The plants atop Clearbreeze Peak grew desolate as the northern wind chilled. Su Xiaoyu saw a tall man in the distance once she reached the summit. He was standing on a large boulder with his hands crossed behind his back. Dressed in white robes with flowing black hair, his back gave her an air of regal ice. If not for the different robes, Su Xiaoyu might have assumed he was His Highness instead.
Who is he?
Whereâs that senior Han Chen?
Su Xiaoyuâs heart was full of doubts as she silently drew closer. Then she realized her mistake: this guy wasnât like His Highness at all.
His Highnessâs chill came from the domineering air of a monarch, while this man was pure ice that distanced himself from all mortals. Judging from his back, he was a merciless type who would be hard to provoke.
Anyone who can show up at Clearbreeze Peak has to be part of the Wolf Sect if theyâre not our men. So this must be one of senior Han Chenâs disciples.
As she made to speak, the man suddenly turned around. It was obvious that heâd sensed her long ago. Tossing her a sword, he said, âFight a round.â
Su Xiaoyu backed up a step and let the sword clatter to the ground. She was completely lost. âWhoâre you? Youâve found the wrong girl.â
âAre you Su Xiaoyu?â he asked coldly.
âIâm Su Xiaoyu, but who are you? What do you want? Whereâs your master? Have him come out! Itâs not easy to get this girl to be his disciple!â Su Xiaoyu crossed her arms and arched a brow. She was nothing like a girl of 12 or 13, but more like a teen of 17 o 18.[1]
Han Chenâs icy face didnât show any ripples. He knew the girl had misunderstood, so he asked coldly, âItâs been three days and you still havenât decided whether you want to take a master?â
âI donât even know what your familyâs master looks like, what skills he has, or the depths of his sincerity. How could I choose?â Su Xiaoyu said, then added, âHe wants me to accept him as master just by thowing me âHan Chen?â Sorry, but Iâve never heard of him before!â
No one knew the name of Han Chen in Cloud Realm Continent, but it was a loud and sonorous name in the Mysterious Continent. Its presence sent shocking waves wherever it went! Children who wanted to take him as master could line up in a queue long enough to cross the entire Ice Sea! But to him, it didnât matter whether people coveted him for his name, or were cluelessly ignorant than Su Xiaoyu. All he saw was the childâs temper and personality. If they caught his fancy, heâd take them in even if they were harboring ulterior motives.
Han Chen didnât answer Su Xiaoyu, but summoned her sword from the ground. He casually cleaved to the side to send up a wave of sword qi that destroyed ten nearby trees.
Su Xiaoyu gaped. If Han Chenâs disciple could be so tough, would he be even stronger? Her heart wavered in that moment!
If I have power like that one day, Iâll have enough confidence to tell His Highness I can protect master and the little master!
Han Chen ignored Su Xiaoyuâs shock. With his right hand wielding the sword, his left hand slapped the blade until it cracked into pieces. Inside was hidden a very exquisite, sharp short sword. It glowed with a gloomy light, its hand encrusted with unknown gems. The blade itself cowed anyone from looking at it directly.
âThis is Lanming.[2] Itâs two levels below your mastersâ Moye and Ganjiang swords, but itâll be enough for you to use for now,â Han Chen said coldly.
Su Xiaoyu loved fine things, especially treasures. She had never heard of Lanming but couldnât help swallowing her saliva at the sight of the bladeâs gloomy blue glow. Still, her thoughts were preoccupied by something else.
âWhat do you mean, my masters?â she scolded unhappily. âMy master is the daughter of your master. You have to call her âYoung Miss!â As for His Highness, you should call him âSir Son-in-Law!ââ
Once again, Han Chen ignored her words. But he did walk off the boulder and approach the girl. He was simply too tall, so Su Xiaoyu felt like a mountain was pressing down on her when he got close. The usually fealess girl unconsciously backed away.
âWhat do you want?â she demanded.
Han Chen loomed over her as he realized she was really too young. Since she only reached his waist, he was forced to crouch down. In a cold voice, he said, âThis Honorable One is Han Chen, looks and all. You have the time it takes to brew a pot of tea to figure things out. Then tell this Honorable One whether you want to take me as your master.â
Su Xiaoyu grew alarmed. She looked back at the ten toppled trees, then at Han Chenâs Laming sword, before moving up to stare at his impeccably handsome face. At lastâŚ.she realized how stupid sheâd been!
The entire time, this fellow had been showing her his skills, sincerity, and looks. He was none other than the old senior, Han Chen! Masterâs father, a high-level expert in the Mysterious Continent and the an His Highness called âsenior,â had always been an âold seniorâ in her eyes! Isnât he supposed to be very old?
She assumed Han Chen would be a sixty or seventy year old man with white hair and beard, like those old celestials. ButâŚ
But this guy doesnât even have any facial hair!
Su Xiaoyu studied his face in depth. Leaving aside the flawless features, it was very cold and completely indifferent to desires of the world. Gods and Buddhas were like this too, but at least they had compassion, hearts, and pity for sentient beings.
This man simply looked heartless.
