Over the next few days, the House of Waveswept Rocks remained tranquil, and Su Yi enjoyed a rare moment of peace.

However, in between cultivation sessions, he sometimes thought about Wen Lingxue, and that left him feeling a bit out of sorts and irritable.

Fortunately, it wasn't to the point of emotional distress.

Cha Jin was much the same as she was before. She took responsibility for all the household chores, as well as assorted tasks like brewing and pouring tea. However, unlike before, she was filled with hope for her future.

Since cultivating the Nine Profundities of Perceiving Chaos Sutra, she was finally starting to realize just how ignorant she’d been before. She was finally starting to understand the subtleties of cultivation.

This secret cultivation technique had opened the door to a brand new world. Her horizons, her worldview, and her knowledge of cultivation had all undergone a cosmic shift.

She finally understood just how Su Yi could, at his tender young age, master terrifying powers reminiscent of a god or immortal   

He wasn’t really a deity or an immortal. It was just that the cultivation techniques at his disposal far surpassed those of this world!

The only issue was, every evening, as night drew near, Cha Jin felt a bit out of sorts.

She already understood what Su Yi was up to. He was inviting her to his room in the name of instructing her cultivation, but it was all just a ruse to lure her in!

But Cha Jin didn’t call him out on it. After all, listening to Su Yi expound on the subtle intricacies of cultivation was enormously beneficial to her. She even seemed to have acquired a taste for all this. Every night, she found herself rather looking forward to visiting Su Yi’s chambers…

Late that night, Zhou Zhili led Chang Guoke and Zheng Tianhe over for a visit.

When he saw Cha Jin, Zhou Zhili was stunned despite himself. He almost didn’t recognize her.

This was because, in stark contrast to her former quiet elegance, Cha Jin’s every movement now emanated a peerless charm. Hers was the beauty of a flower in full bloom. She was like a lotus caressed by a gentle spring breeze, delicate and refined, yet unsurpassed in her beauty. 

Zhou Zhili had been around the block, and he naturally understood what had happened. He couldn’t help but inwardly lament this development.

He really had been quite infatuated with Cha Jin, fate sometimes conspired against you. Now, he could only gaze upon Cha Jin from afar; he no longer dared covet her.

“Brother Su, the Tea Party has been set for tomorrow at dawn on the peak of the Western Mountain, ten miles beyond city limits.” Zhou Zhili quickly made his reasons for coming clear.

Su Yi nodded. “Are all your preparations in order?”

Zhou Zhili thought about it, then shook his head. “Although I prepared a few trump cards, I still don’t know how many tricks Xiang Tianqiu has in store for us.”

He couldn’t help but sigh. “In the past, I mistakenly thought that as a prince, everyone I met was sure to treat me with respect. However, ever since I got involved in the struggle for power, I’ve realized that all that respect was fake. In the Imperatorial Provincial Capital, even the heads of the local peak-level clans dare oppose me openly.”

Su Yi had no interest in hearing him complain, so he said directly, “Do you have any other business with me?”

Zhou Zhili said hurriedly, “Brother Su, I recently received new intelligence. It’s highly likely that my second brother has arranged for some highly capable Grandmasters to assist him.”

This time, Su Yi finally showed signs of interest. “How strong?”   

“They say one of them is a Grandmaster strong enough to make the top thirty of the Great Zhou Grandmaster Leaderboards, but I dare not guess exactly who it is,” Zhou Zhili explained at top speeds.

“The Great Zhou Grandmaster Leaderboards?” Su Yi was stunned. This was his first time hearing of such a thing.

Zhou Zhili immediately launched into a patient explanation.

Every six months, a mysterious organization called the “Ten Directions Pavilion” would revise and publish an updated version of the “Great Zhou Grandmaster Leaderboards.”

Everyone on the list was a top expert of the Great Zhou.

Those in the top thirty were, almost without exception, long-established experts of the Inner Furnace Realm!

Every last one of them possessed either an indomitable cultivation or incredible talent.

According to Zhou Zhili, more than half of those in the top thirty hailed from the Jade Capital, and all of them were at least fourth-level Grandmasters!

Of course, there were a few dazzling talents of the younger generation in the top thirty too, but those were relatively rare.

One example was Imperial Preceptor Hong Shenshang’s closed-door disciple, Fan Huaying. He was a genius ranked nineteen on the leaderboards, and he was famous throughout the nation.

When he heard all this, Su Yi couldn’t help but shake his head. “It’s just a list. There’s no way it could possibly include every powerful Grandmaster around.”

Zhou Zhili smiled. “That’s only natural, but even so, anyone who makes it onto the list is sure to live up to their reputation.”

Su Yi nodded. “That’s true. Right, just what kind of faction is this Ten Directions Pavilion, anyway?”

Zhou Zhili shook his head. “The Ten Directions Pavilion is extremely mysterious, and they lurk within the shadows. Their subordinates are spread across the Great Zhou, the Great Wei, and the Great Qin. They typically disregard the affairs of the mundane world, but I once heard Imperial Father bring them up. It seems their leader is an extremely powerful Earthly Immortal.”

Zhou Zhili paused, then continued, “The Ten Directions Pavilion are famously well-informed. They specialize in gathering intelligence of all kinds, and they publish news relevant to martial artists at regular intervals.”

“Interesting,” said Su Yi. “In that case, if I need information going forward, I can start with them.”

Zhou Zhili shook his head. “Brother Su, everyone knows that unless a member of the Ten Directions Pavilion approaches you first, they’re practically impossible to find.”

