Firmament Sword

Only after Su Qingyi’s back disappeared from view did a Maid, at the urging of the other Guards, muster the courage to knock on Su Qianqian’s door.

”Miss… Miss?” The Maid looked nervous, terrified she would be scolded by her ill-tempered lady.

But she knocked for a long time without any response.

Now, even the Guards in the courtyard felt that something wasn’t right.

Then, two elders with solemn expressions appeared in a flash before Su Qianqian’s door. They reached out, pushed the door open, glanced around, and then swept the area with their Divine Sense. Their expressions changed drastically.

”Not good! The young lady has been abducted!”

”The young lady was abducted by Su Qingyi! Su Ming, go report to the Patriarch! Everyone else… after them! Follow me!” one of the elders roared, his eyebrows bristling with anger.

Everyone in the courtyard was frantic, their faces a mask of panic. They had lost the Su Celestial Maiden. The responsibility was too great. The thought of the Patriarch’s fury sent a chill down their spines, and they hated Su Qingyi with every fiber of their being.

”Damn it! When the Patriarch hears about this, he’ll definitely skin him alive!” The leading elder’s eyes flashed like lightning, his vital energy vigorous. He gritted his teeth, a furious fire raging in his chest.

”That’s right! Even if he’s a direct descendant of the family, daring to do something like this is unforgivable!”

”Our top priority is to get the young lady back immediately!”

”Why would Su Qingyi do something so drastic?” someone asked, confused.

”Isn’t it obvious? Even a fool can see how Su Qingyi feels about the young lady. He’s been in love with her for years. It must be because she’s going to marry the young master of the Bai Family. He was jealous, and that’s why he did something so extreme.”

”Enough nonsense! Hurry up and chase him! He can’t have gotten far. I refuse to believe he could’ve sprouted wings and flown off Su Family lands!” the elder with the vigorous vital energy said in a low, grim voice.

A large crowd sprinted wildly through the Su Family grounds, to the astonishment of everyone who saw them.

Someone asked, ”What’s going on with you all? Why the mad rush? What happened?”

The group didn’t answer; they didn’t dare speak. If they could retrieve the Su Celestial Maiden and capture Su Qingyi now, containing the incident, their punishment might be lighter.

If word of this got out and became common knowledge, they would probably face a grim fate even if they did manage to drag Su Qingyi back.

Besides, the person the Patriarch had personally instructed them to watch over was abducted right under their noses. How could they bring themselves to admit something so humiliating?

But how could something that happened in broad daylight escape everyone’s notice?

”Huh? Aren’t those the people who follow the Su Celestial Maiden? Why are they in such a panic?”

”Heh, maybe the Su Celestial Maiden ran away, haha,” someone gloated. ”She seems so noble and respected, but she’s basically under house arrest. If I were her, I’d probably try to escape too…”

”Be careful what you say. A careless tongue can lead to disaster. The Su Celestial Maiden is highly regarded by the Patriarch…” someone warned.

Soon, almost the entire Su Family knew about the incident.

When the young Guard named Su Ming reported the matter to the Patriarch, the Su Family Master flew into a rage on the spot and sent Su Ming flying with a single slap.

Although he didn’t use any True Essence, the slap still made half of Su Ming’s face swell up. He lay on the ground, unable to get up for a long time.

”Useless! You’re all a bunch of useless trash!” The Su Family Master’s expression was frighteningly dark, his eyes looked like they could eat someone alive. He gritted his teeth and said, ”A whole crowd of you couldn’t even watch one little girl! And who allowed you to let Su Qingyi enter and leave her courtyard freely? Huh?”

The young Guard Su Ming was filled with resentment. ’No wonder that old bastard sent me to report to the Patriarch,’ he thought. ’I thought it was a cushy job, that I wouldn’t have to join the chase… That old coot must have known this would happen.’

Though he was filled with hatred, he didn’t dare let any of it show on his face. He said weakly, ”Patriarch… even if you kill me now, it won’t solve anything. We should hurry and figure out a way to get her back…”

”Do I need you to tell me what to do?” The Su Family Master sent Su Ming flying again with a kick, then barked coldly, ”Someone, get in here!”

Immediately, four or five men walked in from outside. Completely ignoring Su Ming on the floor, they bowed in unison to the Su Family Master.

”What is your command, Patriarch?”

”Go and capture Su Qingyi for me! He has abducted the Celestial Maiden and sealed her in a storage space, so… don’t kill him. Bring him back alive!” said the Su Family Master.

”Yes!” the four or five men replied in unison.

”And… with Su Qingyi, no need to be gentle. Just make sure he’s still breathing!” The Su Family Master was truly enraged, no longer even considering the people backing Su Qingyi.

”Understood.” The few powerful experts, brimming with potent vital energy, nodded and turned to leave.

On the ground, Su Ming was shaking in fear. He wanted to leave but didn’t dare, looking pitifully at the Su Family Master.

”Useless trash, get out of my sight! Are you going to stay here and be an eyesore?” the Su Family Master scolded.

