Chapter 9: Caught in the Act

According to the information Zhao Lan had given her, the Sword Sovereign of the Clouds would drink wine every day around the hour of Shen (3–5 pm) by the window on the second floor of Yunlai Inn.

That afternoon, Su Yanwei found an excuse to sneak out of the residence. Once she’d slipped away, she ran straight toward Yunlai Inn.

At the entrance of Yunlai Inn, Su Yanwei paused to steady her breathing. Then she raised her chin, puffed out her small chest, and strode into the inn.
Presence was the most important part of negotiation!

As they say: Even if you lose, don’t lose your bearing.

Once inside, she saw the spacious, well-lit first floor filled with people drinking and chatting. She glanced around casually, then ran toward the staircase.

Up on the second floor, she immediately spotted the Sword Sovereign sitting by the window. He wore a dark green long robe, his long black hair gathered with a simple wooden hairpin. His brows and eyes were sharp, his features strikingly handsome, radiating an aura of fierce heroism.

A black sword hung at his waist.

Even as he drank alone, every movement was graceful and free-spirited, exuding natural elegance and charm.

His unique temperament was captivating.

Every person who came up to the second floor would inevitably have their gaze drawn to him first. Su Yanwei silently thought:
Zhao Lan was right, you really can recognize him at a glance.

It had to be him.

No one else could possibly fit the description.

This was the man she had come looking for: the famous Sword Sovereign of the Clouds from the Shushan Sword Sect.

Holding her head high, Su Yanwei walked with bold, unflinching steps, as if she didn’t even know her own relatives and strode straight toward him.

When she reached him, she stopped.

The Sword Sovereign, who had been drinking, lowered his cup and looked down at the little girl standing before him. He chuckled softly; his laughter was gentle and pleasing to the ear.

“Child, who are you looking for?”

When he smiled, it was as though he was half-drunk and half-sober: a little airy, a little wild, as if he could sprout wings and fly away at any moment.

But Su Yanwei knew he wasn’t actually drunk. His eyes were perfectly clear deep and cold like a mountain spring, so clear it felt bottomless.

A man impossible to read, she thought.

“I’m looking for you!” Su Yanwei replied crisply, staring right at him.

“You’ve got the wrong person,” the Sword Sovereign said lazily.
“In my house, there’s only one naughty little monkey, not a cute little girl like you.”

Su Yanwei answered sweetly,

“I don’t mind joining your family, might improve the feng shui.”

“……”

The Sword Sovereign studied her for a moment, then said slowly,

“Your sincerity is noted. But for now, I don’t want to offend the Su family of Jade City.”

“Because you’re asking them for something, right?” Su Yanwei said smoothly.
She wasn’t surprised he recognized who she was.

“Child, talking like that will get you beaten up outside,” the Sword Sovereign replied lazily, his tone calm and without anger.

“Would you hit me?” Su Yanwei asked, testing him.

“I don’t bully children,” he said.

“Oh.” Su Yanwei relaxed a little.

Seeing that he looked completely uninterested in dealing with her, Su Yanwei decided to get straight to the point.

“You might as well give up,” she said.
“My father will never give you the thousand-year Snow Ganoderma.”

The Sword Sovereign showed no reaction.

“It’s not that he’s heartless,” Su Yanwei explained quickly, afraid the Sword Sovereign might resent her father.
“That Snow Ganoderma is something my father found after endless hardship to save my life. He loves me dearly, he’d never give it away to someone else.”

“Though honestly, whether you get it or not doesn’t matter much,” she added.
“It can only temporarily slow the poison; it won’t cure it. Without the real antidote, no matter how precious the spiritual herb, it’s only delaying the inevitable.”

The Sword Sovereign lifted his gaze, his deep, unreadable eyes fixed on her.

“You promised you wouldn’t hit kids!” Su Yanwei blurted out nervously.

He said nothing.

Instead, he looked at her expressionlessly for a moment, then stood up, walked around her and left.

He really left.

Su Yanwei couldn’t help but admire him:

He really does have a good temper he doesn’t hit kids.

“Hey, don’t go yet! At least let me finish!” she called after him.
“If you find the real antidote, wouldn’t that solve everything?”

The Sword Sovereign kept walking, not stopping.

“I know where the antidote is!” Su Yanwei finally played her trump card.

Still, he didn’t stop, as if he hadn’t heard her.

“I’m serious! I swear it’s true!” Su Yanwei swore urgently.
“If I’m lying, let me gain two hundred pounds!”

At that, the Sword Sovereign finally stopped walking.

Su Yanwei breathed a sigh of relief.

“Swear it,” he said, turning back to face her.

“Huh?” Su Yanwei was caught off guard.

“Swear before the Heavenly Dao: if you’re lying, you’ll gain two hundred pounds and never be able to lose it,” he told her.

Su Yanwei: …

This man… how vicious!

“Fine,” she said.
“I, Su Yanwei, swear before the Heavenly Dao: if I’m lying about knowing the antidote to Soul-Devouring Powder, then let me gain two hundred pounds and never be able to lose it!”

“Happy now?” she looked up at him expectantly.

The Sword Sovereign nodded.

“I believe you now.”

“…You’re really suspicious, aren’t you?” Su Yanwei couldn’t help saying.
“How could a sweet, honest kid like me possibly lie?”

“Just look at my face, does this look like the face of a liar?”

She lifted her face, her big black eyes sparkling innocently.

The Sword Sovereign actually studied her face seriously for a moment, then nodded.

“Every part of it looks like you’d lie.”

Su Yanwei: …

You’re finished.

The Sword Sovereign walked back and sat down again.

“Have a seat,” he said to her.
“Aren’t you tired standing?”

“I’m okay,” Su Yanwei replied, but then promptly sat down across from him without hesitation.

“So tell me,” the Sword Sovereign said calmly.
“What do you know about the antidote?”

Sitting there, her legs dangling off the chair, Su Yanwei propped her hands on either side of the seat and swung her legs a bit. Then she teased,

“You’re an adult, aren’t you?”

“Then you should know, there’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world.”

She looked at him and flashed a sly little smile.

Like a little fox, pure white and spotless on the outside, but already testing the waters with a sly paw.

The Sword Sovereign wasn’t surprised. Once again, he confirmed to himself that this child had come prepared.

A cunning little girl.

“What do you want?” he asked calmly.

“It’s not much, actually,” Su Yanwei said seriously.
“Do you need a daughter?”

“……”

The Sword Sovereign immediately stood up, about to leave.

“Hey, don’t go!”

Su Yanwei was also stunned when he got up so abruptly. She quickly jumped down from her chair, trying to stop him.

But the Sword Sovereign didn’t even look at her and kept striding forward.

Su Yanwei : ????

What just happened?

Completely confused.

Seeing the cooked duck about to fly away, Su Yanwei suddenly had an idea. She rushed forward, hugged the Sword Sovereign’s leg, and wailed:

“Daddy, please don’t abandon me!”

“I know I was wrong! You can beat me, scold me, just please don’t throw me away! I won’t oppose you marrying a stepmother anymore, boo hoo hoo”

In an instant, the whole place fell silent.

All the diners upstairs and downstairs turned to stare at the Sword Sovereign.

Their eyes seemed to say:

What kind of ultimate scumbag father is this!?

The Sword Sovereign: …

Looking down at the little girl fake-crying and hugging his leg, he felt a headache coming on.

“Let go!” he ordered.

Su Yanwei only clung tighter.

“……”