Chapter 892: Departure
Su Yi’s eyebrows rose.
He stared intently at You Xue’s extraordinarily beautiful face for a moment, then said, “Earlier, you dared not try it. Why change your mind now?”
You Xue met Su Yi’s gaze, not backing down in the slightest. “Because I suddenly realized that this is the ideal opportunity to defeat you. If I wait until you’ve proven your Dao and become an Emperor, I’ll have no hope at all.”
“Is it worth it?” Su Yi sounded a bit exasperated.
You Xue pressed her lips into a smile, and her bright eyes glinted with a strange light. “The more you refuse me, the less confident you seem.”
Su Yi was instantly silent.
/p>You Xue was the Spirit of the Tianya Dark Torchlight. Here on Torchlit Darkness Mountain, a place fully blanketed in the Laws of Torchlit Darkness, she was practically a sovereign.
As mighty as the Profound Serenity Realm old butcher was, there was no way he’d be a match for her.
If Su Yi wanted to win, he naturally had his ways. It was just that he’d have to pay the price for his victory.
But he worried that if he beat her, it would deal her a devastating mental blow.
Su Yi sighed. “Even those of the mundane world know that a ripe melon falls off the vine of its own accord, and melons ripped from the vine aren’t sweet. What do you hope to achieve by pushing this hard?”
You Xue said seriously, “First, I’ll acquire you. Then, I’ll acquire your recognition. On the off chance the situation changes and I acquire your heart too, that would naturally be even better.”
“....”
She sounded even manlier than the most forceful and overbearing of men.
“And if you lose?” asked Su Yi.
You Xue said without the slightest concern, “If I lose, I lose. Relax, I won’t pester you endlessly or make you detest me. I’d hate to see that happen, and besides, I’m above that.”
Su Yi inwardly sighed. “Let’s fight, then.”
However, when she heard this, You Xue was stunned, and she had a conflicted, melancholy look in her eyes. “Su Xuanjun, I really wouldn’t have thought that you’d rather fight me than take me with you…”
Her beautiful face was full of resentment.
“?”
I guess this is how women think. The things they care about are completely different from men. After a moment’s thought, Su Yi said directly, “I can agree to take you to the Dark Capital, but just this once. After I’ve saved Little Leaf, you have to return. Or else…”
But You Xue was already over the moon. She smiled radiantly and interrupted him. “No need for threats; I know that, at your coldest and cruelest, you’re capable of anything. There’s no way I’ll try crossing your bottom line.”
Even her voice was lighter and sweeter. Against the overcast darkness, it had an extraordinary radiance.
“....” Su Yi really wanted to ask, “What do you mean, ‘at my coldest and cruelest, I’m capable of anything’?”
But in the end, he held back. Instead, he asked, “If you leave, who will keep an eye on Ye Xun?”
You Xue blinked, then said, “That’s simple. I’ll just lock him in the courtyard and use the Tianya Dark Torchlight’s power to seal the place off.”
What else could Su Yi say?
He naturally agreed to take You Xue with him.
……
By the time they exited the courtyard, You Xue’s smile had disappeared once more. She’d recovered the dignified, aloof bearing of a goddess.
“I’m going to accompany Fellow Daoist Su to the Dark Capital to rescue Ye Yu. It’s enough that one person knows about this, understood?” You Xue said plainly.
Ye Qinghe’s heart shook, and he solemnly nodded his assent. “Understood!”
“As for you…” You Xue gazed at Ye Xun, then gestured at the courtyard. “For now, go into seclusion inside. Remember to keep an eye on the spider lilies growing in the corner for me. If they start to wilt, give them some of the Torchlit Darkness Water from the pond.”
Ye Xun was stunned. Then, he wilted like a defrosting eggplant. “Yes.”
He knew that unless he recovered his former peak cultivation, he was doomed never to take so much as a single step outside ever again.
Su Yi fought the urge to laugh. “Don’t just stand there. Quick, go inside.”
Ye Xun sighed mournfully. “Please, let me gaze at the sky just a moment longer.”
You Xue didn’t waste time arguing. With a swoosh of her sleeves, she sent Ye Xun flying into the courtyard.
Then, the Laws of Torchlit Darkness filling the sky enveloped the courtyard.
“Let’s go, Fellow Daoist.” You Xue looked at Su Yi.”
“Follow me.” Su Yi led the way outside.
……
Outside, the night skies were dark and subdued. A silver crescent moon hung in the air, casting dreamlike silver moonlight.
Su Yi, You Xue, and the old butcher silently disappeared.
Aside from Ye Qinghe, they didn’t alert a single person.
Halfway up the mountain, the Ancestral Hall of the Ghost Serpents.
Ye Qinghe summoned Ye Zishan, the young woman in the ink-black skirt, as well as several old-timers of the main lineage.
“From this day forth, I’ll keep watch over the clan. I’ll stay until Ancestor Ye Yu returns,” said Ye Qinghe. “There is no need to hide what happened here today. On the contrary, we should spread word?of what happened.
“However, we should tell the world that it was Ancestor Ye Xun’s return that quelled our internal unrest.”
Ye Qinghe paused, then said, “Furthermore, we should be sure to spread word that Huang Yuanxiu of the Profound Yellow Sword Pavilion was killed here, both as a warning and as a show of strength.”
