Chapter 820: Hun Shou Exposed

"Hm?"

Hearing the sudden howling sound, Su Muqing's eyes flickered slightly, her cold gaze hardening with a chill—someone in the Su family dared to offend her like this? Her body coalesced immortal energy as she regarded the figure descending before her with blinding speed.

Their gazes met: one pair of eyes faintly reddened with emotion, the other cold and unyielding, brows slightly furrowed.

"Ying Xiaoxiao…"

Li Hao stared at the woman before him—her face was too similar, or rather, identical, down to the blue-green robe, as if time had reversed and she had never left, never changed.

"Who are you?"

Beside her, a surprised voice spoke—a girl slightly younger than Su Muqing by two years, her eyes serene yet tender, now filled with astonishment.

Her features bore only a faint resemblance to Su Muqing's, yet she was still a stunning beauty.

Li Hao snapped back to himself, seeing her cold, rejecting gaze—he understood now what Ying Xiaoxiao meant by "not yet awakened." Just as when he first met Ying Xiaoxiao, she had no memory of her primordial spirit's past.

His eyes grew complex; he restrained his thoughts and said, "I'm Hao Tian. May I ask your name?"

Meeting someone familiar, yet hearing no name—it was a strange feeling.

Su Muqing heard this ordinary greeting, her gaze turning colder; she scanned the path of immortal energy he had used to arrive—from the small secluded garden. That meant he was just an ordinary guest.

She said coldly, "If you're a guest, stay quietly in your courtyard."

With that, she swept her sleeve aside and turned to walk past him.

Li Hao had just seen her—he couldn't let her leave so easily. "Please tell me your name."

Su Muqing's face turned icy. This man approached her, pretended not to know her name, and now clung stubbornly—such crude tactics were among the lowest in her many suitors. She spoke frostily:

"How bold! Someone, throw him out of the Su family!"

The girl beside her opened her mouth to speak, then hesitated, glanced at Li Hao, and stayed silent—only shaking her head slightly, as if expressing regret.

Li Hao stared at her ice-cold face, momentarily stunned—until the howling of immortal energy in the air signaled the arrival of a ninth-rank Immortal Lord guard. He snapped back, fixing his gaze on the guard:

"Tell me your name."

"Where did this brat come from, daring to offend Miss Su? Get lost!"

The guard glanced at Su Muqing, a flicker of admiration in his eyes; hearing Li Hao's words, his face darkened with anger, unleashing the aura of a ninth-rank Immortal Lord.

He assessed Li Hao's cultivation—barely first-rank Immortal Lord—and knew he could crush him with a hand. This was a rare chance to impress Miss Su—perhaps leave a lasting impression in those beautiful eyes.

Facing this pressure, Li Hao did not retreat. His own immortal energy surged, the Dao Source Immortal Seal spinning unseen, yet the perfect, unified aura of his Dao allowed him to stand firm against the guard's pressure.

Seeing Li Hao's aura, Su Muqing, the girl beside her, and the guard all showed surprise—how could a mere first-rank Immortal Lord possess such power?

"Incredible—this aura rivals at least a fourth-rank Immortal Lord…"

The girl's eyes widened—undoubtedly, this boy was a human prodigy.

Yet such a prodigy, still capable of overcoming higher realms in the Immortal Lord stage, had resorted to such a crude tactic—she felt a pang of regret.

Su Muqing's eyebrows lifted slightly, her coldness easing a fraction. At that moment, a figure rushed over—it was the steward of Haiyue Hall. Seeing Li Hao blocking the way before Su Muqing and Su Wanqing, he had turned pale with alarm. Now he hurried forward, grabbing Li Hao's arm and hastily apologized:

"My ladies, he's a new guest, ignorant of propriety—please don't hold it against him."

Su Muqing glanced at Li Hao, seeing his eyes fixed on her with an odd, complex emotion. A ripple stirred in her heart—something strange—but she didn't dwell on it, waving her hand:

"Forget it."

Then she turned to the girl beside her: "Wanqing, come, let's go see Qiyu's group."

As she spoke, her figure blurred—she instantly teleported past Li Hao and vanished into the distance.

Su Wanqing glanced at Li Hao, then followed—within moments, both girls were gone.

Li Hao moved to chase after them, but the guard's aura flared sharply, blocking his path, his face cold:

"Miss Su spared you—don't go looking for death."

