With Matriarch Ye's words, the cavern instantly fell silent.

The atmosphere suddenly became a bit strange.

Patriarch Ye cleared his throat and shamelessly said, "My wife is right. Luo Xiu, since you've drawn the sword, you must marry our Xiao Xue."

Beside them, Ye Ningxue's face turned beet red, and she quickly waved her hands in protest. "No, you can't! That's not right!"

Her face was flushed and her ears were burning. She was so flustered she didn't know where to put her hands. "I can't be Master's bride! That's immoral!"

Matriarch Ye shot her a glare, signaling her to be quiet, before turning to Luo Xiu. "From the very beginning, our Ye Family has never acknowledged you as Ye Ningxue's master, so that relationship doesn't count. To be frank, you're only a few years older than Xiao Xue, so you aren't suitable to be her master anyway."

"Since you've pulled out this sword, it is fated. From this day forward, you are the son-in-law of our Ye Family." She then added, "You don't have to live with us, but your first child with Xiao Xue, regardless of gender, must take the Ye surname, and we will choose the name. Any subsequent children can take your surname, Luo."

Luo Xiu wore a thoroughly exasperated expression. So they've already got my whole life planned out for me.

Having no other choice, he could only use Lin Xiyue as a shield. "I'm already married."

Matriarch Ye was unfazed. "Even if you're married, you can still take a concubine. You may not know this, but we Ancient Martial Families enjoy certain privileges due to the great contributions we have made. For the sake of continuing the family line, as long as both parties consent, it's permissible to take multiple wives."

Luo Xiu cursed silently and tried again. "But I have a terminal illness. I only have a few years left to live."

Hearing this, Matriarch Ye's eyes flashed with anger. "In what way is my Xiao Xue not good enough for you? You'd stoop to such a ridiculous excuse to refuse me! Hmph, even if you truly are terminally ill and your days are numbered, you can still have children in the time you have left!"

Damn it... she's like a brick wall. Luo Xiu cursed inwardly, then steeled himself and bolted.

"I'm sorry, I have something urgent to attend to, so I'll be leaving now!"

Watching Luo Xiu's hasty retreat, the elders were left gritting their teeth and stomping their feet in frustration. But since they couldn't even defeat him in a fight, how could they possibly force him to stay?

Patriarch Ye sighed and turned to Ye Ningxue. "Xiao Xue, for the future of the Ye Family, you must..."

Before he could finish, Ye Ningxue stormed off in a huff.

Yue Tianyang looked at Patriarch Ye and shook his head with a smile. "I wasn't aware the Ye Family had such a rule? Come on, Old Ye, you just see Luo Xiu's potential and ability and want to tie him to your family. That's why you made all that up, right?"

At this, Patriarch Ye's old face reddened, and he turned away. "Tianyang, if you're truly my brother, you won't expose me!"

Yue Tianyang replied, "If I had intended to expose you, I would have said something while Luo Xiu and young Ningxue were still here."

Just then, Matriarch Ye spoke. "Tianyang, that young man Luo Xiu may have an extraordinary origin. If Xiao Xue marries him, it could guarantee our Ye Family's prosperity for the next hundred years! Besides, only a true dragon among men is worthy of our Xiao Xue. Now that we've found one, we can't just let him get away!"

Yue Tianyang nodded with a knowing smile, then took his leave.

Patriarch Ye let out a long sigh and turned to look toward the Dragon Spring Pool. "We'll set aside the matter between Luo Xiu and Xiao Xue for now. Young people will naturally grow closer the more time they spend together. However, what Luo Xiu said earlier about the change in the thing beneath the Dragon Spring Pool... it's been making me deeply uneasy. I need to go to the Archive Pavilion and search through the ancient records."

...

After leaving the cave, Luo Xiu found that a torrential downpour had started. The sky was filled with dark, churning clouds, yet there was no thunder or lightning. The roiling clouds shifted constantly, as if some mysterious power were stirring them from their very center.

Gradually, the mass of dark clouds formed a gigantic human face.

A terrifying, apocalyptic aura instantly blanketed the earth!

Luo Xiu looked up at the face, his brow furrowed. The face in the clouds seemed to be looking back at him, its features twisting and morphing in what looked like a derisive laugh.

Luo Xiu suddenly had a very bad feeling.

At that moment, Yue Tianyang caught up. "Mister Luo, let me give you a ride back."

「On the way back to the hotel.」

Luo Xiu sat in the luxurious van, wearing a completely fed-up expression.

Damn it all. If I'd known there was a rule like this about drawing the sword, I never would have come. And those old geezers... why didn't they just say so from the start?

Yue Tianyang smiled. "Perhaps they didn't say anything because they never believed you could actually draw the sword."

Luo Xiu's face was a mask of misery as he sighed again. From the very beginning, he had only wanted to find a suitable weapon for Lin Xiyue. After all, he was the one who had asked her to compete, so he felt responsible for making sure she was fully equipped. He never expected to stumble into this mess.

Whatever. My legs are attached to my body. What can they do to me?

Thinking this, Luo Xiu suddenly felt much better. He stopped dwelling on the issue and turned to Yue Tianyang. "By the way, Boss Yue, is there any way to make this sword pink?"

Yue Tianyang froze for a second, then gave Luo Xiu a look you'd give a total weirdo. Shui Yuejian, ninth among the Ten Great Swords of Hua Country, and you want to make it pink? To desecrate a famous sword like this... that's an act of outrageous sacrilege!

"Um... Mister Luo, do you know what this sword is?"

Luo Xiu nodded. "Of course. I've read about it in the ancient texts. Every Sword Master of this blade has been female, and it just so happens I'm giving it to my wife. Even though it's a sword for killing, it's for a girl to use, so pink would be more appropriate."

Yue Tianyang said with a strange expression, "Mister Luo, you truly are a strange one!"

He had to hand it to Luo Xiu for his outlandish logic. It was clear that Luo Xiu didn't care about the legendary weapon's status at all. To him, it was just an interesting toy.

"I can take it to a metalworking shop and have it electroplated pink."

"Thanks." Luo Xiu handed him the sword.

...

Before long, Yue Tianyang dropped Luo Xiu back at the hotel.

Lin Xiyue was already in their room, working on her laptop. The deal with the Provincial Capital Martial Association was settled, and she was now reviewing the ad copy sent over by the planning department.

The moment Luo Xiu walked in, Lin Xiyue whipped her head around and glared at him, looking like she was ready to kill him.

Luo Xiu felt a sudden sense of foreboding. He rubbed his nose and asked, "Why are you glaring at me?"

Lin Xiyue's face was like ice. "Did you secretly use my computer to watch videos? I don't care if you watch them, but at least delete the browsing history! Don't you know how dangerous it is to visit those websites? What if a hacker plants a trojan and steals our company secrets? And to top it all off, you used my WeChat account to log in and even paid for a membership!"

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