The Su Family

Verdant Parasol Courtyard.

Su Hongli held a jar of game pieces in one hand. With the other, he set up the Go board.

One piece after another, alternating black and white filled the board. They gradually reached a stalemate.

He was playing Go against himself, and taking great pleasure in it.

It was only after night fell that Su Hongli suddenly furrowed his brow, sighed, then swept his arm across the full Go board. “In this world, nothing is harder to defeat than one’s self. That’s true in Go, and it’s true in cultivation, too.”

The Daoist elder had already been waiting for quite some time. When he heard this, he couldn’t help but say, “When you play board games, you hope to place each piece without regrets. When you cultivate, you hope to proceed without hindrances.”

Su Hongli laughed and rose. “Everyone understands that in principle, yes, but it’s hard to implement. Daoist Brother, you’ve been waiting for quite some time now. Do you have urgent business?”

The elder nodded. “Su Yi has arrived in the Jade Capital.”

The darkness gradually deepened, and the lamplight flickered in the evening winds. 

“Hah?” Su Hongli laughed. “But then, this is within my expectations.”

The elder said softly, “It was also today that Su Yi clashed with Shi Fengliu above the Qinglan River. He slew Shi Fengliu’s mount, sending him fleeing in panic.

“Furthermore, at Dragon’s Gate Pass, the Pineflame Daoist just watched as Su Yi left; he made no attempt to stop him.”

Su Hongli fell silent.

When he did speak a moment later, his tone was rife with loathing. “Shi Fengliu has always been an incompetent member of the Possessed. He thinks himself loftier than his peers, but it’s ridiculous; he seized the shell of a mere scholar without the slightest cultivation. His foundations are lacking, and his aptitude is unexceptional. Due to the limits of his fleshly body, it doesn’t matter how immensely capable he may be; he’s unlikely to ever amount to much.”

He paused, then continued, “As for the Pineflame Daoist, he’s always been cautious, and he doesn’t see the big picture. He lacks boldness, and his progress is doomed to stagnate in the Origin Dao; he’s unworthy of notice.

“It’s not at all surprising that the pair of them didn't dare fight my unworthy son to the death.” 

He delivered this evaluation casually and naturally, but with an air of superiority. His words brimmed with undisguised contempt.

But the elderly Daoist seemed to think this perfectly ordinary; he wasn’t the least bit surprised. After a moment’s thought, he said, “His Majesty has already issued a decree. He’s having the Shadow Dragon Guards keep tabs on Su Yi’s movements. However, it seems he has no intention of suppressing Su Yi. Rather, he seems interested to see just what kind of disturbance Su Yi will bring to the capital.”

Su Hongli laughed. “I imagine His Majesty is curious to see whether my unworthy son or I emerge victorious.”

The elderly Daoist was silent.

Su Hongli’s gaze was deep and solemn, and he said calmly, “I’ve been in seclusion here for over a decade, and I’ve paid no heed to mundane affairs. His Majesty most likely wonders just how far my cultivation has progressed. There’s no harm in taking this opportunity to show him.”

The elderly Daoist couldn’t help but warn him, “Fellow Daoist, the Radiant Epoch is not yet upon us. If you reveal your strength too early, I’m afraid it will invite unnecessary trouble. Remember, the cultivation factions of the Great Xia have all already started taking action. Their agents are wandering throughout the Azure Continent’s…”

“No matter,” said Su Hongli. “I’m just dealing with my unworthy son. There will be no need to call upon my full power.”

As he spoke, he walked back to his room. “It’s getting late. Daoist Brother, please see yourself out.”

The elder was stunned for a moment. Then, he shook his head. Ultimately, this was a Su Family matter, and it involved a deeply-hidden past. It wouldn’t do for him to get involved.

….

It was late at night, and a crescent moon hung overhead, glinting like the edge of a knife.

Deep within Auspicious Lane’s Peach Glyph Alley, inside Pinewind Villa.

Su Yi reclined in his wicker chair, perfectly content. This residence was rather decent. It was elegant and tranquil with scattered, towerings, as well as flowerbeds, vegetable gardens, a pond, and a gazebo.

When Su Yi arrived, it was obvious that someone had recently cleaned up. Everything was neat and tidy, and even the bedding was brand new.

Now, sitting in the courtyard and staring up at the radiant moon hovering overhead, listening to the rustling pines, Su Yi felt utterly relaxed.

Earlier, he took a stroll around Peach Glyph Alley. He found an old, unassuming little restaurant, where he ate a bowl of steaming lamb offal noodle soup, two catties of spiced beef, a plate of boiled peanuts, and a serving of smoked fish. He also drank a jar of the proprietor’s home-brewed, unfiltered rice wine. 

Both the food and the wine had an extraordinary flavor.

“If there weren’t any trifles to worry about, this would be a lovely night,” Su Yi muttered to himself. “Alas, a handful of flies are ruining the scenery…”

Still lying in his chair, he stretched his hand into the air and grabbed.

Thirty feet away, a thin pine needle shot out of a towering tree, stopping and hovering over Su Yi’s right palm.

The pine needle was thin and green, and it hovered there like a miniature flying sword. Su Yi was releasing power through his fingers to control it, and it danced and whirled above his palm. 

“Go!” Su Yi waved his sleeves.

Bang!

The pine needle shot into the air like a miniature sword. It was still flying through the air when it split apart, the pieces flying in different directions. 

About three hundred feet from the Pinewind Villa, near the main gates of another residence, a man who looked like a beggar was curled up in a corner, fast asleep and snoring.

Chhh!