Now Su Xiaoyu was very curious about his age. Judging from her master, this man had to be in his forties! But besides a hint of white at the side of his forehead, she couldnât see any signs of aging on him. If she didnât know who he was, she might even guess he was in his thirties.
Why is some of his hair white? He doesnât look like a man with any worries. Could he have experienced cultivation insanity in the past that made him deviate and hurt himself?
Su Xiaoyu gave an involuntary shudder at the thought. Who knows how heâll torment me in the future if I take him as my master? Iâd just be asking to suffer!
Her wavering heart immediately turned to dread. She wanted to leave this fellow in the next instant.
âHave you thought it through?â Han Chen asked icily.
Su Xiaoyu immediately shook her head. âI donât want it!â
âWhat are your terms? Tell me whatever you want,â Han Chen said. It was rare for him to have interest in a child after all these years. He wasnât going to give up so soon. Truthfully speaking, he preferred Han Yunxiâs personality to Su Xiaoyuâs, but his daughter was already grown and possessed the Phoenix energy.
He needed a small sapling that could be nurtured to cultivate inner energy from the start. As Su Xiaoyu was around 13, she was older than the ideal, but still moldable.
Su Xiaoyu was about to flat out refuse when she thought of something: Bai Yanqing! She hadnât even seen him yet! If she refused this fellow outright, heâd hold a grudge against her. Then she might never see Bai Yanqing again.
To Su Xiaoyu, avenging herself on Bai Yanqing was the most important thing! Thus, she plucked up her courage and decided to trick Han Chen once!
Pretending to waver, she successfully caught Han Chenâs attention. He said coldly, âJust say whateverâs on your mind.â
Su Xiaoyu bolstered her guts and said, âI heard that cur, Bai Yanqing, is in your hands. We still have a private debt to settle between us. Let me finish my grudge against him first so I can consider your offer for three more days! Howâs that sound?â
âConsider?â Han Chen seized on the main point immediately.
âYes. Iâll think it over carefully. After all, itâs a big deal to take a master,â Su Xiaoyu replied.
Han Chen was rather easygoing. âFollow me,â he said simply, then turned to leave. Su Xiaoyu silently exhaled.
This doesnât count as lying, right? I never said Iâd definitely take him as my master. Once I deal with Bai Yanqing, Iâll have my master send someone to pass on the rejection in my place. In any case, all this is a matter of choice. Nothing can be forced!
Thus comforted, Su Xiaoyuâs nerves calmed as she trailed after Han Chen.
â
In the afternoon, Han Yunxi had Long Feiye accompany her to Clearbreeze Peak.
âHan Chen is the leader of a Mysterious Continent sect. He wouldnât stoop so low as to trick one of your servant girls,â Long Feiye said frostily. He disliked Han Yunxi running about, especially up mountains.
Actually, everyone was puzzled over Han Yunxiâs lack of emotions towards her father. They assumed heâd shown up too suddenly for her to accept it. Only Long Feiye knew the truth of Han Yunxiâs transmigration and how normal it was that sheâd feel so indifferent. He was quite happy to see this pass and hoped sheâd only have feelings for himself.
âIâm not worried about little Yuâer, that shrewd pixie! She might even end up screwing Han Chen over!â Han Yunxi grinned.
âYouâre underestimating Han Chen,â Long Feiye said objectively.
âNo. Itâs Han Chen who will underestimate little Yuâer. Sheâs a child, so heâll lower his guard against her,â Han Yunxi said seriously.
Long Feiye didnât want to argue with her over such a pointless topic, so he moved to Han Yunxiâs side. A little hesitant, he eventually moved to gently touch her protruding stomach. After busying themselves for so long, sending off Ning Jing and Tang Li, and taking care of some urgent issues, he finally had her get a good nightâs sleep. This morning he had snuck by her side to lie down a little bit longer, resisting the urge to touch her womb in case he woke her up.
Today at last, he could have a half-day break to spend time with he and the child. Still, he could only stay in Medical City for a maximum of two days. After that it was back to the army to quell the still restless Western Zhou and Northern Li. Taking them down wasnât even an issue, but establishing a kingdom and rules in its place would need work.
A whole new empire with its own set of rules, power structure, and hierarchy would be massive work. Defeating established kingdoms was only the first step. The battle to keep your own kingdom alive was a war without smoke or fire, requiring wisdom and power that the battle-thirsty Mysterious Continent couldnât hope to compare to!
Of course, none of that was as important as his wife. He had to make sure she was safe and secure before heading for the battlefields. As his hand rested on Han Yunxiâs stomach, Long Feiye suddenly felt extremely nervousâŚ
1. With this, we have a better idea of how many years have passed since Su Xiaoyu entered the Duke of Qinâs estateâ4 to 5 years! And since HYX was already married for at least a year then, that means our couple has been together for 6 years or more.
2. Lanming (čĺĽ) â itâs got a pretty cool name, actually. Lan is âblue,â but Ming can mean âdark/obscure/dim, underworld/netherworld, deep/profound, funerary, gloomy/night/deep.â