"Grandfather!"
From outside the council hall, Su Yue's voice echoed, drawing the attention of Su Yinglong and the gathered Su family elders. Moments later, Su Yue entered the hall, leading Yun Yanshui inside. She offered a respectful bow toward Su Yinglong, seated at the head of the room.
"Yue'er? What news?"
Su Yinglong ignored the man accompanying Su Yue, his concern focused solely on the matter of Su Shengyun.
"As you and the elders suspected, Su Shengyun indeed harbors intentions of betraying our family," Su Yue began.
"During this trip, he even accepted significant cultivation resources from Sun Fenglin. I witnessed everything clearly.
I was so furious that I wanted to kill him on the spot, but Sun Fenglin's strength far exceeds mine, so I couldn't succeed."
Su Yue recounted her experiences at the Yun family marketplace in detail, leaving nothing out.
"That ungrateful wretch!"
Su Yinglong's face twisted in fury, his hands clenching the armrests of his chair tightly. It was clear he was imagining killing Su Shengyun himself.
"I treated him as if he were my own son, and this is how he repays me?"
"Su Shengyun deserves to die!"
"To think we wasted so many resources on him!"
The surrounding elders echoed Su Yinglong's anger, their indignation filling the room.
"Grandfather, rest assured," Su Yue began again, her tone resolute, "I will ask my master to—"
"Enough."
Before she could finish, Su Yinglong raised a hand to silence her, his gaze now fixed on Yun Yanshui.
"And who might this esteemed guest be?" he asked.
"Oh! Grandfather, this… this senior is someone I met at the Yun family marketplace," Su Yue quickly explained, bowing as she introduced Yun Yanshui.
"A senior?"
Su Yinglong's eyes narrowed. He knew his granddaughter's personality well—arrogant and domineering. For her to show such respect to someone and even address them as "senior," this individual must be extraordinary.
Realizing this, Su Yinglong quickly rose from his seat and approached Yun Yanshui, bowing deeply. "I am Su Yinglong. It is an honor to meet you, senior. May I ask your name?"
"Just a nameless rogue cultivator. No need for introductions," Yun Yanshui replied indifferently.
"Then, esteemed senior, what brings you to my Su family estate?"
"My business here is simple," Yun Yanshui said with a faint smile. "Your granddaughter owes me a significant sum, and I've come to collect it."
"Owes you money?"
Su Yinglong and the elders exchanged confused glances, while Su Yue's face flushed with embarrassment. She hastily explained the events at the marketplace.
"Five thousand low-grade spirit stones?!"
When they heard the amount, the room erupted in disbelief. Several of the elders, ignoring Su Yue's warning looks, began to curse at Yun Yanshui openly.
"What kind of spiritual herbs are worth that much? This is daylight robbery!"
"Exactly! Does he think the Su family is an easy target? If he wants five thousand spirit stones, he'll have to take them over our dead bodies!"
"Get out now, or don't blame us for being rude!"
"Uncles! Elders! Please, stop talking!" Su Yue pleaded, her voice filled with urgency. But her words fell on deaf ears, and the elders continued to hurl insults at Yun Yanshui.
"Enough!"
Su Yinglong's stern voice cut through the commotion. He understood that the man before them was not someone they could afford to provoke lightly. If the elders' reckless words angered him, the entire Su family might face disaster.
At his command, the room fell silent. Though still brimming with resentment, the elders reluctantly returned to their seats.
"My apologies, senior," Su Yinglong said with a forced smile, bowing once more. "Please forgive the rudeness of my family members."
"Elder, I hope you're not offended," Su Yue added quickly, her voice trembling. She feared that if Yun Yanshui were provoked further, he might kill everyone present, and no one in the Su family would be able to stop him.
"I'm not angry," Yun Yanshui replied with a faint smile. "All I ask is that each of those who insulted me just now slap themselves in the face. Then we'll call it even." Sёarᴄh the nôvelFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
"What arrogance!"
"To think he'd dare humiliate us like this!"
"This is the Su family's estate, not some place where outsiders can throw their weight around!"
The elders, who had been grumbling under their breath, now erupted in fury once more.
"Should I make the first move, then?" Yun Yanshui said, his voice calm but cold as he turned his gaze toward Su Yinglong. "Because if I do, the results might be… unfortunate."