Li Hao stopped, staring at the disappearing backs, his expression complex—he knew he had lost control, shouldn't have acted so impulsively.

He turned to the steward beside him: "Are they Su family daughters?"

"You really don't know?"

The steward froze—on the Gusu Emperor Star, there were people who didn't know Miss Su?

The guard beside him also raised an eyebrow. Now that Miss Su had left, there was no need for this performance before them.

As men, they understood flirting tactics—though he sneered inwardly; this one was painfully basic.

Seeing Li Hao shake his head, the steward, whether he believed him or not, lowered his voice: "The one who pardoned you is Miss Su Muqing—our Su family's current True Phoenix, a peerless talent. On the Gusu Emperor Star, everyone knows her. Among the younger generation, only the Imperial Prince of the Lin family rivals her—and even then, fewer than three others come close."

"The girl beside her is her half-sister, Su Wanqing—one of the Four Little Phoenixes of the Su family."

"Four Little Phoenixes?"

Li Hao thought of the noblewoman—the Su Lady's four daughters—and his eyes flickered.

The hushed whispers he'd heard outside the mansion now surged back to mind—he narrowed his pupils. The woman they'd been talking about… was she?

Li Hao's expression changed. He turned sharply to the steward: "I need to see Su Lady."

The steward blinked in surprise: "This…"

"Tell her I need to see Su Lady!"

Li Hao said firmly.

"I can only arrange for you to meet Yao Qin. Whether Su Lady will see you…"

The steward sighed. If not for overseeing Li Hao's lodging, he wouldn't have shown up at all—but if Li Hao caused trouble, the blame would fall on him.

The guard beside him snorted in mockery and turned away without another word.

Back at Haiyue Hall, the steward reported to Yao Qin. Li Hao waited, restless as if sitting on needles.

Meanwhile, inside the Su family's inner courtyard, Zhurong Garden.

There stood a training ground—a Grade-Terrace arena reserved only for Su family disciples, guarded by an Immortal King elder who instructed the young ones.

Outside the arena, many figures gathered, buzzing with excitement. Inside the sealed battle field, two figures clashed fiercely, the crowd roaring with cheers.

Soon, the two combatants ended in a draw—neither could claim victory.

To continue would mean revealing their ultimate techniques—this would become a fight to the death.

"Fang Xiu is incredible—no wonder he's from the main branch. At Immortal Lord second-rank, he held his own against Yun Shan at third-rank."

"Of course—he trains in a different scripture than we do. Unless you earn great merit, you can't even read it."

"Now it's a draw—who will Qiyu choose as his personal guard?" Outside, whispers spread, eyes constantly drifting toward a young man standing beside the Immortal King elder.

The youth was tall, clad in moon-white robes, his gaze calm yet gentle, radiating scholarly grace.

"Qiyu is nearly at Immortal Lord peak—if we become his personal guard, we'll surely gain access to higher immortal arts and body cultivation techniques."

Many eyes gleamed with envy. Though all were Su family disciples, status differed—following the main branch, even as a personal attendant, was a golden opportunity—not shameful at all.

After all, their mothers served as maids to the main lady—there was a clear gap in rank.

"Qiyu, what do you think of Yun Shan?"

The Immortal King elder smiled, turning to the young man beside him.

He was the Su family's rising star among the younger generation—older than the Four Little Phoenixes, higher in cultivation—but his talent was slightly inferior.

This generation of the Su family was strange—its prodigies were all women.

Before the youth could answer, two streaks of light shot down from the sky—azure-blue robes fluttering, with the illusion of falling osmanthus petals swirling around them—the natural manifestation of a maiden's perfected Dao.

The murmurs in the arena died instantly. All eyes turned toward them—and when they recognized the two figures, silence fell.

Moments passed before a wave of shocked exclamations erupted.

"It's Miss Su Muqing! She's here!"

"And Su Wanqing—sisters, both breathtakingly beautiful."

"Why are they here? Are they here to test our cultivation?"

Many Su disciples grew excited—these two were the Four Little Phoenixes, peerless among their peers, rarely seen, famous across the entire Gusu Emperor Star.

"Muqing."

Su Qiyu's eyes brightened as he saw his two sisters.

The Immortal King elder smiled warmly: "What brings you here?"

The two girls bowed to the elder in greeting, then Su Muqing said directly: "Qiyu, I've come to invite you to the Sword Pool's Crown Challenge in six years. Will you go?"

