"That’s right. She ran away to escape the marriage. This was arranged long ago, so of course we couldn’t back out of it. But when my younger sister found out, she secretly ran away without leaving a single trace." Zhu Yuxuan sighed and said, "I admit we were forcing her, but the outcome would have been for her own good. Marrying into a respectable faction would be a great help to her future."

"And who was she marrying?" Yi Tianyun asked.

"The son of the Cyan Profound Mansion’s Second Elder. I’m sure you’re aware of the Cyan Profound Mansion, sir. Their power in this area is not to be underestimated. If our two families were to be joined by marriage, it would be good for both the Star Pavilion and my sister." Zhu Yuxuan’s beautiful eyes twinkled as she spoke. "What do you think, sir?"

"The Cyan Profound Mansion?" Yi Tianyun’s expression grew strange. ’To think I’d get involved with the Cyan Profound Mansion again.’ His face darkened. "If she thought it was so great, she wouldn’t have run away from home. I understand your predicament, but I’m afraid this reason makes me even more unwilling to tell you. However, I won’t go spreading this around, so you can rest assured."

Everyone’s expression changed. They thought Yi Tianyun would relent, but in the end, he still chose to refuse.

"If there’s nothing else, please give me the materials I requested. I have other important things to do." Yi Tianyun waved his hand, turning to leave.

At that moment, Zhu Yuxuan hurried over to block Yi Tianyun’s path. With her cultivation, she stood no chance of stopping him, but she still stepped forward, spreading her arms to bar his way. "Sir, I’m begging you, please tell us where my sister is! If I didn’t already have a soulmate, I would have taken her place and married into the Cyan Profound Mansion myself! If this goes on, the Zhu Family is doomed!"

Yi Tianyun paused. ’Zhu Yuxuan really is determined. If they weren’t this desperate, I doubt they would have made such a choice.’

"Doomed in what way?" Yi Tianyun inquired.

"The Zhu Family’s standing within the Star Pavilion is declining daily. If this continues, we won’t be able to maintain our foothold here anymore," Zhu Yuxuan said gravely.

"So you intend to use Zhu Yuwei to cozy up to the Cyan Profound Mansion and elevate the Zhu Family’s status within the Star Pavilion?" Yi Tianyun now understood the full picture. It was a political marriage, plain and simple—using Zhu Yuwei as a bargaining chip to get support for the Zhu Family.

"Yes. We are wronging my sister, but... there is no other way," Zhu Yuxuan said, clenching her jaw. Her plan was to sacrifice her sister to save the entire Zhu Family.

Yi Tianyun looked at them intently. "To be honest, it’s incredibly naive to think that one person can save the entire Zhu Family. Only by becoming strong yourselves will you have a voice. As for relying on others? When they decide to cast you aside, they won’t hesitate for a moment!"

’He was speaking from the heart. These so-called political marriages are fucking useless. How many times did the Merak Palace try to form an alliance with the Cyan Profound Mansion through marriage? And what happened? They were abandoned! Without strength of your own, you’re just waiting to be replaced.’

’If Zhu Yuwei goes through with this marriage, it will be completely useless unless she herself becomes heaven-defyingly powerful or gains absolute authority. But if that were possible, the Zhu Family wouldn’t be in this mess in the first place.’

Zhu Yuxuan and the others fell silent. Just as she was about to speak again, Yi Tianyun added, "There’s no need to say anything else. Bring me my payment. We’ve said all there is to say. Pushing this further is meaningless. I’m not going to tell you."

"Zhu, go get his payment. The Star Pavilion has not stooped so low," Steward Huang sighed, signaling Zhu Yuxuan to retrieve the reward.

Zhu Yuxuan gave Yi Tianyun one last deep look before turning to get his payment. She returned shortly after with the reward, which was stored in a Storage Ring.

Yi Tianyun accepted it and gave it a brief inspection. Inside, there were indeed fifteen sets of materials for forging Low-Grade Soul Artifacts.

"Not bad." Yi Tianyun nodded in satisfaction upon seeing so many sets of materials. "It was a pleasure doing business with you."

