Chapter Fifty-Four: Lu Su Xue

Compared to the Pure Azure Pill Manual imparted by Elder Ye Min, the Jade Dragon Pill Manual was of an incomparably higher caliber—one in the heavens, the other on earth. The techniques recorded in the Pure Azure Pill Manual at best could produce pills suitable for the Golden Core stage, which clearly indicated that the Pure Azure Master who left behind this manual was most likely a Golden Core cultivator.

The Jade Dragon Pill Manual, however, had no limits. It contained no fixed pill refining methods, but instead expounded on the principles of alchemy, encouraging the practitioner to invent their own techniques. From this alone, one could see that the Jade Dragon Master possessed extraordinary attainments in alchemy, having reached a level where the art returned to its natural essence.

In the days that followed, Ye Yun practiced fire control techniques while devoting himself entirely to comprehending the mysteries of the Jade Dragon Pill Manual.

At this time, an inexplicable marriage proposal suddenly fell upon Ye Yun.

...

Elder Ye Min had a son named Ye Guo. In his youth, Ye Guo achieved success in Qi refinement and went out to temper himself. During his travels, he met a young woman, and the two fell in love at first sight, later pledging themselves to each other in secret.

Ordinarily, with mutual affection between the pair, a private betrothal without parental consent was hardly a cause for concern. Yet what infuriated Elder Ye Min was that Ye Guo actually became a son-in-law in the woman’s household.

That had happened fifteen years ago. At the time, Elder Ye Min was so angry that his beard bristled and his eyes bulged. As an elder of the Ye clan, how could his only child become a son-in-law?

Later, when Elder Ye Min went to the woman's house in a rage, he discovered she was from the Lu family. In the northwest region of the Sacred Dragon Dynasty, the Lu family’s power and status far exceeded that of the Ye clan of Cloudwater City.

Even the clan head, Ye Haiyi, was alarmed by the marriage, personally leading the elders to the Lu family on the day of Ye Guo’s wedding.

The Lu family was powerful, so Elder Ye Min could only swallow his pride. When Ye Guo had a daughter, she was named Lu Su Xue, following the custom for sons-in-law.

Each year, Ye Guo and his wife would bring their daughter to Cloudwater City to visit Elder Ye Min.

Having just received three drops of spirit milk from Ye Yun and eager to begin alchemy, Elder Ye Min had barely started preparations when Ye Guo, his wife, and daughter arrived to see him.

"Su Xue, my little girl, grows more beautiful every year," Elder Ye Min beamed, delighted by the double blessing.

The saying goes that a girl changes greatly at eighteen, but even after just a year, the fourteen-year-old Lu Su Xue had blossomed into a graceful young lady. Dressed in a snow-white gown, her black hair cascading like a waterfall, she resembled a fairy descended to earth—rosy lips, white teeth, skin fairer than jade, and a smile capable of captivating a city.

"Grandfather, please don’t tease me," Lu Su Xue said bashfully, her cheeks tinted with a blush.

Though many praised her beauty, her grandfather’s words were different from those of outsiders.

Since childhood, her grandfather had treated her with utmost kindness, and as a skilled alchemist, he always gifted her bottles of spiritual pills during their yearly visits.

---

"Now that my little girl has grown up, how about your grandfather arranges a marriage for you?" Elder Ye Min, perhaps struck by a whim, suddenly proposed.

"Oh? Could it be that father has his eye on some outstanding young man in the Ye clan?" Ye Guo asked, curious.

"I don’t want any young prodigy," Lu Su Xue protested shyly upon hearing the conversation.

"Hehe, my precious granddaughter is so exceptional that countless men in the Lu family would wish to marry her, but the match I’ve picked is truly extraordinary." Elder Ye Min laughed.

Lu Mei, Ye Guo’s wife, smiled quietly to the side. She was the model of a virtuous spouse. Though she doubted any young man in the Ye clan could match her daughter, she did not object—after all, she herself had married Ye Guo.

She trusted her husband’s wisdom in making the right choice.

The candidate Elder Ye Min had in mind for Lu Su Xue was, of course, Ye Yun. He held great hopes for Ye Yun and believed that a union between his granddaughter and Ye Yun would be perfect.

Ye Guo could not disrespect his father. Once Elder Ye Min finished extolling Ye Yun’s virtues, Ye Guo smiled and said, "Father, Ye Yun is indeed remarkable, but I already have plans for Su Xue’s marriage."

"Plans? Nonsense! Are you implying the match I suggested is inferior to your choice?" No sooner had Ye Guo spoken than Elder Ye Min’s beard quivered in displeasure.

