Chapter 17: Reborn as a Marquis from Among Enemies (Part 5)

Su Chen was overwhelmed with mixed emotions.
He had imagined countless times what it would be like to meet Li Qingyue again.
But he never expected
that their reunion would be like this.
“Out of pity for your old age, I, Su Chen, will let you off this time,”
Su Chen murmured to himself.
The past,
right and wrong, were no longer relevant to him.
He only knew that he would lose another old friend.
“Does the young marquis have any other questions?”
Li Qingyue slowly finished her tea in one gulp, looking at the dazed Su Chen, and asked.
Su Chen stood up: "Thank you for your clarification, Senior Li. You've changed my impression of you."
Li Qingyue smiled and said, "The world's impressions are just that—the world's impressions. I only want to do my best; why should I care about the world's opinions?"
Su Chen didn't reply, but simply rose to take his leave, leaving behind the words:
"As a token of my gratitude, I swear in the name of the Jinghai Marquis's Mansion that I will definitely bring Nangong Meng's body back to the Tianlan Sect for you, Senior."
Li Qingyue's pupils widened, then she smiled again.
She didn't say thank you.
She simply called out in the direction Su Chen had left:
"Young Marquis."
Su Chen turned around and looked at Li Qingyue.
The two exchanged a glance.
Li Qingyue thought of that boy from many years ago; his eyes seemed exactly like this boy's.
She thought of many things to say,
but ultimately uttered only one sentence:
"Please take care, young marquis!"
Su Chen smiled and said, "Senior Li, you too..."
In Sasha's bamboo forest, only Li Qingyue remained in the end.
She walked alone into the depths of the bamboo forest,
where there were bamboo tablets, recording the stories of those who had passed away.
There was her only disciple, Nangong Meng.
There was her mentor.
There were her parents and relatives.
And... a fiancé named Su Chen.
The Grave of Su Chen's
Li Qingyue sat before the grave, murmuring softly, "Su Chen... I must look ridiculous now."
"You said fortunes change every thirty years, but now... two hundred years have passed."
"Perhaps I was wrong, yet you never even came to the Tianlan Sect."
"In this world, many things are beyond our control."
.......
Su Chen left Li Qingyue's bamboo grove.
Looking into the depths of the bamboo grove, at the long-gone, aged figure.
Su Chen clasped his hands in a fist, two long strands of hair falling across his forehead.
He had come here partly to settle the grudges of their first life.
On the other hand,
to give this old friend a final farewell.
Li Qingyue was dying.
Twenty years ago, after Jiang Chen and Nangong Meng died in battle in his previous life.
Li Qingyue charged into the enemy lines alone, trying to take Nangong Meng's body, but was surrounded.
Finally, Yu Zhengde led a large army to arrive in time, saving Li Qingyue's life.
However, on that day, Li Qingyue also suffered irreparable injuries.
Su Chen sighed.
Old friends were falling one by one, like leaves in the wind.
The grudges of his youth were no longer important.
The traces of his existence in his first life were ultimately erased by time.
Seven days later,
the news of Li Qingyue's death spread.
After a brief moment of grief, no one in the Tianlan Sect mentioned Li Qingyue again.
Su Chen felt relieved, but his state of mind subtly shifted.
The previously unyielding bottleneck in the Spirit Sea Realm had shifted, giving Su Chen a vague sense of an opportunity to break through.
He decided to continue residing at the Tianlan Sect, seizing this opportunity to see if he could achieve his goal.
His stay extended beyond the expected six months, lasting a full year.
That year, Su Chen turned eighteen.
The youngest Spirit Sea Realm warrior in the Tianfeng Kingdom was born.
In his previous life, it took Su Chen seventy years to reach this point.
In this life, he only took eighteen years.
Strictly speaking, not even eighteen years.
None of that mattered anymore.
Having broken through to the Spirit Sea Realm, Su Chen would have to find his own path from here on out.
Fortunately, in this life, he had the ancestor, Marquis Jinghai, one of the ten strongest figures in the Tianfeng Kingdom.
He no longer needed to struggle alone, as he had in his previous lives.
After breaking through to the Spirit Sea Realm at Tianlan Sect, Su Chen went to pay his respects to Li Qingyue before leaving the sect and returning to the Jinghai Marquis's residence.
However...
On his way back to the Jinghai Marquis's residence, an unexpected incident occurred.
Su Chen was ambushed.
A total of fifteen Spirit Sea Realm experts were deployed!
All of them were covered, their faces obscured, but they exuded a chilling aura.
"How dare you! Who are you people, daring to plot against the young marquis? Aren't you afraid of the Jinghai Marquis's wrath and the resulting harm to your families?"
The steward shielded Su Chen behind him, while a group of Spirit Sea Realm guards stood in front, protecting him.
They, however, looked warily at the men in black surrounding them.
They had fifteen Spirit Sea Realm experts, while Su Chen's side, even including Su Chen, only had eight—a difference in strength of nearly double.
"Heh, since we've come to ambush the young marquis, we're naturally not afraid..."
One of the men in black, seemingly in complete control, spoke with a mocking tone.
Before he could finish, he was interrupted by the leader of the men in black.
"Enough nonsense! Immediately take action and keep the young marquis here, lest things change!"
In an instant, all the men in black sprang into action.
The steward blocked four Spirit Sea Realm experts and shouted to Su Chen,
"Young marquis, run! I'll hold them off for you!"
Su Chen didn't hesitate. He unleashed his Spirit Sea Realm aura, killing one of the men in black before flying towards the Jinghai Marquis's residence without looking back.
"Damn it, how could he break through to the Spirit Sea Realm so quickly?"
One of the men in black was stunned. In a flash, Su Chen's guards and the steward risked their lives to hold off twice as many men in black as themselves.
"Young Marquis...please forgive me for being unable to serve you any longer. You must...live on!"
A deafening roar, like an earth-shattering tremor, rippled through the surrounding area.
Su Chen sensed the commotion and knew that the steward sent by the Marquis of Jinghai had sacrificed his life to buy him time. Without pausing, he desperately rushed towards the Marquis of Jinghai's residence.
If he died like this in this life, he would cough up blood.
In the distance, amidst the cataclysmic scene, three people crawled out in a disheveled state.
Of the fifteen Spirit Sea Realm cultivators who attacked Su Chen, only three remained.
Ignoring their injuries, the three quickly donned black robes to conceal their true identities.
"Chase! We absolutely cannot let him escape back to the Marquis of Jinghai's residence!"
The three gritted their teeth, unleashing their full potential, and chased after Su Chen in the direction he had fled.
They absolutely could not let Su Chen escape back to the Jinghai Marquis's residence.
Absolutely not!
Because... this was their only chance to kill Su Chen!