower.
Within the True Yang Tower, there was a True Inheritance called the "Yin-Yang Life Extension Method," which had been taken by Hei Cheng in earlier years.
Fang Yuan had happened to see the empty shell of light left behind by the Yin-Yang Life Extension Method.
This True Inheritance was a life-extension technique created by Ju Yang Immortal Venerable through his study of the Human Ancestor.
To use this method, a male and a female Gu Immortal had to cooperate with each other, using the union of man and woman to achieve life extension for one party.
But this method had a drawback.
If one party gained life, the other was bound to lose life.
In short, it transferred one party's lifespan onto the other.
The story of Su Xian's Night Run had long been widely circulated throughout the Northern Plains, inspiring countless young women to take initiative in search of their own love and destiny.
Over two hundred years ago, Su Xian'er was a concubine-born daughter of the Su family, of low standing, often serving as a wine-pouring maid at banquets held for honored guests.
One time, the Su family patriarch hosted Hei Cheng, and Su Xian'er poured wine for him, falling in love at first sight.
However, the Su family patriarch secretly plotted against Hei Cheng. Hei Cheng was afflicted with a poisonous Gu, his strength plummeted to rock bottom, and he was hunted down by others.
After Su Xian'er accidentally learned of this, she resolutely rushed out of the family camp in the dead of night to rescue Hei Cheng, a man she had only met once.
At the time, she was only at the First Transformation stage. At night, wolf packs roamed the Northern Plains, death lurking everywhere — it was practically seeking her own doom.
But by a twist of fate, she found Hei Cheng collapsed unconscious on the ground.
Hei Cheng was thus saved, and the conversation that followed between them became a classic tale passed down among the people of the Northern Plains.
Hei Cheng asked Su Xian'er: "I was plotted against by your Su family's patriarch, and you are a member of the Su family — why would you come to save me, an enemy of the Su family?"