Chapter 34: Causality Technique. Suiyuan Swordsmanship

Miss Feng's legendary brother hadn't managed to stop Su Han from... killing—er, setting fires.

After leaving Prince Jing's Residence and wandering around Lingzhou City for the better part of an hour, Su Han suddenly stopped in his tracks.

"Crown Prince?"

Su Xiao'Er stopped behind him, looking at his Crown Prince in confusion.

"Su Xiao'Er, are there any clans in Lingzhou City, big or small, that we haven't visited yet?"

Su Xiao'Er thought for a moment. "Crown Prince, we've already visited every clan in Lingzhou City, big and small."

"All of them?"

"Yes."

Su Xiao'Er nodded. "However..."

Seeing Su Xiao'Er hesitate, Su Han raised an eyebrow. "Spit it out."

"To answer the Crown Prince, we've visited basically every major and minor clan currently in Lingzhou City. But there is one fallen family we haven't been to."

Su Xiao'Er hesitated. "But that family fell into decline long ago. They've already sold off their main residence. All that's left are three old ancestral homes, the only proof of their former glory."

Su Han thought for a moment, his eyes lighting up. "You're talking about... the Gongsun Clan?"

Su Xiao'Er nodded. "Exactly, the Gongsun Clan. But the Gongsun Family fell into decline many years ago. They can't really be considered a great clan anymore, so I figured you, Crown Prince..."

Before Su Xiao'Er could finish, Su Han cut him off. He glanced at Su Xiao'Er, then waved a hand grandly. "Let's go. To the Gongsun Family ancestral home."

Su Xiao'Er swallowed the rest of his words and silently began to lead the way.

Along the way, Su Han asked about the Gongsun Family's current situation.

"Su Xiao'Er, are you saying the Gongsun Family only has three ancestral homes left?"

Su Xiao'Er nodded. "The Gongsun Clan's heritage can be traced back more than three thousand years, even before our Jing Country was founded.

"More than nineteen hundred years ago, the Gongsun Clan produced an ancestor named Gongsun Yang. He was exceptionally talented since childhood. Before he was even thirty, his name was known throughout Qing Province, and he single-handedly brought the Gongsun Clan to its zenith.

"At the time, under Gongsun Yang's leadership, the Gongsun Clan could be counted among the top-tier great clans in all of Qing Province.

"Unfortunately, just as the Gongsun Clan reached its peak because of Gongsun Yang, it also began its decline because of him.

"He somehow provoked a powerful enemy in the Central State, bringing the disaster of annihilation upon the Gongsun Clan.

"It is said that one night, a group of men in black stormed the Gongsun Clan's residence and began a massacre, like tigers falling upon a flock of sheep.

"In just a quarter of an hour, over ninety percent of the clan's thousand-plus members were dead or wounded.

"The Gongsun Clan should have been wiped from existence that day, but something happened that no one expected.

"When one of the men in black burst into a dilapidated courtyard at the rear of the residence, he encountered a young girl dressed in simple clothes, which even had a few patches sewn onto them.

"Facing the man in black who held a blood-drenched weapon, the girl showed not a hint of panic. She spoke in a calm voice, as if to negotiate.

"'You don't bother me, and I won't hurt you. How does that sound?'

"The man's orders were to completely wipe out the Gongsun Clan. Naturally, he wasn't about to spare someone just because a young girl tried to bargain with him.

"With a savage sneer, he raised his blade to strike.

"But as fast as his blade was, the sword in the girl's hand was faster.

"Before the man's curved blade could land, a flash of sword light flickered before his eyes. When it faded, his clothes were reduced to rags. He was a bloody mess, his body covered in cuts, yet not a single one was fatal.

"'It seems you and I have no affinity.'

"As the man in black stared in terror, the girl gently sheathed her Mortal Iron Longsword. After saying those baffling words, she walked out of the ruined courtyard.

"And then...

"The tables were suddenly turned. A young girl in simple, patched-up clothes, holding a Mortal Iron Longsword, began to torment the dozens of men in black who had invaded the Gongsun Clan."

Su Xiao'Er glanced at Su Han and stressed again, "That's right. Torment.

"Her Swordsmanship was bizarre and unpredictable. Of all the people there, not one could clearly see the path of her blade. From the moment she drew her sword to the moment she sheathed it again, it took no more than the time to drink a cup of tea.

"And in that short time, of the seventy-three men in black who had stormed the Gongsun Clan's home, one had his throat slit and lost his life. The other seventy-two were all sprawled on the ground, completely incapacitated.

"Every one of those seventy-two men was covered in sword wounds, yet none of the wounds were fatal.

"After dealing with all the men in black, the girl sheathed her longsword. She ignored the seventy-two incapacitated men, but stood over the corpse of the one who had died. She let out a sigh and once again said something utterly baffling."

"Oh?"

