Chapter 71: Price of Arrogance
"Patriarch!"
The guards exclaimed in unison, their voices carrying relief and newfound vigor. Everything had happened in such a flash that most could barely follow the movements at all—one moment Ye Shiming's killing blow was descending, the next their Patriarch stood between predator and prey like an immovable mountain.
"Patriarch."
Su Yuan and Su Minghe offered their respectful greetings, both elders visibly relieved by the timely intervention. Su Huiqing nodded curtly in acknowledgment before turning back to face Ye Shiming, his expression darker than a gathering storm.
"Ye Shiming, you'd better start explaining yourself," Su Huiqing's voice carried across the courtyard like the rumble of distant thunder. "Or don't blame me for being ruthless."
As he spoke, killing intent flickered in his eyes—a predator's gaze that promised death was merely one wrong word away.
Ye Shiming's face turned ashen upon meeting that lethal stare. Undeniable dread crept into his eyes. Earlier, even he—a 4th level Martial Master—had barely been able to follow Su Huiqing's movement when the Patriarch intervened.
That meant Su Huiqing was at least several minor realms above him.
Ye Shiming gulped. Every trace of his earlier arrogance had evaporated like morning dew under a scorching sun. He hadn't anticipated that Su Huiqing would value Su Tianhao to the extent of wanting to kill a Ye family Elder over the matter.
No matter what, he was still the First Elder of the Ye family and older brother to Patriarch Ye Zhenwu himself. Killing him would naturally incur the Ye family's wrath—potentially igniting an all-out war between the two great clans.
After thinking it through, Ye Shiming's face regained some of its natural color, though his body remained tense as a drawn bowstring.
"Patriarch Su, please don't make any rash actions," he said hurriedly. "This is just a misunderstanding."
"Misunderstanding?"
Su Huiqing's voice dropped to a lethal whisper, somehow more threatening than his earlier shout. His glare sharpened with devastating killing intent. "You call storming into my family estate and nearly killing my son a misunderstanding?"
Behind the Patriarch, Su Tianhao glared coldly at Ye Shiming with mounting fury burning in his chest like molten metal. Just moments ago, he had felt his life flash before his eyes—death had seemed absolutely certain, inevitable, inescapable.
Yet this man actually called it a misunderstanding?
'As expected, I'm still too weak.' Su Tianhao's thoughts turned dark and bitter. 'If I was strong enough, would there be any need to seek another's protection? Would I have to stand behind someone else while my life hangs by a thread?'
His fists clenched so tightly that his nails bit into his palms. Crimson droplets began to seep between his fingers, staining his hands with blood.
"Little Tian!" Su Yuan called out in worry upon noticing this. He hurried to Su Tianhao's side, genuine concern etched across his scholarly features.
"Tianhao!" "Young Master!"
Su Lei and the female servant also rushed over, their faces pale with lingering shock.
"Are you alright?" Su Yuan asked gently, though his eyes betrayed deep concern—the trembling hands, the bleeding palms, the cold fury radiating from Su Tianhao's golden eyes.
"I'm fine," Su Tianhao said firmly, though his hands remained clenched with veins bulging visibly across his forearms. His voice carried an edge that suggested he was anything but fine.
'Ye Shiming...' Su Tianhao's thoughts seethed with dark promise. 'I swear I will never forget this. One day, I'll repay this debt in full.'
His teeth ground together.
Su Lei's silver brows furrowed as he observed his rival's state. He could easily imagine what was churning through Su Tianhao's mind—and he shared that frustration. Earlier, he'd been completely helpless, frozen like a statue while death descended on his friend. Only Su Huiqing's last-second intervention had prevented tragedy.
That powerlessness burned worse than any physical wound.
'I need strength. I need to grow stronger.' Su Lei's resolve ignited like a blade thrust into a forge. 'Much, much stronger. Never again will I be forced to watch helplessly.'
Watching the scene unfold, the Su family guards couldn't contain their outrage any longer.
"Shameless! This Elder Ye Shiming is too shameless!"
"He actually came to cause trouble and dared to attempt murder right before the main residence!"