"Sword Pool's Crown Challenge?"

Su Qiyu's eyes flickered, a smile forming. "If I haven't reached Immortal King by then, I'll gladly go and see how other families fare. But if I break through to Immortal King, I won't be allowed to participate."

An Immortal King entering would be unfair.

Su Muqing understood perfectly. She nodded: "Of course. So… you accept?"

"If my little sister asks, how could I refuse?"

Su Qiyu smiled.

Hearing this, Su Muqing's coldness melted considerably. She nodded.

Meanwhile, Yao Qin arrived at Haiyue Hall.

"What do you want?"

Seeing Li Hao, Yao Qin frowned. "I just heard—you nearly offended Miss Su. Is that true?"

Li Hao hadn't expected the Su family's intelligence network to be this fast—a minor incident, and they already knew. No wonder she served the noblewoman.

"I need to see Su Lady."

Li Hao said.

Yao Qin frowned: "Su Lady is busy. You can't just demand to see her. Wait for summons."

"I need to see her now."

Li Hao thought of the whispers he'd heard outside the mansion—his tone grew impatient.

Yao Qin's expression darkened. No one in the secluded garden dared speak to her like this—but this boy was special. Remembering the noblewoman's instructions, she took a deep breath, suppressing her anger, and spoke coldly:

"I'll report it. Until then, wait here quietly."

With that, he turned away without giving Li Hao a chance to speak and vanished.

Inside the Su family's deep mansion.

A towering figure appeared silently, as if stepping out of time and space, disturbing no one.

But as soon as he reached the main hall, he saw a noble lady seated there waiting—her attire, woven with lustrous golden threads, exuded unparalleled elegance, complementing her breathtaking beauty.

"Madam, have you been waiting here all along?"

Su Zhenyuan, the head of the Su family, his deep gaze instantly softened as he asked gently.

Su Madam looked at her husband, sensing the disturbance in his restrained aura; her expression changed slightly as she rose and said:

"How did it go? Did you fail?"

Su Zhenyuan's eyes revealed a trace of helplessness and pain; he sighed and shook his head. "I was too eager."

Su Madam gazed at the few strands of white hair at his temples, her eyes softening with pity as she said gently, "It's fine. Don't always take everything onto yourself—there's still your fourth and fifth brothers…"

Su Zhenyuan shook his head at her words. "The eldest brother is gone. As the second son, I've taken his place, and as head of the clan, how can I retreat behind them?"

Seeing his stubbornness once again, Su Madam knew she could not change him on this matter, so she shifted the topic. "You've returned just in time—there's something I need your advice on."

Hearing his wife's words, Su Zhenyuan's gaze sharpened. "What is it?"

Seeing her husband so serious, Su Madam knew he was worrying about those matters again. She shook her head. "It's about a junior. A young man has come to our door with our ancestor's marriage contract."

She pulled out an ancient scroll from her hand and handed it to her husband.

As the scroll unfurled, golden threads burst forth like ten thousand divine rays; characters imbued with the essence of the Dao appeared one by one.

Su Zhenyuan swiftly scanned it, his eyes filled with surprise. "When I inherited the clan leadership, my father mentioned this—our ancestor once arranged a marriage alliance, and at some future day, someone might come to our Su family to propose. I never thought it would actually happen."

His eyes lit up with joy and a smile. "This is good news! Just as Muqing is due to marry—this is double fortune!"

Su Madam shot him a disapproving look at his words. In battle, commanding troops and slaying demons, he was a master strategist—yet when it came to matters of love and marriage, he was as clueless as a clumsy oaf.

"Are you really going to agree? We have four daughters, each with talent unmatched in ten thousand years—do you truly want to let them go?"

Su Madam said, exasperated.

Su Zhenyuan chuckled. "Daughters grow up and leave home—they can't be tied to the family forever. Besides, the marriage arranged by our ancestor was with an Emperor-level being. Even if the suitor isn't of imperial blood, he must at least be a direct disciple. Such a paragon is a fitting match."

Su Zhenyuan smiled and said, "A daughter grows up and eventually marries; you can't tie her to you forever. Besides, the marriage arranged by our ancestors was with a being of Imperial status—anyone coming to propose, even if not of Imperial blood, would at least be a direct disciple. Such a remarkable person is a top-tier match."