Su Yi responded with a noncommittal “Oh."

They chatted just a bit longer before Zhou Zhili hurriedly led Chang Guoke and Zheng Tianhe away. 

The Tea Party was due to begin the following morning. The sixth prince naturally still had numerous matters to attend to.

“Young Lord, do you think His Sixth Highness has any chance of victory?” Cha Jin asked curiously.

“None at all,” said Su Yi without so much as pausing to think. “He might seem clever, but in reality, he’s too naive. His opponents are practiced schemers; he’s no match for them.”

He paused, then said, “Of course, with me here, he’d find it hard to lose even if he wanted to.”

Cha Jin looked at him strangely. Who praises themselves like that? Young Lord, can you please be just a little bit more modest? 

But then, when she thought about it, it seemed Su Yi really had no need to be modest about this….

Cha Jin said softly, “But it seems the sixth prince isn’t fully confident in you. Otherwise, he wouldn’t seem so racked with worry.”

“He’s right in the thick of all this, so he can’t see the big picture, that’s all. Everyone wants to get a clear sense of the other’s schemes. They say ‘know thyself and know thy enemy, and victory is assured.’ However, how many can achieve that in a true contest?

Su Yi said calmly, “The key problem is that he’s too weak. If he were sufficiently powerful, why would he care what ghosts and goblins came calling? What would he care for his opponents’ schemes? All he’d have to do is crush every obstacle in his path.”

Cha Jin pressed her lips into a grin, her gaze suddenly full of tenderness.

She didn’t know why, but she found the combination of Su Yi’s outward air of indifference and his inner disdain for everything around him increasingly captivating….

“Go on and purchase our dinner. Be quick about it.” Su Yi got up, then walked inside.

Cha Jin glanced at the sky. Only then did she notice that yes, night had indeed fallen.

Who knows what she was thinking, but her face went bright red as she hurried off to arrange their next meal.

……

Morning the next day.

The sound of distant knocking at the gates awoke Cha Jin from her slumber.

An indistinct grumble escaped her red lips. She reached out to remove the “demonic talons” wrapped across her chest, then sat up.

As she got dressed, she whispered, “Young Lord, that’s probably His Sixth Highness. I’ll go open the gate.”

With that, she got up and left the room.

A little less than ten minutes later.

Su Yi finished washing up and leisurely strolled out of the pavilion, only to see an entire group of people standing in the courtyard.

Zhou Zhili, Chang Guoke, Qing Jin, Zheng Tianhe, Mu Zhongting, as well as a middle-aged man with a refined, bookish air.

“This is?” Su Yi glanced at the man in question. For some reason, he seemed a bit familiar.

The man smiled, then took the initiative to greet him. “This humble one is called Xue Ningyuan. Greetings, Young Lord Su. You might not remember me, but we met briefly a few days ago.”

Su Yi nodded but said nothing. “Let’s go.”

“Young Lord, I’d like to go with you,” Cha Jin said hurriedly.

“Sure,” said Su Yi casually. “Right, bring some food. Oh, and my wicker chair too.”

“.......” The group didn’t quite know how to respond to that. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he was going on a picnic!

Cha Jin, however, had long since grown accustomed to Su Yi’s way of doing things.

Zhou Zhili took the opportunity to whisper, “Brother Su, about today….”

Su Yi glanced at him. “Failure to keep calm at a critical juncture is a taboo. Once you’ve achieved your aims at the Tea Party, I urge you to work on your temperament. Otherwise, I’m afraid you’ll never amount to much.”

Zhou Zhili clasped his fist sheepishly. “Thank you for your advice. I’ll be sure to bear it in mind.”

“Young Lord Su, it seems you’re fully confident about today’s Tea Party,” laughed Xue Ningyuan.

Su Yi glanced at the highest authority of the Xue Family and said, “If I weren’t confident, why would I bother accompanying you?”

The smile on Xue Ningyuan’s face froze in place, but Su Yi couldn’t be bothered to explain any further. He just walked right out of the courtyard.

When Zhou Zhili saw this, he hurried after him.

Qing Jin scrunched up her lips. “This guy’s getting more and more arrogant.” 

She looked much as she had before: her bright eyes glinted like the edge of a knife, and although she was stunningly beautiful, she had a languid air about her.

When she faced Su Yi, her emotional state underwent a subtle, inexplicable shift.

This was her first meeting with Su Yi in the Imperatorial Provincial Capital, but she knew a lot about what he’d been up to lately.

For instance, she knew that he’d recently killed Liu Hongqi, an outer-sect elder of the Wheel of the Moon Sect and third-level Grandmaster.

Moreover, she knew that the sixth prince had long since placed all his hopes of victory at today’s Tea Party on Su Yi’s shoulders. Su Yi, a mere seventeen-year-old!

And when she saw the peerlessly beautiful Cha Jin so happy and eager to accompany him, she felt somewhat conflicted. 

She naturally no longer saw Cha Jin as just another courtesan, but she couldn’t even imagine why a legacy disciple of the Wheel of the Moon Sect would willingly follow Su Yi as a mere servant.

Furthermore, from the look on Cha Jin’s face, it was obvious that she was doing this of her own free will….

What would have happened if I’d agreed to become his servant back on the tower ship? What would that be like? 

As soon as this thought occurred to her, Qing Jin shook her head and cast aside her scattered thoughts.

Everyone had their own goals. She couldn’t bring herself to do something like that.

Before long, the group set off, riding the horse-drawn carriage out of the provincial capital and towards the Western Mountain ten miles beyond city limits.