"Does the Ye family think there are no experts in the Su family? Do they believe we'll just roll over?"
These words were like rubbing salt into an open wound. Ye Shiming's already unsightly expression turned uglier, his face cycling through shades of red and white.
"I'll ask you one more time, Ye Shiming." Su Huiqing's voice rang out—cold, deadly, and absolutely unyielding. "Do you truly believe that storming into my family estate and nearly killing my son constitutes a misunderstanding?"
The temperature around the Patriarch seemed to rise with each word, his crimson aura flickering like barely-contained flames.
Ye Bao Kang, who had remained strategically quiet throughout this exchange, stepped forward. His expression shifted to one of calculated reasonableness.
"If I may, Patriarch Su," he began, his voice low and respectful in a way that didn't quite match the cunning glint in his eyes. "You only have one biological son—the outstanding Young Master Su Jian."
He paused before continuing. "This Su Tianhao is merely a common orphan you adopted out of charity. Even if he has become a supposed genius through his master's teachings, it is not something your Su family can truly benefit from... and you know that."
"What are you trying to say?" Su Huiqing asked with a deep frown. His patience was wearing dangerously thin.
Ye Bao Kang was inwardly shaken by Su Huiqing's intimidating presence, but pressed on with his prepared argument.
"If I'm correct, the Su family hasn't offered any cultivation assistance to Su Tianhao since the talent testing ceremony—meaning he was essentially abandoned by your clan." His words carried calculated weight. "Now that he's obtained the backing of a Martial Lord... what happens when he insists on taking revenge on the Su family for that abandonment?"
"Revenge?" Su Huiqing raised an eyebrow.
Although neither he, Su Yuan nor Su Minghe were falling for the manipulation, the surrounding guards visibly tensed. Doubt crept into their expressions—after all, it was simply too easy to imagine harboring resentment after such treatment. If it were any of them in Su Tianhao's position, wouldn't they desire revenge?
"That's right..." one guard muttered uncertainly. "Young Master Tianhao has been exiled to Fei Wu Quarter for a full year now. Except for daily meals, the family provided nothing—no resources, no guidance, no support."
"Exactly!" another added. "Not only that, but disciples would often ridicule him. There's no way he doesn't harbor some resentment."
"He was also publicly challenged by Young Master Jian..." A third guard's voice dropped to a worried whisper. "Now that it turns out he has a Martial Lord's backing, what would happen if he truly harbors thoughts of revenge?"
"T-That would be the end of our Su family..." someone breathed.
The guards' discussions grew increasingly animated, voices overlapping with fear and speculation as the idea took root. Even if Su Huiqing wasn't buying it, he couldn't help but frown upon witnessing this sudden shift in morale.
His men were being swayed.
Seeing his carefully planted seeds taking effect, Ye Bao Kang's lips curled into a barely-concealed smile.
"Think about it, Patriarch," he pressed on. "Having Su Tianhao around is like keeping a double-edged sword at your throat. If he decides on revenge, that will spell the end of the Su family's centuries-long legacy..."
He paused.
"Why not hand him over to us? We promise to compensate the Su family handsomely for any trouble caused. Everyone benefits—you eliminate a potential threat, we settle our grievance, and gold changes hands."
When Ye Bao Kang finished, Ye Shiming's eyes brightened with renewed hope—like a drowning man spotting driftwood.
He stepped forward. "That's right! As long as the Su family is reasonable, we're willing to pay any price for Su Tianhao!"
However, before Su Huiqing could formulate a response, another voice rang out across the courtyard—cold, absolute, and brooking no argument.
"The Su family never abandons its own!"
Everyone turned sharply toward the source.
Su Minghe strode forward with imposing steps, his hand resting on the sword at his back. "No matter what has transpired, Su Tianhao remains part of the Su family. We acknowledge our own failures in this matter, but the Su family never truly abandoned him—and there's no possible way a Martial Lord would be so petty as to exterminate an entire clan simply because we didn't provide cultivation resources to his disciple during a period of apparent talentlessness."
