Five Days Later!
Su Yu angrily tossed aside the golden invitation in his hand and muttered, "Daily invitations, daily invitations—does she think I have nothing better to do?"
For the past five days, Xu Jiujiu had been sending her servant, Man Yi, to deliver invitation letters to him every single day.
Su Yu had rejected them time and time again, and he was now starting to feel incredibly annoyed.
He thought to himself that this Xu Jiujiu must be a bit tone-deaf. He had given her face, allowing her to leave with dignity, but she refused to take the hint.
Instead, she kept sending people over with invitations every day. What was the meaning of this? Was it a threat?
Did she think that sending invitations repeatedly would force him to accept?
But Su Yu was not the type to succumb to pressure.
This woman must be out of her mind.
"Hey, no need to lose your temper. Why not just reject her outright?"
The Snow Empress approached Su Yu with a soft laugh.
Su Yu shook his head and said, "Little Snow, you just don't understand. She's trying to force me to see her."
"I understood her intentions the moment she first arrived. But I'm not interested in people like her."
"My choice to avoid her was to let her retreat gracefully. But now it seems that some people don't know when to quit."
"Haha, perhaps it's not that she doesn't know when to quit. Perhaps she simply won't stop until she achieves her goal. That woman is hungry for you," the Snow Empress teased with a chuckle.
Su Yu rolled his eyes. "If she only desired my body, I'd reluctantly accept. But she doesn't just want my body—she also wants my wealth."
"My wealth is reserved for taking care of you all. How could I possibly share it with her?"
The Snow Empress lightly tapped Su Yu on the forehead and smiled. "You're always joking around. From what I see, that woman genuinely wants to marry you, but she also wants to gain something from it."
"So, what are you going to do?"
Su Yu's eyes narrowed slightly. "What else can I do? Since she's so desperate to see me, I'll grant her wish."
"If she doesn't want things to remain civil, then I'll help her make it so."
The Snow Empress teased, "But what if she's prepared? What if she tries to play tricks—like spiking your food and forcing you into a done deal? What would you do then?"
Su Yu shrugged. "I don't care. Who says you have to take responsibility just because it happens?"
"After all, I won't lose anything."
"Even if I sleep with her but don't take responsibility, what could the Star Luo Empire possibly do to me?"
The Snow Empress looked at him with disdain. "Of course, it's you—only you could say such shameless things with such confidence."
"Thank you for the compliment; I'll gladly accept it," Su Yu replied with a cheeky grin, showing not an ounce of shame.
The Snow Empress's lips twitched in exasperation. As expected, this guy had a thick skin and an incredibly flexible moral compass.
"Are you coming back tonight, or should I wait for you?"
The Snow Empress suddenly asked with a meaningful look in her eyes, a hint of danger flashing within them.
Su Yu pretended not to notice and waved his hand casually. "No need to wait. I'm not coming back tonight."
The Snow Empress's delicate brows immediately furrowed, and her teeth clenched in annoyance. She snapped angrily, "Wait, you're seriously planning to have intimate with that woman?"
"Little Snow, look at you, getting all worked up again."
Su Yu remained grinning, completely unbothered.
"I'm not worked up! Su Yu, do you want to go to heaven?"
The Snow Empress lunged forward, ready to strangle him, but Su Yu caught her wrist in advance and pulled her into his arms.
"Relax, it was just a joke. Tonight, I'm planning to spend the night with Sister Xuan, so I won't be coming back."
After planting a light kiss on the Snow Empress's lips, Su Yu spoke with a smile.
Recently, he had been alternating his nights between the Snow Empress and Zhang Lexuan, aiming for fairness.
Moreover, the constant physical and mental training he endured every day was exhausting. As a result, his desires in certain areas weren't particularly strong.
All he wanted was to hold the soft, fragrant bodies of the Snow Empress or Zhang Lexuan and enjoy a good night's sleep.
As for anything else, he didn't have much interest.
This damned Ice God's First Trial was practically tormenting him to death.
"Fine, do whatever you want," the Snow Empress muttered, though her tone had softened.
Unlike her disdain for Xu Jiujiu, the Snow Empress had a good impression of Zhang Lexuan.
Zhang Lexuan had a gentle and serene personality, never causing trouble, and her feelings for Su Yu were pure and genuine. For someone like her, the Snow Empress felt no hostility.
Although the Snow Empress was proud, she wasn't the type to be overly possessive.
She just despised those who approached Su Yu with ulterior motives.
For those who truly loved Su Yu, she never interfered.
