57: Chapter 57 Boiling Killing Intent

Su Chengyuan rushed back to the small courtyard, his face already ashen.

"Father, what happened?" Su Cheng had been waiting in the courtyard; seeing his father's current expression, his heart suddenly sank.

Su Chengyuan did not speak; he simply walked to the stone table, sat down, picked up the cup of tea that had long since gone cold, and drained it in one gulp.

The hand holding the teacup had veins bulging prominently.

"The Wang Family has come," he said, his voice dry. "They said... Yun Ling disappeared after the Five Sect Martial Competition."

Su Cheng's heart trembled upon hearing this, and an extremely frigid aura flashed across him, causing the temperature in the courtyard to drop by several degrees.

But he did not press further, simply watching his father quietly, waiting for the rest.

Su Chengyuan repeated Wang Teng's gloating words and the behavior of the Wang Boan father and son pair, word for word.

"They said that for a Qi Refinement Stage Disciple to be missing for so long in a place like the Qingxuan Sect, she is likely more dead than alive." By the final sentence, Su Chengyuan's voice carried an uncontrollable tremble.

Su Cheng's fists were tightly clenched within his sleeves, his nails digging deep into his palms.

A monstrous rage burned within his chest, yet he forcibly suppressed it with absolute rationality.

Because he knew that now was not the time for anger.

"The news might not be true," Su Cheng spoke, his voice terrifyingly steady. "The Wang Family has an old grudge against us; they would love nothing more than for something to happen to our Su Family. These words are likely meant to disturb our peace of mind and make us a laughingstock. However, they might not be false either."

Su Chengyuan looked up, his clouded eyes bloodshot. His mind was currently in a chaotic mess, and he was completely at a loss.

"Father," Su Cheng walked up to him, "you must set out immediately."

"To where?"

"To Qinghe Prefecture City, and then to the Tiangang Sect." Su Cheng's thoughts were incredibly clear. "The Wang Family's news came from the Blazing Fire Sect, so it certainly isn't groundless. Go to the Prefecture City first; news travels fast there, and the results of the Five Sect Martial Competition must have already spread. Confirm the truth of the news first. If the news is false, return immediately. If the news is true..."

Su Cheng paused before continuing, "Then continue to the Tiangang Sect and personally ask for clarification. I don't believe the Tiangang Sect would sit idly by regarding the disappearance of a Genius Disciple from their own Sect!"

"Right, right!" Su Chengyuan stood up abruptly. "I'll go right now!"

"Wait." Su Cheng called out to him, turned back into his room, and emerged a moment later with a Storage Pouch.

Inside were almost all the Medicinal Pills he had refined over the years: hundreds of top-grade qi gathering pills, top-grade qi recovery pills, and top-grade body tempering pills.

"Father, take this." He pressed the Storage Pouch into Su Chengyuan's hands. "If Sister has really disappeared and the Sect cannot find her, go to the Prefecture City's black market. Exchange all these Medicinal Pills for Spirit Stones, or use the pills directly to issue the highest Rank bounty. Buy the lives of those three Tenth Level of Qi Refining Cultivators, and buy news of my sister's whereabouts!"

"At all costs!"

Su Chengyuan looked at the Storage Pouch in his hand, feeling the weight that almost crushed him, and his eyes welled up.

"Chenger, then you..."

"Me?" A hint of self-deprecation appeared on Su Cheng's face. "I am only at the Peak of the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining; going would not be of much use. You are a Foundation Establishment Cultivator with great strength and the ability to fly on a Flying Sword. Your speed is ten or a hundred times mine. Only by you going can the truth be uncovered in the shortest amount of time."

He patted his father's shoulder. "Don't worry about the Family. The Family Head and the Elders have lost their composure; it's a good chance for them to see the cruelty of this world clearly. From now on, we must support this home ourselves."

Su Chengyuan nodded heavily, saying no more.

He stowed the Storage Pouch away and turned to leave.

"Father, remember, hide your identity," Su Cheng urged from behind.

Su Chengyuan's figure did not pause; he simply raised a hand and waved before disappearing outside the courtyard gate.

