Chapter 3: The City Lord's Son's Struggle (Part Two)

Li Ming was Su Chen's closest friend, and his family, the Li family, held considerable influence in Lingyun City.
Investigating someone was relatively easy.
Within a day, information on the young man who resembled an old acquaintance was presented to Su Chen.
The unreliable Li Ming proved dependable in crucial moments.
"Just as I suspected!"
Su Chen sneered, his expression fierce.
His lone wolf-like intuition that day was correct.
That young man who resembled an old acquaintance was indeed the son of an old friend!
The young man who stood behind Xu Ba back then, the most outstanding young generation of the Xu family twenty years ago, the son of Xu Changzhi!
His name was Xu Sheng.
Also a student of Lingyun Academy, three years older than Su Chen, and at twenty, he was only at the ninth level of the Qi Awakening Realm.
Perhaps he was about to break through.
But he would never have the chance to break through again.
"Xu Ba, if I can't kill you, you old bastard, can't I at least wipe out your entire clan step by step?"
Su Chen was filled with hatred. Death would have been a matter of accepting defeat, and that wouldn't have mattered.
The problem was, he was alive now.
The image of his children's and old friends' heads rolling at his feet, their eyes wide open as they stared at him, haunted Su Chen's dreams.
He wouldn't be satisfied until he wiped the Xu family out of the water, down to the last ant.
Not to mention, the Xu family possessed the inheritance of a Spirit Sea Realm expert—a tremendous opportunity. In the Tianfeng Kingdom, a Spirit Sea Realm expert was considered absolute power. Li Qingyue, who had broken off their engagement, was only at the Spirit Sea Realm now.
That kind of talent was extremely dazzling in the Tianfeng Kingdom; no wonder she had broken off the engagement with him.
She certainly had the right to say they weren't from the same world.
But Su Chen still held a grudge.
He couldn't forget it.
They were indeed no longer on the same path.
Li Qingyue was already old, while he was only 17.
He would rather die than marry an old woman.
This wasn't about finding a golden brick.
Su Chen was contemplating how to kill a disciple of Lingyun Academy without anyone noticing.
Infighting among academy disciples had always been a serious crime, punishable by confinement at best, and expulsion at worst.
Su Chen naturally couldn't kill openly.
However, Xu Sheng, during a mission, encountered ruthless thugs who happened to have a grudge against the Xu family.
And was killed.
This plot is quite normal, isn't it?
The academy wouldn't mobilize a large force for Xu Sheng. The Xu family, now possessing the inheritance of a Spirit Sea expert, would rather hide themselves away than openly attack for Xu Sheng.
Finally, three months later, Xu Sheng received a lucrative mission.
"Who are you?"
Xu Sheng, dressed in his school uniform, looked warily at the three mysterious cloaked figures who had suddenly appeared before him.
"They're here to kill you!"
The three attacked together, forcing Xu Sheng to retreat steadily. In the final moment, facing imminent death, Xu Sheng unleashed a powerful punch, accompanied by the faint roar of a white tiger, killing all three.
Xu Sheng gasped for breath. He didn't understand why he was being attacked by three people. He wanted to lift their cloaks to see their true faces.
The next moment, a sharp sword pierced straight through his chest.
"What a bunch of useless trash! They can't even kill one person!"
"Luckily, I was careful and followed them quietly."
Yesterday, Su Chen drank himself into a stupor, getting everyone drunk before sneaking out.
He sprinkled a few drops of incinerator water to destroy the evidence from several corpses, then left. They were just a bunch of reckless thugs; no one suspected him.
Even if Xu Sheng's death was discovered, it didn't matter.
In this life, he was named Jiang Chen—what did that have to do with Su Chen?
Su Chen quietly returned to Lingyun City, and when everyone discovered him, he was still asleep.
.......
A month later
Xu Sheng's death was finally investigated.
As Su Chen had predicted, the academy hastily concluded that Xu Sheng had offended an enemy and was killed by them.
This was the martial arts world; an ordinary student's death was simply a matter of life and death.
Most people didn't even know such a person had died.
The Xu family knew, but they dared not speak out.
Only the Xu family patriarch, Xu Changzhi, harbored deep resentment.
But they couldn't find any clues.
The matter was ultimately left unresolved.
Only Su Chen knew that this was just the beginning; the hatred of a clan's extermination was far more than one life could provide.
With the enemy in the open and himself in the shadows, Su Chen wasn't in a hurry for revenge and continued his cultivation at Lingyun Academy.
...
A year later, Su Chen, just turned eighteen, was summoned home by Jiang Li.
Upon returning home, Su Chen saw an old man sitting next to his father; the old man looked somewhat familiar.
Not a member of the Xu family; reality wasn't that dramatic.
The old man was the patriarch of the Wang family in Beifeng City, a highly respected figure whom Su Chen had met a few times.
Beifeng City was considerably larger than Chongchuan City. Jiang Li was a Spirit Pattern Realm expert, so the patriarch of the Wang family was naturally also a Spirit Pattern Realm expert.
Old Wang looked at the handsome and accomplished Su Chen and nodded with satisfaction.
“Nephew Jiang, I have a granddaughter who is as beautiful as a fairy. She has been cultivating at the Spirit Sword Sect for a long time and just returned to Beifeng City today. This old man hopes you can take my granddaughter to have a good time in Beifeng City for a few days.”
Su Chen understood; this was basically a blind date.
Su Chen glanced at his father, Jiang Li, who nodded.
He understood. The girl must be incredibly beautiful and talented, which pleased Jiang's father greatly, hence the invitation to come home.
Marriage alliances were common in large families. In Su Chen's first life, his family had a marriage alliance with the Li family, and his betrothed was Li Qingyue.
Unexpectedly, Li Qingyue caught the eye of a passing elder from the Tianlan Sect and was taken to the sect for cultivation.
In the end, Su Chen agreed to meet her.
He needed to leave his mark on this world and gain points to defy fate in each of his lifetimes.
Su Chen easily met the granddaughter Wang Lao had mentioned.
Dressed in pure white, with a delicate, upright figure, she leaned against the Orchid Pavilion. A light drizzle fell, and though she wore no makeup, she possessed a refined and ethereal beauty.
This was Su Chen and Wang Bailu's first meeting.
Wang Bailu raised her head, like a plum blossom braving the snow, staring intently at Su Chen.
Su Chen was also observing Wang Bailu.
"It looks nice, but you can see its toes when you look down."
Su Chen pondered for a moment.
His father's judgment was indeed excellent, but there was still a slight flaw.
Wang Bailu had no idea what Su Chen was thinking, but being handsome was sure to make a good first impression on a beautiful woman.
This time, there was no annulment of the engagement.
Both parties were satisfied.
Su Chen took Wang Bailu for a stroll around Northwind City, spending three days inseparable.
Three days later, they parted ways, agreeing to meet again at the once-a-decade youth competition of the Heavenly Wind Kingdom.
Su Chen returned to Lingyun Academy. His mischievous friend Li Ming looked at him curiously, feeling that his good buddy had changed since his return.
Su Chen, of course, wouldn't tell him, "We're different now.
I'm married now, while you're still single."