"My daughter has consulted a master, and he said she will go far on the path of cultivation!" the man declared.
Ji Yingjin spat, hands on her hips as she stood on the doorstep: "My daughter has consulted a master too. She's a once-in-a-generation prodigy—with dual spiritual roots, no less!"
The man across from her looked utterly unconvinced. How could the daughter of a pig butcher have dual spiritual roots? He figured she probably had pig roots instead.
He raised his voice: "Keep on bragging, then! The master also said that when my daughter sits down, spiritual energy from ten miles around rushes straight to her—she's got the momentum to swallow the sun and moon!"
Ji Yingjin sneered, her voice even louder: "Swallow the sun and moon, my foot! With that scrawny frame of your daughter's, one strong gust of wind would blow her clean away. Not like my girl—she can eat a whole pig in one day!"
The man's beard quivered with rage: "What do you know! My daughter will one day fly on a sword! Yours will just keep eating until she can't even get off the ground."
Liu Dazhuang poked his head out from behind the door and bellowed: "Pauper, stop spouting nonsense over here! My daughter has already been accepted into the Tianjue Sect! An elder of the sect said she's a genius picked from ten thousand!"
At those words, Ji Yingjin and Liu Dazhuang silently exchanged a glance.
Oh no. They might have overdone the bragging this time.
Seeing the couple ganging up on him, the man muttered curses and stormed off.
Let them brag all they want. He didn't believe two pig butchers could raise any kind of genius.
Watching his retreating figure,
Ji Yingjin frowned deeply: "That was quite the whopper you told."
How could they possibly make up something like being accepted into the Tianjue Sect?
Liu Dazhuang scratched the back of his head: "Wife, I just saw you losing the shouting match, so I figured I'd help out."
Meanwhile, the so-called dual-root prodigy, the once-in-a-generation genius, the one who could eat a whole pig in a day—Ji Zhaoxi—stood behind them, silently watching the whole scene.
Liuli looked at Ji Zhaoxi with utter admiration: "Young miss, you're really amazing."
Ji Zhaoxi was quiet for a moment: "Liuli, don't you know what your young miss is actually like?"
It seemed Liuli was the only one in the entire place who took her parents' words seriously. Her filter for Ji Zhaoxi was way too thick!
Liuli blinked in confusion. What had the mistress and master said that was wrong?
Their young miss really was a genius—at least in her eyes.
The bragging had barely left their mouths that morning, and by afternoon it had spread through the whole town. Some people even deliberately came to the Ji household to mock them, bearing "congratulations" gifts.
Inside the house, four people sat around the table, faces full of worry.
"It's all father's fault. I sure do love to brag," Liu Dazhuang admitted guiltily.
Ji Yingjin's eyes were full of regret too: "Mother shouldn't have said those things."
Even the bit about eating a whole pig a day—her daughter did love meat, but not to that extent.
But that man had kept boasting about his daughter right in front of her, and it had grated on her nerves.
Ji Zhaoxi let out a long sigh: "Father, Mother, next time you brag, could you only brag about yourselves?"
They kept heaping all the praise on her, and she was the one who'd lose face!
Liuli chimed in softly: "Actually, young miss is pretty close to what the master and mistress said. Just a tiny bit different, that's all."
If the young miss put in a little effort, she could totally reach that dual-spiritual-root level.
Ji Zhaoxi met Liuli's earnest gaze and decided not to argue.
She couldn't win this one with Liuli. She didn't know where Liuli had gotten this idea, but she seemed convinced Ji Zhaoxi was the greatest person in the world.
But Ji Zhaoxi was just the daughter of two extremely wealthy pig butchers.
An ordinary person.
Maybe she'd one day inherit her parents' butcher shop and carry on the family legacy.
Liu Dazhuang frowned hard: "It's just the Tianjue Sect."
He looked at Ji Zhaoxi with determination: "Girl, your father will send you to the Tianjue Sect. You just stay there and enjoy yourself."
Ji Yingjin also thought it sounded like a fine plan: "I agree with your father's idea. It's time the Ji family produced a cultivator."
Once their daughter entered the Tianjue Sect, who would dare say anything else?
Ji Zhaoxi looked crestfallen: "Father, Mother, how can I cultivate without spiritual roots?"
Their family wasn't a cultivation lineage, after all.
Ji Yingjin took a pragmatic view of it: "Don't you worry, girl. You just stay at the Tianjue Sect for three or five years, have your fun, and then come on back."
"If anyone asks how your cultivation is going, I'll just say you gave up all your cultivation to save someone's life. Won't the reputation carry itself?"
Ji Yingjin got more and more excited as she spoke, and Liu Dazhuang nodded along more and more emphatically.
Who would dare call them nouveau riche then? Who would say the Ji family reeks of money?!
Liu Dazhuang set off at once to make it happen. He may not have connections, but he had money—and any problem money could solve wasn't a problem. He just threw cash at it.
Seeing how hard her parents were trying, Ji Zhaoxi felt the fire ignite in her own eyes too.
She would have to step up for the Ji family's name.
Her family wasn't just a bunch of pig butchers!
Liu Dazhuang immediately wrote to the Second Elder of the Tianjue Sect, attaching several dozen chests of gold as a gesture of goodwill.
At first glance, most people would assume a name like Liu Dazhuang meant the man had no education, but Liu Dazhuang had actually read quite a few books.
The name Liu Dazhuang was something he'd chosen later. His original name had been Li Qinghan, but he felt the name was bad luck for his pigs—Qinghan, "cold and lean," made the pigs sound skinny just by hearing it.
So he'd renamed himself Liu Dazhuang, hoping his pigs would grow big and sturdy.
And as it turned out, the name change had worked perfectly.
Past the boundless sea of clouds, the buildings of the Tianjue Sect glowed nearly translucent white, catching a cold gleam from the sunlight. The structures were carved entirely from ancient cold jade, and the disciples within wore plain robes, moving with light footfalls.
The Second Elder was seated on his dharma throne in meditation, faint threads of dao energy swirling around him.
"Second Elder, another letter has arrived for you," a disciple said, bowing respectfully.
The Second Elder spoke without opening his eyes: "If it's another request to enter the sect, no need to show me."
The disciple hesitated: "The sender said that once you see what came with it, you'll surely change your mind."
He didn't know what was in the chests, but they were heavy—stacked one after another.
After the chests were brought in, the Second Elder finally opened his eyes. He stroked his beard: "Very well. You may leave."
Once the other disciples departed, the Second Elder hopped straight down from his seat and made a beeline for the chests. The moment he caught sight of the gold inside, he nearly drooled.
So much gold, hee hee…
Whoever this was, they really knew how to get on his good side!
The Second Elder composed himself and picked up the letter with a stern expression. He read only a single second before snapping it shut, frowning deeply as he stroked his beard.
"A prodigy of such caliber would be a tragedy if they did not join the Tianjue Sect."
For these gold—ahem, this prodigy—he absolutely had to go speak with Shu Bai about this.
The sect master was in seclusion, and the Great Elder had gone to the Immortal Alliance Conference.
So this genius would be taken under his wing for the time being.
