Chapter 859: It Worked, They Believed!

Sai Fei Er continued speaking.

She began recounting some fragmentary memories that only Bai Hang would know, not major events but trivial daily details.

Back then, during a drinking session, someone told a joke; before a certain expedition, Jing Yuan secretly slipped a wild flower into Jing Liu's sword scabbard, and after it was discovered the whole camp was nearly frozen into an ice cellar by her; Dan Feng kept a straight face and helped her haul the blown‑up star oar out of the sea, only to choke a bellyful of water.

Some of these details came from the data Xi Tong gave, some were her reasonable inferences based on that data, and a small portion were pure improvisation, but it doesn't matter, because Bai Hang would embellish these stories anyway.

Bai Hang longs to travel; she instinctively turns mundane daily life into adventure tales and ordinary gatherings into epic feasts.

Thus, the more vividly Sai Fei Er narrates, the more she sounds like the real Bai Hang.

As she walked, she suddenly felt a subtle sensation.

The feeling started at the top of her head, as if someone were slowly pouring a cup of warm water over her Heavenly Spirit Dome.

Fox Ears involuntarily twitched, and some deeper change was occurring within her.

Her gait, her breathing rhythm, the natural swing of her hands while walking—all were aligning toward a fixed template in a way she herself could not fully control.

She's becoming even more like Bai Hang!

The core mechanism of the Deceitful Divine Authority is that the more the other party believes her lie, the closer the lie becomes to reality.

And one of the most direct manifestations of "approaching reality" is that her disguise becomes increasingly perfect and flawless.

From appearance to posture, from voice to temperament, from micro‑expressions to the curve of her mouth when speaking, every parameter is being recalibrated.

Sai Fei Er slightly curled the corner of her mouth.

It worked, they believed!

Haha!

Sure enough, Dan Heng is much easier to handle than the others!

Look at this efficiency—Bai Hang's vessel combined with the boost of the Deceitful Divine Authority is simply unstoppable!

Success, locked in!

She has to go back and claim credit with Xi Tong; after this Task ends, it would be unacceptable for the system not to grant an extra reward.

Just as she was mentally calculating what reward to ask Xi Tong for, Dan Heng suddenly halted his steps.

Sai Fei Er quickly checked her pace, and the smugness on her face instantly gave way to a blend of curiosity and concern.

She watched Dan Heng's back, blinked, tilted Fox Ears slightly forward, assuming a "listening" posture.

Dan Heng remained silent for a while.

The water ripples on both sides of the stone bridge gently lapped the stone pillars supporting the platform, producing a rhythmic sound.

White mist drifting from a fissure in the cliff wall swirled slowly around his ankles, like a gentle rope.

Then he spoke.

He did not look back.

"The events of those days. Although I am not Dan Feng—"

He paused.

The second half got stuck in his throat; after two beats, he finally delivered the full sentence.

"But if there is anything you need to say, I can listen."

Sai Fei Er blinked behind him.

She understood the true meaning of that sentence.

Dan Heng said "I can listen," but in reality it meant "I owe you a listening."

He was still denying being Dan Feng, yet he had already admitted owing this "Bai Hang" an explanation.

Whether this debt stems from his own moral code or from a lingering Dan Feng memory script in his body, in any case, he acknowledged it!

Sai Fei Er stepped forward, standing side by side with Dan Heng on the stone bridge.

She didn't rush to speak, first turning her head sideways to glance at him.

Dan Heng's profile, highlighted by the water's glint, was strikingly defined; the arch of his brow bone was as hard as the dragon stone statue on the altar, yet the droop of his eyelids added a thin layer of fatigue to that hardness.

"Yes."

Bai Hang whispered.

"But I don't want to talk. No matter how much we recount the past, it's useless. What matters is that I'm back now. You—all of you—you—are still alive. That's enough."

Dan Heng finally turned his head, looking straight at her.

It was that look.

He probably only intended to see her expression when she said that, to confirm whether this "Bai Hang" was acting again.

But once his gaze landed on her face, it never moved away.

He had already thought she resembled her before.

Too much alike.

But now, looking again, it's no longer a matter of "resemblance."

Every detail of the person before him, from the slight upward curve at the corner of her eye to her smile—perfectly overlapped the vague figure deep in his memory without any error.

Each time he tried to recall Bai Hang's face, he could only see a hazy outline, as if viewing an old photo through frosted glass.

But now, the frosted glass has been wiped clean from the other side.

That blurry outline now has color, temperature, breath, and reality.

It's not just like Bai Hang.

It is Bai Hang!

Dan Heng slightly furrowed his brow.

That furrowing lasted less than a second on his face before fading, replaced by an expression he himself could hardly define.

His lips moved, as if to say something, but every word got stuck in his throat.

He could only stare at her, at those fox‑like eyes still glittering under the cold light, at the angle of her tilted head— even the tilt was exactly the same as in Memory.

And his own heartbeat.

Thump, thump, thump.

Each beat rang an echo in his chest cavity, climbed to his throat, becoming an unrelenting muffled sound.

At that moment, Dan Heng suddenly stepped forward, raised his right hand and shot toward her, so fast that Sai Fei Er couldn't even tell whether he intended to strike or to pull.

Dan Heng twisted his body and shoved Bai Hang aside with a sudden thrust.

And in the very second she was pushed aside, a red sword blade thrust straight from the spot where she had just stood.

The blade was entirely crimson, its surface covered with spider‑web‑like fine cracks, the depths of which glowed with lava‑like orange‑red light.

The sword tip passed straight through the center of Dan Heng's chest, emerging from his back, trailing a plume of warm blood mist, which, under the cold light of the Ancient Sea, scattered into a spray of fine red droplets.

Dan Heng's body arched sharply.

His gaunt face twisted for an instant under the violent impact, yet he didn't utter a single word of pain.

Cloud‑Striker slipped from his hand, bounced once on the stone slab, and rolled to Bai Hang's feet.

Dan Heng—!

Before Bai Hang's shout could finish, the red sword blade began to tremble against his chest.

A strange resonance formed between the red light on the blade and his chest, the red glow pulsing like a heartbeat, brightening and dimming faster and faster.

Finally, a cluster of azure‑gold light suddenly erupted from the exact center of his chest.

It seemed something inside him was awakening, gradually tearing the sealed container apart.

More azure‑gold light surged from his chest, the radiance flowing like liquid along his body's outline, climbing his shoulders, slipping over his waist, coiling around his limbs.

Dan Heng's feet gradually left the ground.