Chapter 5: Su Cheng

Great Yan Territory consisted of sixteen prefectures, known to the world as the “Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun”.

Among them, Liangzhou was home to ten righteous factions—seven Earth-level Sects and three Heaven-level Sects.

Tianshuimen ranked third among the sects in Liangzhou.

Just a few months ago, Tianshuimen was still an Earth-level Sect, ranking low and barely considered a major sect in Liangzhou.

But ever since “a certain person” joined, Tianshuimen had risen rapidly, ascending to Heaven-level status, and its influence in Liangzhou far surpassed what it had been.

And this “certain person” was none other than Su Cheng, the former sixth disciple of the Demoness Yu Yi Jue.

Tianshuimen, Elegant Pavilion in the Mountains.

A messenger pigeon with pure white feathers flew through the mountain mists and landed by the window, its dark, bright eyes reflecting the image of a young woman reading.

It seemed to possess a certain intelligence; seeing the girl absorbed in her book, it hesitated to disturb her.

Only when the girl gently set the book aside and stretched did it coo twice, announcing its presence.

“Ah, when did you get here? Thank you for your hard work.”

The girl turned, saw the white pigeon, and smiled softly.

She gently stroked the pigeon’s small head, unfastened the message tube from its leg, and prepared to release it.

The girl had orange hair, a refined and gentle temperament, and a quiet, serene beauty.

A faint smile always graced her delicate face, and even the messenger pigeon seemed to like her, reluctant to leave as if it wanted to be petted a bit longer.

This scholarly, tranquil girl was Su Cheng.

However, just a moment later.

The pale, slender hands holding the pigeon suddenly closed tightly.

A muffled, crushing sound came from the white pigeon trapped within.

Blood seeped between her fingers.

Su Cheng slowly opened her hand, gazing at the mess of flesh and scattered feathers.

The smile on her face had long since vanished, replaced by deep disgust and impatience.

“I told you to leave, but you wouldn’t go. So annoying…”

Su Cheng spat with utter contempt, then began kneading the pigeon’s corpse again.

Her hands twisted and shaped for a while, and when she opened them once more, standing in her palm was a pigeon sculpted from earth and rock!

Its size, posture, and even its stance were identical to the white pigeon from before.

At a glance, it looked lifelike, as if the real pigeon had been turned to stone.

Su Cheng casually placed the rock pigeon on the table to the side.

Two rows were already lined up there, and this “newcomer” became the first of a third row.

Su Cheng unrolled the note from the message tube.

After reading the message, her first reaction was surprise, but soon a smile returned to her lips, as if she had seen through everything, with all still within her grasp.

She gently shook the bell beside her.

In the blink of an eye, a gray-robed elder appeared before her, bowed respectfully, and said, “Scholar Su, what are your orders?”

“Tell Duan Xinyuan to come see me. I have good news to share with him.”

Su Cheng smiled meaningfully.

The gray-robed elder nodded slightly and vanished in another instant.

Not long after, hurried footsteps echoed outside the pavilion.

A middle-aged man in white entered, accompanied by two personal attendants. Upon seeing Su Cheng, he asked excitedly,

“Scholar Su! Is there good news from Yizhou?”

This man was Duan Xinyuan, the Grand Sect Master of Tianshuimen, a powerful cultivator at the Martial King Sixth Realm.

“That’s right. It’s good news.”

Su Cheng nodded.

“The Demoness has been killed? Who finally took her head? Was it—”

Duan Xinyuan pressed eagerly, but before he could finish, Su Cheng cut him off:

“The Demoness is not dead. Not only did she survive, but she annihilated everyone sent to subdue her, even destroyed a swath of land, and created a great river.”

“…What? This…”

Duan Xinyuan stared in shock, speechless for a moment.

Destroyed land and created a river? What kind of situation was this?

He couldn’t even imagine it.

After a moment, he turned back to Su Cheng.

“Scholar Su, how can this be considered good news? Not only did the Demoness break through, we also lost Elder Lin…”

The Elder Lin he spoke of was the leader of the three Grandmasters in the punitive force—a Bai Mei Lao Zhe.

Bai Mei Lao Zhe was not aligned with any faction, but had cooperated with Tianshuimen this time.

If he had claimed the Demoness’s head, Tianshuimen’s reputation would have soared not just in Liangzhou, but throughout the world, securing its place as the region’s dominant power!

But unexpectedly, the Demoness wiped out the entire Righteous Alliance sent against her, shattering Duan Xinyuan’s dreams. How could this possibly be good news??

“Sect Master Duan, think carefully. In this operation against the Demoness, how many people did we send?”

Su Cheng replied calmly.

“Only our core member, Elder Lin…”

“And the other nine forces in Liangzhou—how many did they send?”

“They…Ah! I see!”

Duan Xinyuan was struck by realization at Su Cheng’s words.

Tianshuimen’s contribution in this battle was Su Cheng’s strategy and Bai Mei Lao Zhe’s presence. Even if the campaign failed, Tianshuimen would not suffer heavy losses.

