Chapter 284 - 271: Retaliate

Chapter 284: Chapter 271: Retaliate

In the many ancient stories and novellas passed down through the Sun Clan, the human characters from the outside world—those who did not share the Sun name—were often depicted as cold, ruthless villains, even hostile toward the Sun Family.

They either coveted the power the Sun Family possessed or rejected their uniqueness out of fear.

Whenever she read these parts, a deep confusion would always well up in Sun Zixuan’s heart—why would people, all human, create such immense rifts and conflicts just because of surnames, bloodlines, or different cultivation methods?

She recalled her earlier conversation with Jiang Xu.

Jiang Xu’s words, though plain and unadorned, were like a stone tossed into a calm lake, sending ripples through her heart that refused to subside.

She tried to find answers in his perspective, to understand where that hostility truly came from and how it might be resolved.

The bustling street scene outside was reflected on the window lattice of the private room, creating a stark contrast with the tranquil atmosphere within.

Sun Zixuan gazed at the world outside, imagining the human society composed of countless sects, families, and individuals, and how it wove its path forward through a tapestry of mutual suspicion and cooperation.

"I really... I really want to see the outside world."

...

After leaving the private room, Jiang Xu grew increasingly agitated.

He couldn’t believe his lifelong intellect and unparalleled disguise skills had been bested by a mere girl. The thought stuck in his craw, leaving him with the suffocating feeling that his reputation had been tarnished.

Originally, Jiang Xu had been full of confidence. He believed that with his superb acting and the power of his Thousand-Faced Illusion Body, he would be perfectly safe in Sun’s Immortal City as long as he avoided the Sun Clan’s core territory.

He never expected that a simple trip to an ordinary shop would lead to Sun Zixuan seeing right through him. It forced him to deeply question his own methods of disguise.

Jiang Xu wandered the streets and alleyways alone. The lanterns overhead swayed in the gentle breeze, illuminating his gloomy face.

He was seething with frustration, and his heavy sigh sounded exceptionally clear in the quiet night.

"Hmph!"

Jiang Xu angrily slammed his fist into a nearby stone pillar, sending up a cloud of dust.

He secretly vowed, ’I absolutely can’t let this go! I have to find a chance to show that Sun Zixuan what I’m capable of and get my pride back!’

However, Jiang Xu had no intention of taking revenge by simply killing her or beating her up.

It wasn’t that he was going soft on her because she was pretty.

Rather, Jiang Xu felt that would be like lashing out in shame, a shameless and petty move.

Besides, if Jiang Xu really did that, he would become a mortal enemy of the Sun Clan.

This Sun Clan would dispatch three Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivators just to search for an outsider entering their city.

If Jiang Xu just killed Sun Zixuan like that, wouldn’t the Sun Family dispatch a Foundation Establishment Great Perfection expert to hunt him down?

So, if he wanted revenge, he had to get his pride and prestige back without exposing himself.

In other words, he had to use the Thousand-Faced Illusion Body again for his revenge, and he had to ensure she wouldn’t see through it from start to finish.

At this thought, Jiang Xu felt a headache coming on.

’This... is going to be harder than I thought.’

After all, she seemed quite clever and wasn’t so easy to fool. She had dared to approach and question him after spotting just a faint flaw, then guided the conversation to expose his true identity.

If Jiang Xu wanted to successfully deceive her, he would first have to know everything about the Sun Family, inside and out. Then, he would have to transform into a real, existing member of the Sun Clan.

Finally, he had to come up with a perfect plan to deceive her as a clan member, put that little girl in her place, and settle the score.

Jiang Xu slowly began to construct this plan in his mind, but he found it wasn’t going smoothly.

He got stuck right from the beginning.

Because the Sun Family didn’t interact with outsiders.

That meant he had no way of learning about the Sun Family from them directly.

If he used a character created by the Thousand-Faced Illusion Body to interact with them, he’d likely be exposed, just like with Sun Zixuan.

But if he didn’t interact with them, how was Jiang Xu supposed to learn everything about the Sun Family?

Jiang Xu pondered this as he continued to walk aimlessly through the streets.

’If this is really impossible, maybe I should just leave. Getting worked up over some little brat just makes me look petty.’

Comforting himself with this thought, Jiang Xu decided to leave Sun’s Immortal City for now.

Just as Jiang Xu was about to turn and leave, still mulling over how to discreetly carry out his revenge, an indescribable feeling prompted him to subconsciously activate his Divine Sense again and meticulously scan his surroundings.

In the bustling crowd, a youth who looked to be only sixteen or seventeen entered his field of vision. But it wasn’t the boy’s Qi Cultivation Middle Stage cultivation that caught Jiang Xu’s attention.

After all, in this prosperous city, a youth of that age and cultivation level was not uncommon.

What truly made Jiang Xu stop and take notice was the oppressive, deathly stillness about the boy, a complete contrast to the joyous atmosphere around him.

The youth seemed to be wrapped in an invisible cloak of solitude. His eyes held none of the liveliness and curiosity expected of a young man; instead, they were filled with a profound melancholy that didn’t match his age.

Though his figure was submerged in the laughing, chattering crowd, he was like an isolated island, maintaining a subtle distance from the lively world.

In a place as peaceful and prosperous as Sun’s Immortal City, this was the first time Jiang Xu had encountered such an unusual disciple of the Sun Clan.

The members of the Sun Clan he had seen, whether they were common peddlers or Cultivators, were mostly filled with an air of happiness and harmony. Even those who seemed troubled were a rare sight.