The spring thunder rumbles. "Whoa!" Su Muyu abruptly pulled on the reins, calming the black steed beneath him that had suddenly grown skittish. This black horse was a fine steed he had carefully selected, and it wouldn't normally be spooked by a mere clap of thunder. Once the horse had calmed down a bit, Su Muyu raised his head and looked at the three figures who had suddenly appeared before him. The leader of the group carried a massive sword on his back. He was a burly man with a gentle smile on his face. Beside him stood two women with alluring figures. One was dressed in bewitching purple, while the other wore flowing red robes that resembled dancing flames. The burly man smiled, "Brother Yu, you truly live up to your name. Wherever you go, rain follows." Su Muyu frowned slightly. “Su Changli, Su Ziyi, Su Hongxi. Did Changhe send you?” The burly man, named Su Changli, nodded and said, "Big Brother sent me. He said to stop you, and if that’s not possible…” Su Hongxi, the woman in red, giggled, covering her mouth. “Then we’ll have to put you to sleep.” Su Muyu's pupils narrowed slightly, and he immediately dismounted. A small, crimson flower, strangely alluring, shot towards him, thrown by Su Hongxi with a flick of her wrist. As Su Muyu landed, the flower whizzed past his head, its six petals suddenly bursting open, instantly piercing through the body of the black horse. Su Muyu hurriedly opened his umbrella and retreated, shielding himself from the splattering blood.…

Lulai Town, Chenghua Inn. A gaunt man sat in the room, leisurely brewing tea. Xie Changze and Xie Jinke stood before him, their backs drenched in cold sweat, not daring to breathe. "You fought with Su Muyu?" The man raised his head, revealing heavy dark circles under his eyes. He looked like a skeleton draped in skin. Xie Changze said in a low voice, "Yes." With a "pa" sound, the man placed a teacup on the table. Xie Changze and Xie Jinke both shuddered. "We were incompetent and not his match. We let him escape!" Xie Jinke hurriedly said. "Ridiculous." The man slowly poured tea into the cup. "That was Su Muyu. What are you two? If you could defeat him, wouldn't our Dark River's reputation be a joke? I'm not angry that you lost to him, but that you let that Divine Doctor meet our Patriarch!" Xie Changze sighed softly, "The Divine Doctor had already left when we arrived at White Crane Apothecary." "Idiots, as expected." The man took a slow sip of tea and sighed. "The young woman you let go was the Divine Doctor." "Impossible. That woman looked under twenty. How could she be Xin Baicao's junior aunt?" Xie Changze frowned. "And Su Zhe of the Su family also verified that the woman wasn't wearing a human skin mask." TN: You might notice that Bai Hehuai is referred to as both "junior uncle" and "junior aunt" throughout this translation. The reason is the gender-neutral nature of the original term in Chinese, and Bai Hehuai's name also does…

"Leave the Su family, go where you want to go, and do what you want to do. For hundreds of years, this is something that no one has been allowed to do. The old master of our Su family is willing to make an exception for you." Su Changhe shook his head repeatedly, "Such generous terms... Sometimes I really envy you. Even though we came from the same crucible, the old master's favoritism towards you is truly excessive." "What if I refuse?" Su Muyu asked. "The old master fished you out of the river and raised you for so many years. How many years have you followed the patriarch? Can your bond with the patriarch be deeper than your bond with the Su family?" Su Changhe asked rhetorically. "My bond with the Su family is indeed deeper than my bond with the patriarch. But I am now the Kui, and I can only be responsible to the patriarch." Su Muyu shook his head gently, "I'm sorry." "Exactly, exactly,  That's exactly what I told the old master, knowing you'd say something along those lines." Su Changhe shrugged, gently flipped his wrist, and he was already holding the dagger, "Then the old master said, 'If that's the case, then kill him.'" Su Muyu gripped the oil-paper umbrella tightly. "Is the old master planning to seize the position of patriarch through treason?" "It's not just the old master, the Xie family wants it, the Mu family wants it too. So the position can only belong to whoever is strong enough to take it!…