Su Han was genuinely intrigued by Su Xiao'Er's story.

"What did she say?"

"'To die by my sword is also a matter of affinity.'"

Su Xiao'Er looked up, a strange light shining in his eyes. "She said, 'To die by my sword is also a matter of affinity.'"

Su Han: "..."

'So, what the hell was that about?'

"And then?"

"And then?"

Su Xiao'Er snapped out of his bout of hero worship and remembered his task.

"Then, the girl just picked up her sword and left. She left the Gongsun Clan."

"Left?"

"Yes, she left. And it's said she never came back.

"But because she took action—killing one and capturing seventy-two—the Gongsun Clan was saved.

"For some reason, the powers in the Central State never sent anyone after them again."

Su Han nodded, finding the story quite interesting.

"So... what was this girl's name?"

"Gongsun Li."

Su Xiao'Er said the name without a second thought. The look on his face was just like some of the girls from Su Han's past life when they saw their favorite 'oppa,' instantly turning into total fangirls.

Su Han: "...So, Su Xiao'Er, how is it you know a story from nineteen hundred years ago in such detail? It's like you were there to see it yourself."

"Huh?"

Su Xiao'Er was flustered. He stammered for a good while before managing to explain, "It's because... because I often go to the teahouse to listen to storytellers when I have free time.

"I heard this story from one of them."

Su Han nodded. Su Xiao'Er pointed to three dilapidated wooden houses up ahead. "Crown Prince, we've arrived."

Su Han studied them carefully. There were only three houses, all of them dilapidated and giving off a precarious feeling, as if they could collapse at any moment from years of neglect.

The courtyard wasn't large, either. If his own quarters at the Prince's Residence could be called a small courtyard, then this place—not even a tenth of that size—could only be described as a mini-courtyard.

In this mini-courtyard, several large trees grew against the wall. Their trunks were thick, and they all looked quite old.

One of them, in particular, seemed even taller than the tree his own ancestor had personally planted thirteen hundred years ago, giving it a profound sense of history.

And Su Han's gaze was fixed directly on that tree.

Unlike the other trees, in his eyes... this one was glowing.

"Crown Prince, this is the very courtyard where the girl who saved the Gongsun Clan once lived. They say the layout has been kept exactly as it was back then."

It was Su Xiao'Er's first time here as well, and he couldn't hide the excitement in his voice.

"Oh?"

Su Han's gaze, fixed on the Skill Tree, grew even more intense.

"Who are you people? Why have you come to the Gongsun Family home?"

Just as Su Han and Su Xiao'Er stood at the entrance, surveying the layout of the mini-courtyard, an old man emerged from the central hall.

Su Xiao'Er introduced Su Han. Seeing the old man, who looked as if his back had been bent by the weight of life's hardships, Su Han, for a change, decided not to try and trick him.

Instead, he had Su Xiao'Er get out some money to buy the Skill Tree... in the Gongsun Family's ancestral home.

His Crown Prince always got by on his reputation; why would Su Xiao'Er be carrying any money?

Fortunately, after his identity as Crown Prince was proven, Su Han's Talent Technique—getting by on his reputation wherever he went—kicked in.

With Su Han's assurance, the old man agreed to let him write an IOU, which could be collected later at Prince Jing's Residence.

After writing an IOU for fifty taels of silver, Su Han cast a Sky-Filling Fire Dance on the Skill Tree from a distance.

The great fire instantly engulfed the Skill Tree. In Su Han's vision, the Skill Tree changed.

Skill Tree (Illuminated).

He opened the Skill List. There was only one skill available to choose: Causality Technique: Suiyuan Swordsmanship.

'A Causality Technique?'

'Another Causality Technique?'

He subconsciously thought of his own Causality Technique: Blunt Stick.

He recalled its terrifying Causal Attack, one that ignored all differences in cultivation realm to guarantee a strike to the back of an enemy's head. Then there was the instantaneous stun effect that followed the blow, which also ignored realm differences.

It all went to show just how powerful a Causality Technique could be.

'So, what kind of surprise will this Causality Technique: Suiyuan Swordsmanship bring me?'

Filled with a little anticipation, Su Han selected the skill: Causality Technique: Suiyuan Swordsmanship.

The instant he made his choice, the skill transformed into a wisp of Dao Rhyme and entered Su Han's Sea of Consciousness.

It strengthened his Divine Thought once again and, at the same time, granted Su Han mastery of the Causality Technique: Suiyuan Swordsmanship.

And then...

"..."

Staring at the description of Suiyuan Swordsmanship, Su Han was speechless for a long time.

'Suiyuan Swordsmanship... are you fucking kidding me? You really are just leaving it up to fate, aren't you?'

PS: I'm not trying to leave you on a cliffhanger, really. I just hit the word count, and the chapter automatically ended here.

And then... I hear that recommendation votes can unlock the next chapter, so...

I just love recommendation votes.