Su Cheng stood in the courtyard until he could no longer feel his father's presence, then he slowly turned around.

He glanced in the direction of the assembly hall, which was still in chaos, with cries and curses ringing out incessantly.

Returning to his room, he took out the last twenty top-grade qi gathering pills and body tempering pills he had kept for himself and laid them on the table.

"Not enough, nowhere near enough..." he murmured to himself. "Strength, I need strength!"

He swallowed a Medicinal Pill and sat cross-legged, frantically circulating the Qiankun Creation Art. The Spiritual Qi of the entire small courtyard began to surge toward him.

...

Su Chengyuan left the Su Family without alerting anyone.

He traveled swiftly, arriving at a desolate mountain over a dozen miles outside of Qingyang Town.

After confirming no one was around, he no longer suppressed his cultivation.

The majestic spiritual power of the Early Foundation Establishment Stage erupted with a bang. He summoned the high-grade magic tool, the "azure dragon sword." With a thought, the Flying Sword expanded against the wind and hovered before him.

He stepped onto the sword's blade without the slightest hesitation and pushed the Qingyuan Sword Art to its limit.

"Buzz—"

The azure dragon sword let out a high-pitched hum and transformed into a brilliant streak of green light, shooting through the air at high speed toward the Qinghe Prefecture City!

As he passed, occasional Qi Refinement Stage Loose Cultivators traveling below only saw a green rainbow flash overhead. The terrifying pressure and speed left them so frightened that they stood frozen, unable to move for a long time.

"A... Foundation Establishment Venerable!"

"Which Senior is in such a hurry?"

Su Chengyuan was anxious and completely disregarded his spiritual power consumption. When hungry, he casually ate some spirit fruit or spirit beast meat; when his spiritual power ran low, he directly swallowed top-grade qi recovery pills while on the Flying Sword.

A journey that would normally take seven or eight days took less than three days under his reckless flight. The silhouette of the magnificent Qinghe Prefecture City appeared on the horizon.

Out of caution, he did not enter the city directly but landed outside, changed his appearance once more, and suppressed his cultivation to the Qi Refining Ninth Layer before stepping into the city.

He did not go to any shops, instead heading straight for the largest teahouse in the city.

He found a corner to sit in, ordered a pot of expensive tea, and quietly spread his Divine Sense to capture the conversations of the surrounding Cultivators.

Soon, he heard the news he least wanted to hear.

"Speaking of which, it's been nearly half a month since the Five Sect Martial Competition ended. I heard that female Disciple from the Tiangang Sect named Su Yunling still hasn't been found?"

"She probably won't be found! I heard that those who ambushed her were three Tenth Level of Qi Refining Loose Cultivators. Even the Core Disciple Wenren Zimo was seriously injured. How could she, a mere Qi Refining Ninth Layer, have any chance of survival?"

"Tsk tsk, what a pity. A High-Grade Spiritual Root, gone just like that."

"Tell me about it. The Tiangang Sect and the Qingxuan Sect joined forces to search for over ten days, almost turning over the mountains for a hundred miles around, but they didn't find a single hair. They've long since withdrawn; they probably assume she's gone."

"Boom!"

It was as if a thunderclap exploded in Su Chengyuan's head, and the teacup in his hand was crushed into powder by his grip.

Tea mixed with porcelain dust dripped through his fingers, but he was completely oblivious.

It was true...

Something really had happened to Yun Ling!

Just over ten days ago, he had heard people in a teahouse praising his daughter for becoming famous in a single battle at the Five Sect Martial Competition.

He never expected things to turn out like this. Had he known earlier, he would have gone to the Qingxuan Sect at all costs back then.

A violent intent to kill surged from the depths of his heart, nearly devouring his sanity.

Su Chengyuan gritted his teeth so hard his gums nearly bled, preventing himself from losing control on the spot.

He then threw down a Spirit Stone and quickly rose to leave.

He did not stay in the Prefecture City, heading straight out and rushing toward the Tiangang Sect while suppressing his cultivation.

He was going to the Tiangang Sect to demand a clear answer in person!