With that, he turned and left, not lingering a moment longer. As he was leaving, his eyes flickered. Their favorability ratings appeared before him; the one hundred points he had earned from completing the quest had instantly plummeted to a mere twenty!

’So it seems that even if a quest forces a favorability boost, it can plummet in an instant if something goes wrong.’ But when he saw the rating for one particular person, he froze.

Among all the people there, one person’s favorability hadn’t dropped. It was Zhu Yuxuan! Her rating had skyrocketed to one hundred and fifty. This left him baffled.

"Oh, right. I almost forgot to tell you," Yi Tianyun said, stopping abruptly after taking a few steps. "Even if you’re looking for a backer, don’t choose the Cyan Profound Mansion."

"Why not?" Zhu Yuxuan asked, confused.

"Because the Cyan Profound Mansion is about to be destroyed." After tossing out that line, he left them standing there, stunned.

As Yi Tianyun departed, Steward Huang and the others exchanged glances. The steward muttered in a low voice, "He has a bold tone. I wonder which major sect he hails from? To claim the Cyan Profound Mansion will be destroyed... it would take a peak Third-Grade Faction, or perhaps even a Fourth-Grade Faction, to accomplish that."

"So, should we believe him? Or should we follow him and see where he goes?" another steward asked. "If we can just get a general direction, we can easily find her!"

The Earth Realm Continent was immense. While the Star Pavilion was powerful, that didn’t mean they were omnipotent; otherwise, they would have found Zhu Yuwei by now. The Celestial Realm Continent was not only connected to the Earth Realm Continent but also to many other smaller continents, so they had absolutely no idea where she could be.

"Forget it. He’s stronger than even you; do you really think you could tail him?" Steward Huang said, shaking his head. "What’s more, he’s a Blacksmith who can forge Soul Artifacts. He must be a disciple from a major power. Perhaps he really *can* crush the Cyan Profound Mansion... I just wonder how they managed to provoke him."

"But we’re just supposed to give up? What about Zhu Yuwei? Even if the Cyan Profound Mansion is destroyed, what does that mean for us?" one of the stewards said, extremely displeased. "We have to find a backer one way or another! Otherwise, the Zhu Family will be forced out completely!" 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"I’ll go after him!" Zhu Yuxuan gritted her teeth and immediately ran after him.

"You..."

Before they could say anything else, Zhu Yuxuan had already rushed downstairs. They could only look at each other, not knowing what to say.

"Let her go," Steward Huang said with a frown, his thoughts unreadable.

Zhu Yuxuan quickly dashed outside and spotted Yi Tianyun’s figure in the distance. She quickly caught up to him, calling out, "Sir, please wait!"

Yi Tianyun turned his head, his expression impassive. "What is it?" ’I didn’t think she would still be this persistent and actually chase me down.’

"If you happen to see my sister, please give this to her..." Zhu Yuxuan came closer and handed a Jade Pendant to Yi Tianyun.

"This is?" Yi Tianyun looked at the Jade Pendant. It wasn’t particularly eye-catching. It was merely a piece of fine jade, but it could hardly be called a Treasure. At the very least, it offered no benefits for cultivation.

"This is the Jade Pendant I always carry with me... Give it to my sister, and tell her to never come back..." Zhu Yuxuan bit her lip, the rims of her eyes turning red. "We are the ones who wronged her. Since this is already my fate, I can’t let my sister suffer as well. To be honest... I was the one who told her to run away."

"What?" Yi Tianyun froze. ’Just a moment ago, Zhu Yuxuan looked desperate to drag her sister back. Was that all an act?’

’Come to think of it,’ Yi Tianyun mused, ’if Zhu Yuxuan hadn’t interjected with the truth about the marriage, I might have actually told them where Zhu Yuwei was. Steward Huang’s initial questions, after all, were vague and didn’t reveal the real reason she had left.’

"Just take this Jade Pendant to her..." Zhu Yuxuan’s face broke into a smile, though tears streamed from her eyes. "Even if the Zhu Family perishes, at least my sister is free..."

Without another word, she turned and walked away.