For instance, Shui Lingguang and Jiang Nannan—if Su Yu wanted to pursue them, the Snow Empress would simply turn a blind eye.
As a soul beast, the Snow Empress didn't share the human notion that one's partner must love only them.
In the soul beast world, the strong always came first. With Su Yu's status, having multiple partners was perfectly normal.
She was simply reluctant to share Su Yu because she had gone countless tens of thousands of years without companionship. Experiencing this new, thrilling sensation for the first time, it was hard not to be attached.
The Snow Empress had even sighed that she had been living in vain for tens of thousands of years.
Hearing the Snow Empress's slightly sulky words, Su Yu chuckled and gently pinched her flawless cheek.
"You always say you're not an expert, but you're more invested than anyone else."
"Get lost!"
The Snow Empress pushed Su Yu away, pouting, her icy blue eyes flashing with faint anger.
Su Yu laughed heartily. Under the Snow Empress's annoyed glare, he gently ruffled her snowy hair and then turned to leave.
Descending the long steps of the Ice God stairs, Su Yu came across a slender figure in an ice-blue dress near the foot of the mountain. She was diligently training, beads of sweat glistening on her forehead as her brows furrowed slightly. The pressure here wasn't light for her.
"Young Master."
Upon seeing Su Yu, the figure called out softly.
"Luochen, did you happen to overhear anything just now?" Su Yu approached her with a smile.
Ling Luochen's cheeks turned red, and her usually calm eyes revealed a trace of panic. She stammered nervously, "I… I didn't hear anything."
Truthfully, she had heard everything—including those scandalous words.
Su Yu laughed and gave her a light pat on the shoulder. "Just teasing you. Don't stress. Focus on your training. The Ice God's Light will benefit you greatly."
"Yes, Young Master," Ling Luochen replied softly.
Su Yu chuckled, patted her shoulder again, and descended the steps. At the foot of the mountain, he nodded to the massive ice dragon, Bing Bing, and with a few quick steps, he disappeared from sight.
...
...
...
Next Morning.
In the streets of Ice Snow City, Su Yu and his group were bidding someone farewell.
This time, not only were Zhang Lexuan and the others present, but even the usually aloof Snow Empress stood by Su Yu's side.
Xu Jiujiu's once-bright eyes now appeared dim. Glancing at the stunning Snow Empress beside Su Yu, she felt even more self-conscious.
In just one night, Xu Jiujiu seemed to have lost her confidence, as if she had suffered a great blow.
The proud, radiant princess of the Star Luo Empire now looked dejected and dispirited.
She cast one last, complicated glance at Su Yu, her eyes brimming with countless emotions, but in the end, she let out a long sigh.
With Man Yi by her side, Xu Jiujiu turned and departed.
Watching their retreating figures, the Snow Empress's eyes sparkled with curiosity.
She poked Su Yu's arm and whispered, "What exactly did you say to her last night to make her leave so obediently?"
Nearby, Zhang Lexuan, Jiang Nannan, and the others perked up their ears, clearly just as curious.
After all, they all knew how persistent Xu Jiujiu had been in her pursuit of Su Yu.
But today, Xu Jiujiu appeared as if she had lost her soul, as if her pride had been shattered by someone, and she left directly.
The others couldn't help but be curious—what exactly did Su Yu do last night?
Facing the curious gazes of the women, Su Yu spread his hands and smiled, saying, "I told her, 'No matter how much you beg me, I won't accept you. You should give up on this idea.'"
"So, she wisely left quietly. That's all."
"That's it?"
now Empress raised her elegant eyebrows.
"Of course," Su Yu replied with a smile.
"Liar. I don't believe it. With your personality, there's no way you'd say something so hurtful so easily. After all, Xu Jiujiu isn't Ma Xiaotao," Snow Empress retorted, pouting.
Hearing that, Su Yu shrugged, neither confirming nor denying it.
He indeed hadn't spoken to Xu Jiujiu in such a harsh manner, but he had rejected her nonetheless.
To be fair, Xu Jiujiu was very bold and willing to set aside her status as a princess. She even said she was willing to give up her royal title and serve as Su Yu's concubine for life.
Honestly, Su Yu admired her courage.
But he was choosing a partner, not a subordinate.
Xu Jiujiu's intentions were ultimately not pure, and that was the main reason Su Yu rejected her.
Even though Xu Jiujiu's tear-filled eyes and pitiful demeanor could soften the hardest of hearts, Su Yu's resolve, when firm, was harder than steel.
