Chapter 1585
Fine, let's have a marriage alliance then.
Chapter 1585 Fine, let's have a marriage alliance then.
The next morning, as the morning light streamed through the window, Su Fan was fast asleep, his brows relaxed.
Last night, I was kept up by my three Daoist partners until almost dawn. Right now, I feel exhausted and all I want to do is get a good night's sleep.
But the next second, a gentle push came from behind, pulling him back from the edge of his dream.
He reluctantly sat up from the tatami mat, his eyelids feeling as heavy as lead.
Su Fan looked at his senior sister with a dissatisfied expression, his mind still lingering with sleepiness, even his dissatisfaction was tinged with a lazy, hazy feeling.
"Why did you wake me up... I only slept for a short while..."
He mumbled in a hoarse voice, his tone full of morning grumpiness, his eyes not even fully open, cursing the person who disturbed his sleep several times in his mind.
His senior sister glared at him, annoyed by his shameless behavior, and pushed him harder, her voice filled with barely concealed urgency.
"Master is here...it must be urgent, don't dawdle..."
Su Fan felt a surge of anger rising within him, but he knew that his master wouldn't come without a reason. He could only reluctantly get up, muttering to himself, full of frustration.
"I can't take this anymore! You guys kept me up until almost dawn last night, and now you're dragging me out of bed so early this morning..."
Upon hearing this, the senior sister instantly recalled the absurdity of last night.
Her face flushed bright red, the color spreading from her ears to her neck. She raised her hand and punched him hard, both embarrassed and angry, but there wasn't much real anger in her strength.
Su Fan wasn't annoyed by the blow; instead, he glanced at her with a hint of mockery, making his senior sister blush even more.
With his senior sister's help, Su Fan slowly changed into his Dharma robes.
He walked unsteadily out of the house and saw Luo Guyin standing in the courtyard.
She frowned slightly, her hands clasped in front of her, her expression anxious, and she paced back and forth unconsciously, clearly having waited quite some time.
When Luo Guyin caught sight of him, the anxiety in her eyes immediately subsided somewhat. She quickly stepped forward to greet him, her voice lowered and tinged with seriousness.
"Su Fan, the patriarchs of several families from the 'Demon Sun Divine Palace' have all arrived..."
Upon hearing this, Su Fan's brows furrowed instantly, and his impatience almost overflowed.
He hated dealing with these family social engagements, where everyone was outwardly respectful but inwardly calculating.
They've come, so what? What does it have to do with me?
"Why don't you just go and greet them? Why are you calling me?" He spoke coldly, even pausing in his steps, as if he wanted to turn around and go back to his room to catch up on sleep.
Upon hearing this, Luo Guyin became anxious and quickly stepped forward, lowering her voice to explain.
“Su Fan, they are, after all, the patriarchs of various families, and their cultivation levels are the same as yours—the late stage of the Integration Realm. It would be too disrespectful for me to receive them alone; it wouldn't be good for either you or the Su family if word got out…”
Before Su Fan could object, she grabbed his sleeve with a light but firm grip, pulling him toward the main hall of the family.
Although Su Fan was unwilling to be dragged along, he understood that Luo Guyin had considered things thoroughly, so he stopped struggling and let her pull him into the main hall.
As soon as he entered, he saw several late-stage Nascent Soul cultivators dressed in fine clothes, their auras deep and composed, already seated at the table, their eyes all fixed on him.
When the elders saw Su Fan enter, they dared not be negligent in the slightest. They all stood up, cupped their hands in greeting, and their expressions were respectful but also somewhat obsequious.
They were well aware of Su Fan's strength and wanted to take this opportunity to curry favor with the Su family.
Su Fan gave a polite smile and cupped his hands in greeting to everyone. Without saying anything more, he sat down cross-legged.
Luo Guyin sat behind him tacitly and took the initiative to start the conversation.
During the rest of the conversation, Su Fan was almost completely lost in thought, while Luo Guyin handled everything methodically from the side.
He only occasionally mumbled "hmm" or "ah," his eyelids almost sticking together again.
He was too lazy to play along with these people. If it weren't for the reputation of the Su family and the fear of giving others something to talk about, he would have liked to get rid of these scheming fellows all at once and have some peace and quiet.
After chatting for a short while, the elders took out the generous gifts they had prepared and presented them one by one. Then they proposed a marriage alliance.
They came today with some eligible young female cultivators from their respective clans, hoping to form marriage alliances with the Su family and thereby strengthen the relationship between the two clans.
Su Fan immediately wanted to refuse. He had never liked this kind of marriage based on mutual interests, and he didn't want to add more people with complicated thoughts to his family.