Ye Zishan and the others pondered briefly, and quickly understood.
The populace knew that Huang Yuanxiu was an elder of the Profound Yellow Sword Pavilion, and that the Profound Yellow Sword Pavilion was one of the factions under the Abstruse Force Alliance’s banner. Few in the Netherworld would dare provoke someone like that lightly.
But now, the Ghost Serpents had dared kill even Huang Yuanxiu. Knowing that, who would dare make trouble for them?
Ye Zishan thought for a moment, then said, “Ancestor, today, in the Ancestral Hall, our guests saw everything that happened. What will we do if they leak what happened?”
Ye Qinghe said without the slightest concern, “It’s good that they saw what happened; spreading word of our own accord will make them take us more seriously.”
“Ancestor, have Young Lord Su and the others already left?” asked the young woman in the ink-black skirt.
Ye Qinghe was briefly stunned. “That’s right.”
The young woman looked a bit forlorn.
“Ruoxi, don’t tell me you have something you need to discuss with Young Lord Su?” asked Ye Qinghe.
The young woman lowered her head. “I wanted to thank him personally, and I wanted to apologize.”
“Apologize?” Ye Qinghe said in mild confusion. “What do you mean?”
She looked a bit bashful. “Earlier… I wasn’t at all convinced that he could help quell our internal unrest, so I treated him flippantly on numerous occasions.”
Ye Zishan couldn’t help but look ashamed as well. “It’s true; we misjudged him. An expert stood before us, but we failed to recognize him. We were negligent on numerous occasions. Thinking back on it now, I really do feel ashamed and ill at ease.”
Ye Qinghe laughed, then waved their concerns away. “You needn’t feel guilty over this. Given my understanding of Su-.... Young Lord Su, there’s no way he’d take such a trivial matter to heart.”
How lofty of an existence was Su Xuanjun? He was like an immortal or a god. How could he concern himself with such trifles?
When the young woman heard that, she was relieved, but she couldn’t help but sigh to herself. But I never even told him my name!
“Ancestor, could you tell just who that Young Lord Su was, or where he came from?” asked one of the elders.
All eyes were instantly on Ye Qinghe.
Ye Qinghe’s eyelids twitched, but he didn’t miss a beat. “A wondrous expert Ancestor Ye Xun encountered while exploring. His origins are mysterious and unfathomable, and his abilities are mighty and far-reaching. Even I admire him deeply. Should you encounter him again, be sure to treat him with respect.”
The group’s hearts shook, and all of them nodded.
“Ancestor, do you know where Young Lord Su went after he left?” The young woman couldn’t help but ask.
Ye Qinghe shook his head. “I don’t know.”
The Swordmaster of Abstruse Force and Her Excellency You Xue had joined forces to rescue Ancestor Ye Yu from the Dark Capital. This was no small matter, and Ye Qinghe naturally couldn’t reveal it.
……
Late at night. Auspicious Cloud Tower.
“Old Butcher, might you do me one more favor?” Su Yi sat at the bar and asked softly.
The old butcher grinned. “Your Excellency Su, since when were you so polite? Go ahead and ask.”
Earlier, he’d consistently referred to Su Yi as “Old Monster Su.”
But now, as he cast off the dark shadow lingering over his heart, the old butcher’s attitude toward Su Yi underwent an obvious shift.
The reason was simple: seeing Ye Qinghe request Su Yi’s guidance in overcoming the Gate of Life and Death had inspired him. He suddenly realized something.
Sure, Su Xuanjun had taught him a brutal lesson back then, resulting in him being trapped in Auspicious Cloud Tower for tens of thousands of years.
But this had also let him establish a connection with Su Xuanjun!
It was almost inevitable that he’d encounter all manner of obstacles in his future cultivation. It was even possible he’d encounter bottlenecks he couldn’t overcome.
But with Su Xuanjun’s guidance and support, it would be a whole different story!
Others could call it “celebrating at a funeral” or “profiting from disaster” if they wanted. Maintaining a friendship with Su Xuanjun was absolutely worth celebrating; this good fortune would drive other Emperors mad with jealousy!
Thinking all of this through had changed the old butcher’s attitude. He no longer nursed a grudge over what had happened before.
Su Yi had no idea that the old butcher’s feelings had changed. Even if he’d known, he wouldn’t have cared.
“It’s simple. I’d like you to keep watch over Tianya City a while longer, until Little Leaf returns,” said Su Yi.
And here the old butcher had thought he’d ask for something difficult. He couldn’t help but smile. “I’ve kept watch over this place for thirty-six thousand years already. Staying a little while longer won’t make a difference. Your Excellency Su, please rest assured.”
You Xue, who’d been seated quietly to the side all this time, couldn’t help but take a second glance at Su Yi.
She knew it was her insistence on accompanying him to the Dark Capital that worried him; he was concerned about the Ghost Serpents’ safety.
After all, with her around, there’d be no need for the old butcher’s assistance.
When she realized this, You Xue couldn’t help but envy Ye Yu.
She knew full well that all of this was out of consideration for Ye Yu; someone as proud and aloof as Su Yi would never have been so thoughtful otherwise.
The following morning, the sixteenth day of the eighth lunar month.
It was increasingly apparent that autumn was coming.
Su Yi and You Xue left Tianya City and began their journey to the City of the Wrongfully Dead!
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