The chilling undertone in his words silenced the room again.
"Senior, your request might be… excessive," Su Yinglong said carefully. He knew the elders' loyalty to the family ran deep, and forcing them to humiliate themselves would surely breed resentment. However, the man before him was clearly someone they couldn't afford to cross.
Suppressing his frustration, Su Yinglong chose his words with great care, hoping to defuse the situation without escalating it further.
"Excessive, you say?"
Yun Yanshui murmured softly, his voice barely audible.
Without warning, he raised a finger, releasing a sharp burst of spiritual energy. The energy streaked through the air like an arrow, piercing the head of one of the most vocal Su family elders.
The elder's body froze, his eyes wide with disbelief, before collapsing lifelessly into a pool of blood.
The entire room fell silent in stunned horror.
"Yinglong, this man is out of control! He just killed Elder Yingsheng!" another elder shouted, his voice trembling with rage.
"Annoying," Yun Yanshui muttered, flicking his finger again. The complaining elder was silenced instantly, his body crumpling to the ground, lifeless.
The council hall was now utterly still.
The remaining Su family elders, who had been brimming with indignation moments ago, were now paralyzed by fear. Their anger was replaced with an overwhelming realization of Yun Yanshui's terrifying power.
Even Su Yinglong, who had just witnessed two of his clan members slaughtered before his eyes, did not dare to show a hint of anger.
As for Su Yue, her face had gone completely pale, her body trembling uncontrollably. She was too terrified to even raise her voice, fearing that one wrong word might provoke Yun Yanshui to annihilate everyone present.
"Finally, some peace and quiet," Yun Yanshui said lazily, using his pinky to clean his ear as if nothing had happened. His eyes shifted to Su Yue, who stood frozen in place.
"The payment," he said casually. "You promised me the money as soon as we arrived at your family estate. Don't make me lose my temper. If I do, I can't guarantee what might happen next."
Su Yue snapped out of her stupor, her voice trembling as she stammered, "E-elder, p-please don't worry! I-I'll give it to you! My family will pay, I swear!"
"Yes, senior, our Su family will compensate you for your losses," Su Yinglong added quickly, his tone obsequious.
Though five thousand low-grade spirit stones was no small amount, the Su family had accumulated significant wealth over the years, thanks to the Yulin Wang Clan's support. Scraping together the payment was possible, albeit with some difficulty.
"Yingxun, fetch the spirit stones for our honored guest immediately!" Su Yinglong barked, turning to one of the still-shaken elders.
"Y-yes, right away!"
Yingxun stumbled as he left the hall, his fear evident in his unsteady steps.
Time seemed to drag on, but eventually, Yingxun returned with a storage pouch containing the full payment. Handing it to Su Yinglong, he seemed relieved to have completed his task.
"Senior, please verify the amount," Su Yinglong said, bowing deeply as he handed the pouch to Yun Yanshui.
"You're quite sensible. Very well, I'll let this matter rest," Yun Yanshui said with a faint smile. He opened the pouch, scanned its contents with his spiritual sense, and confirmed the amount was accurate.
Satisfied, he stowed the pouch and turned to leave.
Thud!
As soon as Yun Yanshui's figure disappeared into the distance, Su Yue's legs gave out, and she collapsed to the floor. Her entire body felt drained, as if all her strength had been sucked away. Her lips were pale, and her hands trembled uncontrollably from the lingering terror.
"Yue'er!"
Su Yinglong rushed to her side, helping her to her feet.
"We were so close… so close to the Su family's destruction…" Su Yue stammered, her voice shaky and uneven.
"What kind of person was that man to frighten you like this?" Su Yinglong asked, his brows furrowed deeply.
"Grandfather… that man… he's a Qi Refinement stage cultivator!"
Hiss—
The words sent a collective shudder through the room. Su Yinglong and the remaining elders all drew sharp breaths, their faces paling visibly.
The realization hit them hard—Qi Refinement cultivators were leagues beyond their reach, and they had been lucky to escape with their lives.
The elders, who had moments ago dared to curse and insult Yun Yanshui, now found themselves trembling. Cold sweat trickled down their backs as they thought of how close they had come to provoking him further.
They now fully understood: their Su family had walked right up to death's door—and only by sheer fortune had they managed to step back.
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