Su Minghe's words struck like a guiding light, immediately igniting flames of conviction in the hearts of the Su family guards. The poisonous seeds Ye Bao Kang had planted withered under the heat of that conviction.
"That's right! The Su family never abandoned Young Master Tianhao!"
"I heard he was the one who chose to exile himself to Fei Wu Quarter—it was his decision, not ours!"
"No matter what had happened, the family offered shelter and protection for seven complete years! Even if Young Master Tianhao felt some resentment, there's no way his master would be so unreasonable!"
"Cultivation resources? During the talent testing, the Young Master showed zero promise—it's only natural the family didn't provide precious resources for someone with no apparent potential!"
"Any clan would do the same! A Martial Lord would understand basic clan management. They wouldn't do something so irrational without proper cause."
In mere moments, Ye Bao Kang's carefully constructed theory crumbled to dust. Although the guards still suspected Su Tianhao might harbor some personal resentment—and who could blame him—they now understood with certainty that no Martial Lord would come to destroy their home over such matters.
It was simply too petty for someone of that cultivation realm.
"Excellent reasoning, Third Elder," Su Yuan said with a genuine smile. He was impressed by Su Minghe's ability to read a crowd and counter psychological manipulation in the same breath.
"So this was your plan all along?" Su Huiqing turned back to the Ye family elders, his voice dripping with disdain as he regarded Ye Shiming and Ye Bao Kang. "Turn my son into a perceived threat, thinking we would all turn our backs on him out of fear and self-preservation?"
His lips curled into a cold sneer. "Delusional."
"Now that your pathetic scheme has failed..." Su Huiqing said with a smile that didn't reach his eyes—if anything, it made him look more dangerous. In Ye Shiming's eyes, it was the smile of a devil savoring prey. "What else do you have to say for yourselves?"
"I-I..." Ye Shiming stammered, his earlier confidence completely shattered.
However, before he could formulate any coherent defense, Su Huiqing turned to Su Tianhao with an unexpected question.
"Tianhao, what do you suggest we do with them?"
"Me?" Su Tianhao was genuinely taken aback, his brows arching in surprise.
Never had he imagined his opinion would carry weight in clan politics. That simple gesture of respect warmed something cold in his chest, greatly subsiding the burning anger that had threatened to consume him moments before.
Su Tianhao took a deep breath and stepped forward. His expression had calmed considerably—eerily so, like the still surface of a lake concealing unknown depths.
"Normally, their actions would warrant execution," Su Tianhao began, his words calm and precise. "But these two are Elders of the Ye family, not mere disciples or servants. Killing them would undoubtedly provoke open war between our clans."
He paused, letting that sink in.
"War? The Su family isn't afraid of war!"
The guards shouted in unison, their voices echoing with fierce loyalty.
Su Tianhao felt an unexpected warmth bloom in his chest. Even though he knew these same people had mocked him, dismissed him, treated him like trash just months ago—even though their current support stemmed primarily from his sudden rise in status rather than genuine affection—he couldn't help but feel touched nonetheless.
After all, war wasn't something that could be easily withdrawn from once the first blood was spilled. The consequences were dire and far-reaching—lives lost, resources depleted, families torn apart, grudges that would span generations. True warriors understood that declaring war was easy. It was living with the aftermath that proved difficult.
"Everyone, I deeply appreciate your support and loyalty," Su Tianhao said calmly as he began approaching Ye Shiming with slow, deliberate steps—each footfall measured and purposeful, like a predator circling wounded prey. "But war isn't something I wish to see... especially if I become its cause."
His voice carried genuine sincerity that made even the most battle-hungry guards pause.
"However..."
He let the word hang in the air like a blade suspended above a neck.
"We will confiscate their spatial rings as compensation for the chaos and disrespect they've brought to our gates." His tone shifted, growing colder with each word. "As for the attempted murder charges..."
Su Tianhao's voice trailed off deliberately. Intense killing intent leaked from his golden eyes—no longer the helpless fear of moments ago, but the cold promise of a future reckoning.
"That is a personal matter I must take revenge for myself."
He concluded with absolute, chilling finality—the words less a declaration than a sacred vow carved into the foundation of his soul.