The middle-aged man finally looked at his daughter with a trace of satisfaction in his eyes.
"Tian'er, you've grown up. You truly are my daughter. At the same age, you're even more mature than our ancestor Rongrong was!"
"Father, I, I..."
Hearing such praise, Ning Tian couldn't help but tremble.
Recalling the praise and admiration heaped upon their ancestor Ning Rongrong in the sect's records, Ning Tian's eyes grew more fervent and resolute. All her previous attachment to Shrek Academy had vanished.
So in Father's heart, I can be compared to Ancestor Rongrong! Perhaps one day, I really can become a legend like Ning Rongrong and have my name recorded in the sect's history!
As for Huo Yuhao... that boy...
A complicated feeling flashed through her heart. What a pity. With such extraordinary talent, yet such a humble background, you were destined for this fate.
Rather than let another faction or sect claim you, you might as well become the sharpest blade of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect—and my most loyal, most perfect knight.
Don't worry. This young lady will treat you very, very well.
Beyond the Sky Screen, across the continent.
"Damn, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is way too real!"
"That 'Yuhao of the Mysterious Underworld Sect' just got drained dry as a cultivation furnace. Now 'Yuhao of the Nine Treasures' seems to be treated a little better, but they're planning to keep him as a live-in son-in-law and ruin him!"
"To be fair, the look in that woman's eyes... it gives me chills just looking at her. Is she really only a teenager? Even the Nine-Colored Goddess probably wasn't this calculating or this scheming back then."
All kinds of reactions filled the various sects and Soul Master Academies. The Mysterious Underworld Sect's people, whose faces had long since turned black as coal, finally showed a trace of schadenfreude.
Sun Moon Empire, Mingde Hall.
Jing Hongchen snorted. "The Ning family have always been good at manipulating people. Compared to Shrek's crude brainwashing, this kind of slow, frog-in-boiling-water control is far more frightening. Still, I'm curious how they plan to stage this 'princess and knight' act."
Shrek Academy, Sea God Pavilion.
Yan Shaozhe's face was livid. He watched Ning Tianzhi's calculating expression on the Sky Screen, then thought of the brainwashing Shrek Academy had just used on Huo Yuhao.
He had to admit, Ning Tianzhi's methods did seem more tempting. They were even willing to "give up the child to catch the wolf," quite literally. Shrek Academy's brainwashing methods suddenly seemed stingy and far too heavy-handed.
"The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect—what a Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect! Ning Tianzhi, you're actually teaching your daughter to use such despicable tactics to seduce a child!"
Yan Shaozhe slammed the table and denounced him, looking as if he were heartbroken over the declining morals of Douluo Continent.
Xian Lin'er sat to one side, silently grumbling to herself. Well, what can you expect? You're so stingy. At least they're willing to offer the boy some sweetness. You just want him to work for free...
But hadn't Shrek Academy been like that for years?
The scene on the Sky Screen shifted again.
In a courtyard of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Huo Yuhao sat cross-legged on a soft silk cushion, cultivating. The spiritual energy here was exceptionally dense, and several precious incense burners had been placed nearby to calm the mind.
"Yuhao, take a break."
A voice so gentle it seemed to drip with tenderness rang out.
On-screen, Ning Tian had changed out of her gorgeous, haughty outfit and into a simple white dress. She carried an exquisite food box in her hand.
She moved with delicate steps to Huo Yuhao's side, then even crouched down without a trace of a young lady's airs. With a handkerchief, she gently wiped at the sweat that wasn't even on his forehead. She looked just like a devoted wife.
"This is the sect's secret Glazed Soul-Nourishing Soup. It'll greatly benefit your spiritual-type Martial Soul. I simmered it myself for three hours. Hurry and drink it while it's hot."
Huo Yuhao looked at the peerlessly beautiful young lady in front of him, who had even "cooked for him herself." His face was bright red, and he looked flustered.
"Miss, you... you're too good to me. I'm just an orphan from a commoner family. I don't deserve this..."
"I told you not to call me 'Miss.' We're all family in the sect. If you call me that again, I'll get angry!"
Ning Tian pretended to look annoyed. She raised her delicate hand and pressed a finger to Huo Yuhao's lips. Starlight seemed to shimmer in her beautiful eyes, leaving the boy dumbstruck.
"No matter what other places are like, and no matter what preconceived ideas you have about our Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect..."
"Here in the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, we care only about talent and character, not your background. From the moment you entered the sect, you became one of my closest companions, just like Wu Feng. You're even... family."
"That's how things are done in the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. It's been this way for ten thousand years. As long as I'm here, no one will dare look down on you."
"F-family..."
At that word, the boy's gaze trembled again.
The sight made the people beyond the Sky Screen feel sick, yet they couldn't help but admire her.
Even Huo Yuhao himself, watching from beyond the Sky Screen, was struggling to keep a straight face.
I never would've guessed. Ning Tian, who was treated like a test subject by some God King in the original story, actually had this kind of talent. Aren't you stealing the God King's princess's role outright?
Still, compared to Zhou Yi making him run with chains and Wang Dong's insults the moment he walked through the door, this bowl of Glazed Soup Ning Tian had brought was a crushing advantage. Unless Huo Yuhao was an M, that was.
If I hadn't been on guard beforehand and had suddenly fallen into this gentle haven, I might not have been able to withstand it either!
What neither Ning Tian nor Huo Yuhao noticed in the scene was this:
Wu Feng, Ning Tian's personal guard, stood in the distance, watching everything in secret through a window. Her hands were clenched into fists, her eyes nearly spitting fire, with a trace of aggrieved hurt that was almost enough to bring her to tears.
Why... why is this happening...
A few days later, Ning Tian was strolling through the sect with Huo Yuhao.
As they passed the practice grounds, several sect disciples from commoner families were being mocked by a few collateral-line disciples surnamed Ning. The latter even started a fight.
Wu Feng instinctively started forward to scold the commoner disciples for "getting in the way," but Ning Tian stopped her with a stern look.
Wu Feng couldn't help freezing again. In the past, Ning Tian had rarely paid attention to things like this. In fact, such minor incidents were usually tacitly allowed. At most, no one dared bully Wu Feng, since she was Ning Tian's personal guard.
"Stop!" Ning Tian shouted, striding forward.