Let Me Explain, Fairy
Chapter 978 - 605: The Undercurrents of Cooperation

Chapter 978: Chapter 605: The Undercurrents of Cooperation

Great Desert, yellow sands, as the sunset descended in the west, the remaining light cast the shadow of a giant rock into a cramped cave.

At the end of the shadow, a pale bare foot suddenly catches the eye.

A naked girl leaned against the rock wall, her body curled up, slightly trembling. Layers of dragon scales faintly visible on her jade-like skin. The area around her waist was a blur of blood and flesh, with strands of fresh blood spreading beneath her, flowing across the floor like a spider web.

Next to her, lay dozens of shimmering, blood-stained dragon scales.

As another damaged dragon scale fell to the ground, Bai Qinqing forcibly bit her lip to keep from making any noise, yet the pain made her small toes clench fiercely.

The damaged dragon scales would not heal; they had to be forcibly removed for new ones to grow.

The cave was silent, with only the girl’s rapid, pained breathing for a while.

After tending to her wounds, Bai Qinqing supported herself on her knees, struggling to stand up from the ground, limping towards the cave entrance while taking out a robe to drape over herself.

She did not quite understand why demons had to wear clothes like the human race.

Even after transforming, they were ultimately still the Demon Race.

But ever since she became conscious, the major demon clans within the Ancient Abyss had always been aligning with the humans occupying the Central Lands.

Whether it was customs, habits, or power structures.

Especially the Great Demons after transformation.

They had to start learning to wear clothes, understand hierarchies of etiquette, learn various systems, learn all kinds of hypocrisy that did not belong to the Ancient Abyss.

Her father told her that only by adopting these strengths of the human race could their Demon Race one day return to rule the Central Lands.

Although due to the various innate limitations of the Demon Race, this change was exceptionally slow, everything within the Ancient Abyss was indeed moving in a positive direction.

The number of demons that the Ancient Abyss could house was gradually increasing, and the demons attacking Dayan’s border defenses were growing year by year.

But she ultimately liked this oppression, just like many elders in her clan did not.

Yet this was an enforced decree by Emperor Bai, also agreed upon as a "mandate" by the leaders of each clan.

Thinking this, Bai Qinqing stepped onto the sand outside the cave.

The sand and gravel were scorching hot due to the sun’s rays, comfortable to step on, but her gaze was drawn to a figure beside the cave.

Subconsciously,

Bai Qinqing wanted to go up and gently rub the man’s face to express affection, but still restrained herself.

With respect, she bowed to the middle-aged man, lowering her eyes and softly said:

"Father, you have arrived."

Emperor Bai leaned against the rock wall, giving the girl a passing glance and nodded slightly:

"Yes, I was nearby dealing with some business, and sensed you using the ancestral mark so I came to have a look."

Hearing this, ripples formed in Bai Qinqing’s beautiful dragon eyes, her voice becoming urgent:

"I... I found Xing’er’s Dragon Transformation Essence there, father... you must have sensed it too, right?"

Pausing, the girl’s tone grew deeper, murderous intent flashing in her eyes as she gripped her hand tightly:

"Xing’er... indeed still ended up dying at the hands of humans."

Emperor Bai’s voice remained calm, withdrawing his gaze from his daughter and gently replied:

"I indeed sensed it."

"Then Xing’er’s Dragon Transformation Crystal..."

"I didn’t bring it back."

"Ah?"

Bai Qinqing looked at her father bewilderingly, incredulous.

She didn’t understand how those people could have stopped her father.

Emperor Bai gently shook his head, speaking softly:

"The human had Heaven’s Watchtower’s Saintess with him, and her strength was somewhat beyond my expectations. If I had engaged her in battle there, it might have disrupted the greater plan and allowed others to benefit from our conflict."

Saying this,

Emperor Bai’s gaze suddenly turned towards the crimson-tinted sky dome by the desert sunset, speaking meaningfully:

"You agree, right, Qin Ke?"

As these words fell, silence ensued.

Bai Qinqing subconsciously looked in the direction her father was gazing, but all she saw were the fiery clouds drifting across the horizon.

After a moment of silence, an eerie, old laugh faintly drifted from the sky:

"Emperor Bai, saying so makes you a stranger. I’ve visited the traces you left that day. If I had been there, I would have certainly helped you out, after all, we are genuine partners now."

As his words concluded,

A hunched, sinister-looking elderly man clad in luxurious attire slowly landed in front of the father and daughter.

