Chapter 99: Incomprehensible

Want to enjoy the snow? I'll keep you company.

No, it's fine; just come pick me up in a bit.

I just…… don't want to, and don't dare to, see you worrying over Miss Lin.

I don't want to, and I won't.

Liu Liyan went out with Qingxia.

As she left, Su Chen could faintly sense that her mood was a little low.

Was it an illusion?

Su Chen frowned, wanting to go ask himself.

Only Su Chen and Heibao remained in the tent.

Now the atmosphere only slightly relaxed, no longer the previous oppression; just now I wasn't sure if it was due to cultivation, but a hiccup inexplicably caused a tingling sensation on my scalp.

He read this jade slip twice, but still didn't finish it.

"Young Master, should I keep reading?"

"Give it to me." Su Chen frowned, looking in the direction Liu Liyan had left.

His divine sense swept over the jade slip.

The bizarre information on the jade slip left him dumbfounded.

That fickle woman Lin Jianran actually managed to send me a voice transmission without even bothering with pleasantries, and even told me to go rescue her at the Ye household?

"Hmph." Su Chen let out a cold snort, his face darkening slightly.

Then, in front of Heibao, he performed a hand seal and burned the jade slip to ashes.

Heibao was frightened out of his wits, hastily bowing and saying, "Young Master, please calm your anger!"

Ye Xuan is completely inhuman; as the Young Pavilion Master of the Star Pavilion and future sect leader, he actually used such despicable means to draw the Young Master into a scheme—clearly he had you all figured out!

"Miss Lin is his childhood sweetheart! He actually…… imprisoned her and even forced her to marry someone she doesn't like."

"But Young Master… if you go to Qianyuan City to abduct that Holy Maiden Liu, what then?"

"Subordinate's humble opinion: Miss Lin's looks are really just… so-so, average. Compared to Holy Maiden Liu, Miss Lin's ranking on the Eastern Wasteland Beauty List is only there because you and the Heavenly Profound Dao Sect behind you propped it up forcibly, whereas Holy Maiden Liu earned hers through talent and is recognized throughout the Eastern Wasteland… unless you're blind, anyone with eyes knows who to choose!"

As he spoke, Heibao's voice grew lower and lower, his heart filled with trepidation.

Having said that, he immediately plopped to his knees: "Young Master, please forgive me; I just spoke bluntly in the heat of the moment…"

After all, he didn't know why Su Chen was ardently pursuing Lin Jianran, nor whether Su Chen still had any lingering feelings for her now.

What if, what if the Young Master still misses Miss Lin in his heart?

Upon thinking this, a bean-sized bead of sweat trickled down Heibao's forehead.

"Forced?!"

Su Chen's lips curled with a hint of disdain, his eyes full of contempt: "That fickle Lin Jianran—she probably hasn't even had time to like you yet; she likes to cling to high branches, doesn't she? She likes to pretend she's of noble birth."

"Back at the Flower Rain Pavilion, to make me regret it, her label was always self-love and purity, not a casual person; she really was pure and not casual—she even directly forced a kiss on that guy surnamed Qin."

"Now marrying over there would just fulfill her wish; shouldn't she be happy, or is it already too late?"

"She even dares to ask this young master for help—what makes her think she's worthy?!"

Take a look at this jade slip sent from Qianyuan City—every word is a lament.

With just a glance of his divine sense, Su Chen could imagine what expression Lin Jianran wore while using her soul power to write this jade slip, how ugly that face could be: "Su Chen, waa waa waa…"

"Ye Xuan elder brother, you don't love me anymore, you completely don't want me—you're so ruthless as to have me marry Qin Shou of the Blazing Sun Sect. Su Chen, you can't abandon me; if you do, I…… I know I shouldn't have said those insincere words in the Azure Abyss Sect's main hall; I won't argue with you anymore, I know I was wrong, and I won't cause trouble from now on."

"Although the Heavenly Profound Dao Sect bears the infamy of colluding with extraterritorial demons."

"But my conscience is also heavily condemned; I suffer insomnia day and night."

"Su Chen, you must understand my feelings, right? Your love for me is etched deep in your heart; you surely can't let go of me, constantly thinking of me—am I right? Come back quickly; this time I've truly seen Ye Xuan elder brother's character—come back and duel him for me,"

"Let the winner marry me—let the winner sit as the Eastern Wasteland's empress; I don't want, I don't want to hand myself over to that impotent man."

Finally, a few drops of tears were stored on the jade slip.

It's simply outrageous.

Su Chen said nothing more, directly burning the jade slip to ash.

He sneered, his eyes full of indifference, not a shred of pity—so indifferent that even if Lin Jianran were to die right before him, he wouldn't even frown: "Heibao, do you really think your young master is blind?"

"I'm not yet blind with age—how could I possibly ignore my own fiancée to go rescue a total stranger? And her, she actually dares to hope I'll PUA myself into fighting Ye Xuan, conquer the Eastern Wasteland, and make her empress? What a thick face she has!"

"Still living in a dream after three years?"

"It's also time to wake up."

Su Chen flicked his sleeve and turned away without hesitation.

Heibao lifted his gaze to the sky where the jade slip had already been reduced to sparks, recalling the Young Master's pitiful scenes in pursuing Miss Lin—like a slideshow flashing through his mind—until it all turned into the Young Master's stern face.

For some reason, Heibao felt immensely gratified.

Before, he had taken issue with Lin Jianran's affected pretentiousness; now the Young Master has finally come to full realization.

……

Outside the tent.

Liu Liyan, having left, completely changed her previous gentleness; her whole body exuded terrifying cold, and her peerless face was coated with a layer of frost, making it impossible to look at directly.

Colder than this freezing weather.

Qingxia trembled with fear, afraid to say more, lest she be silenced by a single sword.

"Qingxia."

"Master, I'm here." At that instant, Qingxia's back was soaked with sweat.

Even with her head lowered, Qingxia could clearly feel that surrounding chill.

"You say, if Ah Chen sees that jade slip, will he abandon me and go straight to Qianyuan City to abduct a bride?" Liu Liyan stood in the ice and snow, her voice icy to the extreme.

Qingxia racked her brains, left and right, before finally daring to say: "Master, since you're so worried about Young Sect Master Su, why not pretend to have a dark injury and let Young Sect Master Su stay?"

I think you… are actually quite talented in that area, simply superb.

Even as a woman, seeing it makes my heart ache a bit.

"I don't want to do that." Liu Liyan's eyes corners flashed a faint red, and the wound on her wrist split open again.

Fresh blood seeped out from the scab.

Liu Liyan quickly turned her head, unwilling to let Qingxia see the fleeting tear in her eyes.

She gazed at the distant camp, her chest inexplicably aching, the pain so great she could hardly breathe, her breathing becoming ragged: "I have seen his meticulous care for me."

"I just want to use this disagreeable method to forcibly keep him by my side."

"Although the ultimate goal is just to have him stay by my side."