He wouldn't be swayed by a woman's tears—they did not affect him at all.
Unless it was a woman he loved, which was a different matter entirely.
So Su Yu rejected her, albeit politely, unlike the intense way he had rejected Ma Xiaotao in the past.
His impression of Xu Jiujiu was much better than that of Ma Xiaotao, after all.
Ma Xiaotao's fiery and unreasonable temper, in the beginning, was unbearable for most people.
When tears didn't work, Xu Jiujiu even tried to seduce him, but Su Yu stopped her once again.
That being said, Xu Jiujiu's figure was indeed quite impressive, at least better than Wang Dong'er's.
As for how he knew that? Purely because Xu Jiujiu undressed too quickly.
Of course, Su Yu didn't do anything. If he had, Xu Jiujiu wouldn't have left today.
It was precisely because Xu Jiujiu had laid herself bare and Su Yu remained unmoved—he even went so far as to help her put her clothes back on—that Xu Jiujiu was truly crushed. Her pride shattered completely.
This was the main reason she chose to leave.
She understood that no matter how much effort she put in, this stone-hearted man would never bloom for her.
Since the outcome was already set in stone, there was no point in wasting any more energy.
As for whether Xu Jiujiu harbored resentment toward Su Yu? Most likely, yes.
Any woman in her situation would find it hard to remain indifferent.
But Su Yu didn't care at all.
Seeing Su Yu shrugging and smiling without answering, Snow Empress got annoyed. She pinched the flesh at Su Yu's waist and demanded, "Why aren't you saying anything?"
Su Yu grabbed Snow Empress' delicate hand and smiled, saying, "What do you want me to say? Isn't it enough that you know she left?"
"Do I need to recount all the embarrassing things that girl did?"
"Or do you want me to mention how you forced me down… mmph!"
Before Su Yu could finish, Snow Empress covered his mouth.
Standing on her tiptoes, she tightly covered Su Yu's mouth and said," "Don't say it. Do you hear me?"
Zhang Lexuan's beautiful eyes flickered as she observed the two of them, seemingly understanding something. Her gaze toward Snow Empress became somewhat peculiar.
"Zhang Lexuan, what's with that look?"
Noticing this, Snow Empress scolded softly.
Zhang Lexuan smiled gently and said, "Nothing, Miss Snow. I'll leave Xiao Yu to you. I'm going back to train. Nannan, let's go."
"Oh~"
Jiang Nannan glanced at Su Yu, then followed Zhang Lexuan.
Ever since discovering Zhang Lexuan's relationship with Su Yu, Jiang Nannan had become close to her, almost following her lead.
In contrast, Jiang Nannan only maintained a polite acquaintance with Ling Luochen, who was a fellow disciple.
Ling Luochen's cold personality made it hard for Jiang Nannan to figure out how to interact with her.
"Hey, Zhang Lexuan… What do you mean by this?"
Seeing Zhang Lexuan leave without looking back, Snow Empress grew a little anxious.
But Zhang Lexuan's status was no less than her own, so there wasn't much she could do.
"It's all your fault."
Snow Empress pounded her delicate fists against Su Yu's chest in mock anger.
"Ah, yes, yes, it's all my fault," Su Yu replied nonchalantly, removing Snow Empress' hand with an expression that screamed, "You're always right."
This made Snow Empress grind her teeth in frustration.
"You're in for it tonight!"
Snow Empress threatened fiercely.
Su Yu, unconcerned, said, "Oh? Wasn't it you who begged for mercy last time?"
"That's because I wasn't prepared last time! I didn't perform at my best."
Snow Empress defended herself.
"You always say that."
Su Yu smirked.
"Su Yu!"
Snow Empress raised her voice, gritting her teeth.
"What is it, dear wife?" Su Yu replied, his head held high.
"I'm gonna bully you!"
Snow Empress pounced on him, claws outstretched. The two playfully bickered and left together.
Shuiling Guang stood quietly, watching them. A ripple appeared in her beautiful eyes, though no one knew what she was thinking.
"Jealous?"
A voice suddenly sounded from behind her, startling her.
She turned around hastily and found Haibodong standing there.
She quickly bowed, saying, "High Priest."
Haibodong chuckled, saying, "No need to stand on ceremony. After all, in a few days, I might be the one bowing to you."
"High Priest, you…"
Shuiling Guang's face flushed, and she lowered her head.
"Little Ling Guang, you've got to toughen up. If you're this shy, it won't work!"
"If it's you, the Young Master might not reject you," Haibodong said with a smile.