Looking at the elderly man, Bai Qinqing subconsciously remembered that night outside Di’an City, involuntarily furrowing her brows, her eyes undisguised disgust.

Emperor Bai still looked indifferently at the other:

"Is that so? From what I’ve seen, it appears you didn’t carry out the plan as we agreed."

The hunched old man let out a sinister chuckle:

"If all the plans could go as envisioned, this world would be far too simple. Sometimes, we must make adjustments based on changes. Am I not here to inform you now?"

Emperor Bai’s dragon eyes were commanding without showing any anger:

"You only appeared because the scheme was exposed, that I can overlook. But regarding that woman’s strength beforehand, do you have anything to say to me?"

"Heaven’s Watchtower Saintess?"

"Who else?"

"Well, I too am curious about what exactly happened."

The hunched old man frowned slightly, his voice grave: "When we met before, Tianyan’s cultivation was merely at the Primordial level, perhaps the Heaven’s Watchtower Master left some tricks behind."

"......"

Emperor Bai did not commit to a response, and asked indifferently:

"So, what are the changes in the plans you just mentioned?"

"There has been a slight shift in the situation."

The hunched old man’s voice carried a hint of a sigh: "Our understanding of the Ancient Beast Bloodline is far too limited; unexpectedly, their bloodline could enhance the strength of Mu Xingyi, that young lad, to Semi-Saint level in such a short time."

Emperor Bai discerned the implication in the other party’s words and asked lightly:

"Are you blaming me for not completely sharing the intelligence on Ancient Beasts with you?"

The Demon Race and the Ancient Beasts have numerous connections, and they possess a lot of information on similar entities.

During cooperation, they share a portion, but like the other party harboring ulterior motives, they concealed the most crucial part.

Under the last remnants of twilight, a subtle tension permeated between the two.

Eventually,

The hunched old man compromised with a light chuckle, shaking his head:

"It’s understandable that each side has reservations, and even if you had shared that intelligence, accidents would still occur."

"The Saint Level Ghost beside Mu Xingyi?" added Emperor Bai.

The hunched old man, his face full of wrinkles, stared at Emperor Bai with a smirk:

"It seems that day, not only did you meet that peculiar Saintess, but you also saw Mu Xingyi and that Ghost..."

This was a criticism of the other party for not sharing intelligence.

Emperor Bai’s expressionless eyes, devoid of any emotion, replied softly:

"It seems you’re not in a position to talk about this, guiding Qing’er into the Evil Spirit Abyss was your doing."

"...."

The hunched old man glanced at the young girl beside him, shook his head gently, and said quietly:

"Emperor Bai, if you wish to capture that Qilin Wolf, let’s not fight amongst ourselves anymore.

"Because of internal conflicts, our original plan to capture that creature has already failed; we sent out three individuals undergoing Mortal Transcendence, one died, one escaped with severe injuries, and one is missing."

"..."

Emperor Bai silently stared at the old man, giving no response, quietly waiting for the latter to continue.

Seeing this demeanor, the hunched old man said with a light chuckle:

"There have been some clues found in Di’an that are hinting at activity."

"Are you referring to the Secret Investigation Department of the Yan Dynasty?"

"No, I mean the Prime Minister’s Mansion."

"Xu Yinhè?"

Emperor Bai murmured softly, unperturbed, and calmly replied:

"The Western Desert is their weak spot, and the Northern Frontier and Di’an have drawn most of their attention. Even if they make a move, they can’t allocate much force."

The hunched old man clicked his tongue lightly, suddenly saying:

"Do you remember that Xi’en Princess who appeared using spatial teleportation?"

Emperor Bai considered for a moment, then said:

"Naturally."

The hunched old man stared intently at Emperor Bai’s authoritative dragon eyes, pausing emphatically:

"She said, the Xi’en Emperor’s corpse contains the Boundary Void Stone, and that corpse ended up in the hands of Xu Yinhè."

"...." For the first time, Emperor Bai’s usually unflappable expression showed a slight change as he furrowed his brows.

The hunched old man sighed softly, murmuring:

"Emperor Bai, you must understand what this implies; I believe my sincerity is sufficient."

"......"

Silence.

Emperor Bai took a deep breath, gazing in the direction of the Evil Spirit Abyss, and slowly said:

"Qin Ke, the limit of the Ancient Beast Bloodline is not merely the Semi-Saint level, and it seems that Saint Level Ghost and Mu Xingyi are coveting the Heaven’s Watchtower Saintess...."