Before he could even refuse, Luo Guyin subtly nudged his lower back, the force of which carried a clear warning.
Before he could react, Luo Guyin had already smiled and agreed on his behalf, settling the details with the elders in a proper tone.
Su Fan glanced at Luo Guyin behind him, but said nothing more.
He knew in his heart that Luo Guyin was far more insightful than him in family social interactions and power dynamics, and that everything she did was always for the Su family, and she would never harm him.
Alright, let's have a marriage alliance then.
Su Fan sighed inwardly. The Su family did indeed need to expand its branches and strengthen its bloodline.
Anyway, these female cultivators can only become concubines in the Su family, so it doesn't matter who he marries, which saves him the trouble of dealing with them.
The elders noticed the impatience in Su Fan's eyes and dared not delay any longer. After finalizing the marriage arrangements, they all got up to take their leave.
Su Fan symbolically stood up and took two steps to see him off. As soon as he stepped out of the main hall, he turned around and headed back to his room, his mind filled with only one thought: to go back and catch up on his sleep.
I was able to close my eyes just before dawn last night, and now sleepiness is washing over me like a tidal wave.
Even though he was a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator with a physical body as strong as a demon, he still felt genuinely exhausted.
Back in the room, Senior Sister and Gu Qinghuan were not there. Only Li Miaoxue sat gracefully at the table, her fingertips lightly tapping the surface, her expression gentle.
These past two days, her skin has had a radiant glow, and her eyes and brows are full of charm, as fresh and dewy as a freshly picked peach.
Seeing this stirred Su Fan's heart, and even his drowsiness dissipated somewhat.
Su Fan took a few steps closer, sat down next to her, and gently pinched her cheek, his tone teasing.
"Hey girl...give me a smile..."
Li Miaoxue's cheeks flushed slightly from his pinching. She pushed his hand away, feeling both angry and embarrassed, but a hint of coquettishness lingered in her eyes.
She laughed and scolded, "You big bad guy..."
But Su Fan was prepared. He grabbed her wrist, leaned back, and pulled her into his arms. Then, he rolled over and gently pinned her down.
My nose touched her neck, and my breath was filled with her sweet fragrance.
The two were deeply in love when the door creaked open, and the senior sister and Gu Qinghuan walked in.
The senior sister spotted the two of them immediately and teased, "Su Fan, how dare you cheat on us..."
Li Miaoxue was naturally shy, and being from a celestial sect, she was always thin-skinned. She couldn't stand her senior sister's blunt teasing, and her face instantly turned so red it looked like it could bleed, and even her ears felt burning hot.
She frantically pushed and kicked Su Fan away, keeping her head down and not daring to look at him.
Su Fan laughed and joked with the two of them for a few moments, but then drowsiness came over him again. He sat up cross-legged, intending to take a short nap.
The senior sister leaned over and put her arm around Gu Qinghuan, who was standing next to her, with a mischievous smile. "Su Fan, I think some of the girls that those families sent over are quite pretty and have good looks. Don't you want to take a few more?" After saying that, she deliberately winked at him.
Gu Qinghuan added insult to injury, a smile playing on her lips: "If you want to take a few more wives, I have no objection. Xue'er, you wouldn't mind either, would you..."
Li Miaoxue was amused by the two of them teasing each other, and she also showed a rare bit of playfulness. She glanced at Su Fan and said in a sarcastic tone.
"Of course I have no objection. Anyway, the three of us are in poor health and can't take his constant antics. Let him stop if he wants to. It'll help us share the burden..."
Su Fan was so humiliated by their teasing that he almost couldn't catch his breath. He glared at the three of them fiercely, but couldn't utter a single word in rebuttal.
He knew all too well that even if he had ten more mouths, he still couldn't out-argue these three women.
Too lazy to waste any more words, I lay down on the tatami mat, pulled the blanket over my head, and planned to take a nap.
Seeing this, the three women sat down together and whispered something in very low voices.
Su Fan was in a daze and couldn't hear clearly, only vaguely hearing a few words, followed by his senior sister's carefree laughter.
Gu Qinghuan playfully punched her, and Li Miaoxue blushed, secretly glancing at him before quickly turning back.
When these three women got together, even the usually gentle and shy Li Miaoxue looked like a female hooligan.
Su Fan sighed inwardly, a bitter smile playing on his lips.
With these three little rascals at home, he already has more than enough.
If a few more are added, it will be incredibly annoying.
The dozen or so girls sent by those families, the oldest of whom was only a teenager, were all beautiful and clearly carefully selected.
But he's lived for hundreds of years, and he just can't bring himself to lay a hand on these immature little girls.
However, if the children and grandchildren of the Su family were to accept it, it would be a good way to consolidate their power, he thought to himself.