A flash of green light streaked by, stabbing his left cheek and carving a needlepoint-sized bloody hole. It hurt so much that the “beggar” shot to his feet, an agonized expression on his face.

Meanwhile—

Outside Peach Glyph Alley, an elderly sugar-coated haw salesman trembled, and a low grunt escaped his lips. There was now a piece of green pine needle embedded in his neck.

About a hundred feet from him, on the eaves of another building, a woman in military uniform cried out and staggered. The tile beneath her shoes shattered, and she almost fell.

Similar scenes played out, one after another, within a thousand-foot radius of the Pinewind Villa.

Each of the shadowy figures skulking in the darkness found themselves stabbed by a pine needle. Without exception, their faces filled with panic, and a chill coursed down their spines.

Furthermore, a calm voice appeared alongside their injuries, resounding directly in their ears. “Tell the faction behind you that from now on, anyone who dares enter Peach Glyph Alley and disturb by tranquility will be killed without mercy. Scram!”

Every word struck with the force of a massive hammer, slamming into the spies’ souls. Everything in front of them went black, and their qi and blood surged. They almost felt as if they were about to collapse.

Before long, the informants of the Jade Capital’s various prominent factions had all scampered off. None dared linger.

That very night, word of Su Yi’s warning spread throughout the Jade Capital, instantly stirring up who-knows-how-much uproar.

The Pinewind Villa.

Were I a fifth-level Grandmaster, I could use five elemental spiritual Dao Light, supported by my divine sense, to turn flowers and leaves into flying swords and kill enemies from a thousand feet away…

But now… All I can do is deal a little superficial damage, and even then, only just barely. My power is decidedly insufficient.

Su Yi tapped the wicker chair’s armrests and sank into thought. There was no doubt about it; word of his arrival in the Jade Capital had already spread, drawing the attention of numerous prominent factions. 

But then, Su Yi wasn’t actually worried about anything.

If anyone was blind enough to come looking for trouble, he wouldn’t mind just killing them.

Today is the fifteenth day of the fourth month. I’m due to visit the Su Family in nineteen days. That’s enough time to bring my cultivation to the peak of the fifth-level Grandmaster Realm.

I just wonder if Su Hongli has already prepared or not. Su Yi stared into the night sky, gazing at the moon and stars. Night in the Jade Capital was no different than night anywhere else.

Ultimately, this was still just a mundane nation.

After a while, Su Yi rose. He planned to return to his room and cultivate for a while.

But it was then that he suddenly whipped around and glanced at the courtyard’s main gate.

As if by unspoken agreement, the instant Su Yi glanced over, a cold, ethereal voice reminiscent of the song of an oriole rang out.

“Fellow Daoist Su, I’ve come in the middle of the night. Please don’t take offense.” Every word was like a pearl clattering against a jade plate, pleasing to the ear.

Su Yi settled back into his wicker chair and said casually, “Climb in over the walls.”

“......” The voice outside the courtyard fell silent.

Shortly after, a delicate figure climbed in over the walls and landed gently on the ground. 

She was a young woman in clothes as white as snow, with a sword on her back. Her dark hair was tied back into a casual ponytail and held in place with a red string, revealing an elegant, picturesque little face.

She was tall and slender, and her creamy skin sparkled. A yellow wine gourd hung from her waist.

Aside from the string she used to tie back her hair, she was entirely unadorned, but she had a naturally sculpted beauty and graceful bearing.

She stood beneath a pine tree, illuminated by the flecks of moonlight pouring through its needles. She was like an immortal beauty, outstanding and transcendently aloof.

Su Yi’s eyes shone with surprise.

The young woman stood in the courtyard, like a begonia bowing her head. She was silent beneath the moonlight.

Who dared proclaim their beauty flawless? 

Su Yi had no choice but to admit it: the young woman who’d come calling in the middle of the night was a rare, peerless beauty. Furthermore, she had a distinctive, ethereal air about her.

Were an ordinary person to see her, they might well mistake her for an immortal beauty from a painting.

Of course, what really interested Su Yi was the young woman’s aura. It was starkly different from an ordinary person’s.

As Su Yi evaluated the white-robed young woman, she evaluated him. Her bright eyes were clear as limpid pools, and they shone with a hint of strange light.

Shortly after, she greeted him directly. “Yue Shichan greets you, Fellow Daoist Su.”

Su Yi suddenly understood. “Are you the legendary Featherflow King?”

He remembered who she was. Of the nine non-Zhou kings, she was unquestionably the greatest.

The people of the Great Zhou honored her as a peerless genius, the type that only appeared once in a millennium. 

She once ventured into the Great Wei, alone save for her sword, then defeated nine of the Great Wei’s Xiantian Martial Ancestors in succession. Her name shook both nations, spreading throughout the lands.

She’d also once ventured into the most perilous region of the Great Zhou, Mount Heavenfault. There, she slew twelve yao kings. She was invincible and unstoppable. 

In the Great Zhou, the Featherflow King, Yue Shichan, was a legendary figure!

“A legend? You flatter me. You’re far worthier of the title, Fellow Daoist. After all, even if you searched the entire Azure Continent, you’d find few other Grandmasters capable of slaying an Earthly Immortal,” said Yue Shichan, her tone soft and tranquil. Beneath the moonlight, her graceful figure looked illusory and ethereal.

Su Yi smiled, then said with great interest, “Never mind that. Why have you come to see me this late at night?

Yue Shichan said candidly, “I’ve heard a lot about you recently, and I was curious. I wanted to witness your bearing for myself, so I decided to pay you a visit.”

Su Yi was stunned. She came here this late at night just to catch a glimpse of me?