Only then did Su Ming scramble and crawl away. He kowtowed twice, then ran out, his heart filled with humiliation, grievance, and resentment. ’A family like this…’ he thought, ’one day, I’ll break away from it!’

...

...

After leaving the Su Family, Su Qingyi raced away without stopping. He knew very well that his actions today would have thoroughly enraged the Patriarch. From now on, he would have no home to return to and would surely be hunted down by his own family.

He had wondered before if what he was doing was worth it. ’To sacrifice so much for a woman who doesn’t love him at all, even betraying his family in the end, only to push the woman he loves into the arms of his rival…’

’It seemed so foolish from every angle…’

But… he just couldn’t control himself. Every time he saw the lifelessness in Su Qianqian’s eyes, he secretly cursed the Su Family’s heartlessness and hated himself for not meeting Su Qianqian sooner.

”If I could be with you through the long, quiet years… what would death matter?”

”If I can’t be there to watch the sun set with you, then as long as you’re happy, what would it matter if I gave my life?”

Su Qingyi let out a long shout toward the heavens. Activating his Body Technique, his figure turned into a wisp of green smoke and disappeared into the vast mountain range.

Not long after, a group of people followed the path Su Qingyi had taken and gave chase.

A short while later, four or five men with overwhelming vital energy arrived. They stopped, looked around for a moment, conferred among themselves, then split into two groups and continued the chase in different directions.

Su Qingyi fled at a frantic pace without any rest. The direction of his escape was precisely toward the territory of the Ancient Race’s Huo Family.

It was his best hope of finding Xu Luo and his companions!

As for whether this would cause trouble for Xu Luo and his friends, Su Qingyi had no time to worry about that. In his eyes, Su Qianqian was in love with Xu Luo. For Xu Luo’s sake, she had even defied the Patriarch to go to the Sect Continent to help. ’Now that Qianqian is in danger, how could Xu Luo possibly stand by and do nothing?’

For two days straight, Su Qingyi was covered in dust, his face unshaven and his hair a mess. He dared not fly through the open sky nor run across the ground, so he could only race along the tops of the mountain trees.

Despite his immense power, he had gone to great lengths to avoid leaving any trace for his pursuers, and he was now completely exhausted.

After climbing a large mountain, Su Qingyi finally stopped. Once he crossed this mountain and went another three hundred miles, he would be in the Huo Family’s sphere of influence.

Although the Huo Family had been mostly wiped out and their clan’s defenses were practically nonexistent, he believed that as long as he entered the Huo Family’s sphere of influence, the people from the Su Family would surely become more cautious and restrained.

Because the people appearing in the Huo Family’s territory now were not necessarily from the Huo Family!

Major powers had long since secretly entered the Huo Family’s lands, preparing to carve up their resources.

Therefore, the situation in the Huo Family’s lands was extremely sensitive, and he believed the people from the Su Family... couldn’t be unaware of this.

Su Qingyi released Su Qianqian and casually undid the seal on her. He looked apologetic and said, ”Qianqian, are you alright?”

”What could be wrong with me? I just can’t believe you were so impulsive. I’m very disappointed in you!” Su Qianqian frowned at Su Qingyi. ”By doing this, you’ve thrown away your entire future in the Su Family!”

”It’s not that serious.” Su Qingyi took out a wine gourd, uncorked it, and took a deep swig. ”At worst, they’ll punish me severely and lock me up in the back mountains to reflect on my actions. How many years can they imprison me? Thirty? Fifty? Or a hundred?”

Su Qingyi said lightly, ”The people backing me aren’t completely powerless. They won’t just stand by and watch me suffer.”

With that, Su Qingyi looked at Su Qianqian and said seriously, ”Enough about me. Let’s talk about you. What exactly is going on? You kept telling me that Xu Luo would come to save you, and you were looking forward to it. Why the sudden change of heart?”

”This… I really don’t want you to know, because it will do you no good at all!” Su Qianqian sighed softly. ”If you didn’t know about this, then your abduction of me would, at worst, be seen as an act born of jealous love because you didn’t want me to marry Bai Zhihai. In that case, no one could accuse you of anything else.”

Su Qianqian continued, her gaze fixed on the distance, ”But if you find out, then there will truly be no room for negotiation. Brother Qingyi, thank you for bringing me here. Let me take it from here. You should go hide. After some time passes, I’ll step forward and say I left the Su Family on my own. At that point, even if the Patriarch wants to make things difficult for you, he’ll have to think twice.”

”No. The Su Family’s pursuers are right behind us. Although I’ve tried my best not to leave any traces these past two days, it’s not that easy to truly escape their pursuit,” Su Qingyi said. ”You should head for the Huo Family’s territory. Not only might Xu Luo and his friends be there, but members of many major powers from the Ancient Race are there too. You can use the chaos to hide. I believe you can do it.”

”Then what about you?” Su Qianqian stared intently at Su Qingyi. ”You’re going to hold off the pursuers for me?”

Su Qingyi nodded. ”Of course!”