His thoughts drifted away, and Su Fan soon fell asleep again. But before he could get into a good sleep, he was jolted awake by a push from behind.
"Su Fan, Master is looking for you again..." Senior Sister's voice rang in my ears.
He had barely closed his eyes when he was woken up. Su Fan's pent-up anger exploded instantly. He sat up abruptly, his eyes filled with hostility, and his tone was very aggressive.
"Is this ever going to end... Can't a person get any sleep?" His morning grumpiness, mixed with the fatigue from last night, made him feel even colder.
Seeing this, Gu Qinghuan quickly gave him a push, her tone urging him on.
"Su Fan, your master must have something important to discuss with you. Don't be stubborn, go quickly..."
Li Miaoxue also leaned closer gently and reached out to tug at his sleeve.
"Go on... things at home are important. Come back and sleep after you're done. I'll sleep with you then..."
Seeing the three of them urging and persuading him, Su Fan's anger hadn't completely subsided, but he knew he couldn't delay any longer.
He took a deep breath, suppressed his agitation, and got up to walk outside.
As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, he saw Luo Guyin already waiting there, her expression even more solemn than before.
Seeing him approach, he immediately stepped forward and whispered, "Su Fan, Peng Shidao, the sect leader of the 'Demon Sun Divine Palace,' has arrived..."
Upon hearing that Peng Shidao had arrived, Su Fan's pent-up anger surged up instantly, a cold sneer curling at the corner of his lips, his eyes filled with impatience and scrutiny.
Peng Shidao's sudden visit today must be for no good reason.
"What is he doing here..." Su Fan's tone was as cold as ice, without the slightest bit of politeness.
Luo Guyin shook her head, a mysterious smile on her face.
"You'll know once you go and see for yourself..."
Su Fan didn't ask any more questions and went straight into the main hall. He saw Peng Shidao sitting at the table and reluctantly cupped his hands in greeting.
After the two sat down cross-legged, Su Fan didn't bother with any unnecessary pleasantries and went straight to the point.
"Fellow Daoist, what brings you here today...?"
Peng Shidao wore a gentle smile and spoke in an extremely friendly tone.
"Fellow Daoist, I have taken the liberty of visiting you today to discuss something with you..."
"Oh...you said..."
Su Fan leaned back in his chair, his expression calm, but inwardly he was wondering what Peng Shidao was really up to.
Peng Shidao paused, seemingly considering his words, before slowly speaking, his gaze fixed on Su Fan's expression.
"I wonder if you, my friend, have any thoughts about joining my 'Demon Sun Divine Palace'..."
Hearing this, Su Fan couldn't help but chuckle to himself.
He instantly saw through the Demon Sun Divine Palace's intentions. With his late-stage Integration Realm "evil old demon" standing on their territory, they must be feeling uneasy.
They were wary of his strength, yet also feared he might cause trouble in the future.
If they don't find a way to bring him into their sect, they probably won't be able to sleep soundly.
In fact, Su Fan was not opposed to joining the Demon Sun Divine Palace.
With a powerful demonic sect blocking their way, the Su family could avoid a lot of trouble, but he didn't want to agree so easily.
Luo Guyin, who was beside him, could no longer contain herself and kept giving him meaningful glances, her eyes full of urgency, wishing she could agree on his behalf right then and there.
But Su Fan insisted on prolonging the process. The easier something is to obtain, the less it will be cherished. By letting him wait a little longer, he might be able to gain even more benefits.
He deliberately frowned, looking hesitant, as if he were weighing the pros and cons.
Seeing that he was wavering, Peng Shidao immediately pressed his advantage, speaking with even greater sincerity and offering a heavy-handed offer.
"Fellow Daoist, rest assured, as long as you join my Demon Sun Divine Palace, the sect will make an exception and appoint you as a Supreme Elder. You won't need to worry about anything within the sect; just focus on your cultivation. As for your treatment, I'm sure you'll be satisfied..."
Su Fan remained deep in thought, his eyelids slightly lowered, concealing the calculation in his eyes.
Seeing this, Peng Shidao quickly added, "Fellow Daoist, if you agree, we will be fellow disciples from now on. If any member of the Su family wants to join the sect, it will only be a matter of a word from you."
As he spoke, he added several more mines and spirit fields to his promise, with conditions so generous they were tempting.
Luo Guyin, who was standing next to her, felt her heart race as she listened. Her eyes widened, filled with excitement, and she couldn't wait to make the decision.
Such a benefit was like a windfall, and she was so eager that she secretly pinched her own palm.
My mind kept urging me to say yes.
With such great conditions, what are you still hesitating for?
(End of this chapter)