But for the other nine factions, it was different. They sent many high-level disciples, and none returned. It was a crushing blow!

Thus, the other factions of Liangzhou were weakened, while Tianshuimen could seize the opportunity to rise further and claim dominance sooner.

“Heh…Looked at that way, it really is good news for Tianshuimen. I didn’t expect Scholar Su to consider this far ahead. Truly devious…”

Duan Xinyuan’s lips curled, his tone dripping with irony.

“And now that the campaign failed, even if the other nine forces wish to blame Scholar Su for poor planning, they’re too busy licking their wounds to retaliate against Tianshuimen.”

“Likewise.”

Su Cheng waved her hand dismissively.

“After all, the phrase ‘Scholar Su’s strategy and Elder Lin’s presence are equal in value to all the manpower you sent’ was spoken by Sect Master Duan himself at the alliance meeting.”

Duan Xinyuan chuckled, saying no more.

Both he and Su Cheng understood they were using each other, each harboring their own agendas.

“However, with the Demoness’s successful breakthrough, she’ll surely come to settle the score with Scholar Su someday, right?”

Duan Xinyuan’s tone shifted.

“That’s not good news.”

“Don’t worry, Sect Master Duan. You don’t need to hurry to distance yourself from me.”

Su Cheng smiled slightly and explained,

“The Demoness is my master—no one knows her better than I do. She is known for her decisiveness and directness, never dragging things out. According to my investigation, the area where she secluded herself to break through was filled with mountains, making Earth System Technique the optimal choice for destroying the Righteous Alliance.”

“However, in the end, she used a Water System Technique, forcibly drawing water from distant rivers and lakes! Such a method is overly complicated and would consume a great deal of power—unnecessary.”

“My master has no such odd hobbies. If she did so, it must have been due to some abnormal effect caused by the breakthrough—perhaps an inability to use other techniques. In other words…she may have actually failed her breakthrough.”

“Reasonable…”

Duan Xinyuan frowned in thought.

“In that case, does it mean the Demoness is currently in a relatively ‘dangerous’ state?”

“Correct.”

Su Cheng nodded with a smile.

“If so, I’ll send people to spread the word at once! With the Demoness weakened, other righteous factions are bound to attempt to slay her!”

Duan Xinyuan clenched his fist in excitement. As long as other factions could restrain the Demoness, he had nothing to fear.

With that, he turned and left the pavilion.

As the two attendants at his side prepared to follow, Su Cheng called out to them softly from behind.

“You two, wait a moment.”

“Y-Yes, Scholar Su, do you have any orders?”

The two attendants, surprised by her attention, bowed respectfully.

“This table isn’t big enough. There’s hardly room for books and birds anymore. Could you help me replace it?”

Su Cheng patted the table.

“Y-Yes!”

Both nodded hurriedly.

Then, as if one of them caught a strange scent in the air, he shivered and asked Su Cheng,

“Scholar Su, there seems to be an odd odor in the room. Would you like some herb sachets to freshen the air?”

At his words, Su Cheng’s delicate face darkened instantly.

“No need.”

She replied coldly.

Sensing her displeasure, the two attendants hastily excused themselves.

Once they had left, Su Cheng rang the bell on the table again.

The gray-robed elder appeared once more.

“Those two who just left…can they be expelled from Tianshuimen?”

Su Cheng propped her chin on one hand, her gaze icy.

“That…would not be appropriate.”

The elder hesitated.

“They are Sect Master’s personal attendants, and have served him for many years.”

“Mm, it would be improper indeed.”

Su Cheng murmured thoughtfully.

The elder sighed in relief.

But in the next instant, he heard words even more chilling.

“Expelling them isn’t enough. Have Duan Xinyuan kill them both as well.”

Su Cheng rose slowly, drawing close to the gray-robed elder.

Her empty, lightless eyes burned with a murderous intent that chilled the soul.

“Do you think Duan Xinyuan values those two more than he values cooperation with me?”

“U-Understood…”

Unable to meet Su Cheng’s gaze, the elder nodded and fled the scene.

A gust of wind blew in from the window, stirring Su Cheng’s hair.

The air grew still, and an indescribable sense of eeriness filled the room.

Su Cheng sat down again and opened the wooden box set to one side.

Her movements were extremely cautious, as if the box contained rare treasures.

Yet what she removed was a tattered, blood-stained robe.

It was the garment worn by Yu Yi Jue when she was wounded during Su Cheng’s planned ambush.

The blood had long since dried, emitting a faint, unpleasant odor.

But Su Cheng seemed not to notice.

She stared at the blood-stained robe, her lips curling upward.

Then, as if unable to restrain herself, she buried her face in the cloth.

She breathed in its scent over and over, intoxicated.

After a long while, she reluctantly pulled away, murmuring softly.

“Master…Master, how long will it take before you finally look at me properly…”