"Father, please don’t be angry. May I explain?" Ye Guo replied hastily.

"Speak, then. If I’m not satisfied, you’ll leave here limping!" Elder Ye Min huffed.

Watching her grandfather scold her father, Lu Su Xue could not hold back a secret smile.

The reason Ye Guo refused was that the second son of the Xu family once visited the Lu family, and upon seeing Lu Su Xue, was struck by her beauty. Subsequently, the Xu and Lu elders discussed the matter, expressing interest in arranging a marriage.

If the Ye clan of Cloudwater City was considered a third-rate power in the Sacred Dragon Dynasty, the Lu family was second-rate, and the Xu family was a lofty first-rate clan!

Should the Lu family form a marital alliance with the Xu family, the benefits would be immeasurable.

What appeared to be a simple marriage among the younger generation was, in fact, entangled with the power dynamics of great clans. Though Ye Guo was Su Xue’s father, even he could not withstand the pressure from the Lu family’s elders.

"Father, I will never marry the Xu family’s second son!" Lu Su Xue asserted coldly, her pretty face hardening.

Ye Guo looked helpless, while Lu Mei frowned slightly and tugged at her daughter’s skirt, whispering, "Don’t make trouble."

"Mother, how am I making trouble? That second son from the Xu family is no good. When he visited us, his eyes were hungry enough to devour me. I’d rather die than marry such a man!" Lu Su Xue’s resolve was unwavering.

"Sigh…" Ye Guo sighed. He had no desire to push his daughter into a pit of fire. The Xu family’s second son’s reputation was indeed questionable, but the pressure from the Lu family’s elders…

Elder Ye Min furrowed his brows. Regarding the Lu-Xu alliance, though he was Su Xue’s grandfather, he was ultimately an outsider.

---

"What do the Lu family elders intend?" Elder Ye Min asked gravely.

"Not long ago, they nearly placed Su Xue under house arrest over this matter. This time, it’s only because we’re visiting relatives that my father-in-law relented and allowed me to bring my wife and daughter home," Ye Guo replied, his meaning clear.

His father-in-law was, of course, the Lu family’s patriarch.

"My granddaughter will not become a tool for the Lu family to curry favor with the Xu clan. Tomorrow morning, you and Lu Mei return home; Su Xue will stay with me," Elder Ye Min decided after a long contemplation.

Hearing this, Ye Guo was shocked. "My father-in-law may be persuaded, but if the Xu family is angered, it could bring disaster upon the Ye clan!"

Though he had married into the Lu family, Ye Guo remained a member of the Ye clan, and his concerns naturally came from that standpoint.

"We Ye clan control Cloudwater City, protected by the Sacred Dragon Dynasty. The Xu family would not dare openly move against us!" Elder Ye Min replied.

The Sacred Dragon Dynasty ruled over boundless realms, and all those who governed a city held the title of City Lord and enjoyed the dynasty’s protection. Thus, even the mighty Xu family would not dare defy the dynasty’s laws and attack the Ye clan.

If the Xu family truly attempted such a thing, it would be seen as rebellion and plotting against imperial officials. The dynasty would send its armies to eradicate the Xu clan, leaving not a single survivor.

Elder Ye Min’s confidence stemmed from history—such events had occurred before. Once, a small third-rate clan offended a first-rate aristocratic family. The latter, relying on their power, dispatched experts to annihilate the small clan. They believed their connections would shield them from the dynasty’s retribution, yet within three days, imperial forces destroyed the aristocrats entirely, leaving no one alive.

The Sacred Dragon Dynasty’s rule spanned endless lands, gathering all the most powerful cultivators under its banner. To keep these mighty individuals from causing chaos, the dynasty wielded iron-fisted methods to suppress any defiance.

Though many years had passed since that incident, it remained a sword hanging over the heads of the elite families.

The lesson was clear: since then, no first-rate aristocratic clan dared violate the dynasty’s laws.

Yet while the Xu family would not dare to destroy the Ye clan outright, they could still work in secret. With the resources of an aristocratic house, targeting a small third-rate clan was effortless.

Still, for his precious granddaughter, Elder Ye Min cared little for whether Clan Head Ye Haiyi would agree or whether it might bring trouble upon the Ye clan.

Cultivators, too, are flesh and blood. In most aristocratic houses, clan interests trump all, but in Elder Ye Min’s heart, the welfare of his only granddaughter far outweighed the clan’s interests.

Moreover, the matter of Ye Yun had shown Elder Ye Min much. The actions of Clan Head Ye Haiyi had left him disheartened.

The interests of the Ye clan? To hell with them! ...