The news that Ning Fengzhi's martial soul had evolved into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda soon spread across the entire Douluo Continent.
Some were envious, some were jealous, some were so sour their teeth nearly fell out, and others began entertaining crooked ideas.
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
Yu Yuanzhen sat at the head of the hall, his face full of bitterness.
"That old Ning Fengzhi really lucked out!" He let out a heavy snort, squeezing the teacup in his hand until it creaked. "He had a good daughter! If she hadn't made the Genius Ranking and gotten that Immortal Herb, would Ning Fengzhi be where he is today?"
Beside him, Yu Luomian stroked his beard and murmured, "Big brother, come to think of it... our Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan really doesn't have any outstanding female disciples."
Yu Yuanzhen's face darkened even further.
He sprang to his feet and swept his hand through the air.
"Spread the word! From today onward, every clan member must hurry up and have daughters! Any family that has a daughter will receive a generous reward! Those who have sons... will be punished!"
The elders exchanged glances, their expressions utterly bewildered.
Punished for having sons? What kind of logic was that?
But seeing Yu Yuanzhen's murderous expression, no one dared say a word. They could only nod repeatedly in agreement.
The Clear Sky Sect.
Several elders sat together, the atmosphere more unusual than ever.
"Ning Fengzhi... the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda..." Second Elder murmured. "A support-type Soul Master actually made it this far thanks to his daughter."
Fifth Elder sighed. "Our Clear Sky Sect has always favored sons over daughters, but look at us now. Raise a daughter well, and she's far more useful than a son!"
First Elder, still recovering from his serious injuries, stroked his beard, his eyes glinting. "Come to think of it... our Clear Sky Sect does have an outstanding woman. That girl Tang Yuehua is one of the most beautiful women in the world. She's already over twenty-five, but the Sky Screen has more than just one Genius Ranking. Maybe she'll get another chance in the future!"
The elders' eyes lit up at once.
"Exactly! Yuehua is the apple of our Clear Sky Sect's eye!"
"If she could catch Brother Cao's attention and cultivate the Yin-Yang Reincarnation Technique, then our Clear Sky Sect..."
"First Elder is wise!"
First Elder stroked his beard, a pleased expression on his face.
The Strength Clan.
Compared to the envy and jealousy of the other clans, the Strength Clan's response was far more simple and brutal.
Clan leader Tai Tan stood before the ancestral shrine, looking at the clan members kneeling all around him. He swept his hand through the air.
"Guards."
"Take Tailong, Taigao, Taiai... all of them away."
"Remove their manhood!"
"Have them walk the continent as women!"
The disciples whose names had been called: "Huh???"
Oh no! The clan leader had gone mad!
Skywater Academy.
Dean Shui Qing'er and her husband, Jiang Luyuan, gazed up at the Sky Screen together, both looking a little wistful.
"That old Ning Fengzhi sure hit the jackpot," Jiang Luyuan said softly, a trace of envy in his voice.
"But Skywater Academy isn't bad either. We have plenty of beautiful girls. Maybe Brother Cao will take notice of one of them someday?"
Nearby, Shui Yue'er heard this and twitched the corner of her mouth, but said nothing.
Jiang Luyuan continued wistfully, "We've got Shui Bing'er, Shui Yue'er, Xue Wu, and so many other beautiful female students. Any one of them could match the girls on the ranking. How come none of them have made it? Could Brother Cao have bad eyesight?"
Shui Yue'er: "..."
Dad, if those girls on the ranking heard you say that, they'd probably beat you up.
Jiang Luyuan was completely oblivious and went on sighing. "Come to think of it, Bing'er, Yue'er, you're both among the best-looking girls at the academy. When will you make a ranking and let your father bask in the glory?"
Shui Yue'er was about to speak.
"BOOM!!!"
A dazzling golden pillar of light descended from the sky and enveloped Shui Yue'er.
Jiang Luyuan's eyes instantly went wide!
He gaped, staring blankly at his daughter as she stood wrapped in golden light.
Did my words just come true?
[Genius Ranking, Seventh Place: Shui Yue'er.]
[Identity: Daughter of the Tianshui Academy Dean.]
[Strength: Rank 92 Titled Douluo.]
[Cultivation Technique: Yin-Yang Reincarnation Technique.]
[Reward: Youth-Preserving Pill, can preserve one's youth forever.]
BOOM!!!
All of Skywater Academy erupted in an instant!
"Shui Yue'er! It's Senior Shui Yue'er!"
"Rank ninety-two Titled Douluo! Oh my god! She's always so cute, but she's a Titled Douluo!"
"The Youth-Preserving Pill! Eternal youth! Oh heavens, I want one too!"
Countless female students shrieked, their eyes filled with longing.
Jiang Luyuan, meanwhile, was completely dumbfounded.
He'd just been complaining about Brother Cao's bad eyesight, and in the blink of an eye, his own daughter had made the ranking!
"Y-Yue'er..." he stammered.
Amid the golden light, Shui Yue'er curled her lips into a playful smile.
"Dad, didn't you just say you wanted your daughter to make the ranking?"
Jiang Luyuan: "..."
Shui Yue'er chuckled and lowered her gaze to the pill in her palm, which glowed with a faint radiance. She tipped back her head and swallowed it.
"Brother Cao, where are you?"
"Are you as devastatingly handsome as you were in my dream?"
Shui Bing'er.
The Ice Phoenix of Skywater Academy, Shui Yue'er's older sister, stood quietly behind a corridor pillar.
A trace of shyness appeared on her cool, beautiful face.
The scenes from her dreams kept flashing through her mind.
She and her younger sister sat side by side, dressed in identical pale blue dresses.
Brother Cao's voice was as gentle as ever. "Bing'er, Yue'er, for today's cultivation, you'll wear the same clothes and use the same poses. I want to see how twin sisters fare when they cultivate in sync."
They did as he asked.
Then came more nights, more cultivation sessions, and more times... wearing the same clothes and using the same poses.
Whenever Shui Bing'er thought of those scenes, her cheeks grew hot.
Just as she was lost in those embarrassing memories—
Another pillar of golden light descended from the sky!
This time, it enveloped Shui Bing'er!
[Genius Ranking, Sixth Place: Shui Bing'er.]
[Identity: Daughter of the Tianshui Academy Dean]
[Strength: Rank 92 Titled Douluo.]
[Cultivation Technique: Yin-Yang Reincarnation Technique.]
[Reward: Youth-Preserving Pill, can preserve one's youth forever.]
BOOM!!!
Skywater Academy erupted all over again!
"Shui Bing'er! It's Senior Shui Bing'er!"
"She made the ranking too! Both sisters made it!"
"Oh my god, Brother Cao's way too greedy! He took both of the beauties from Skywater Academy!"
"Both sisters together... tsk, Brother Cao really is..."
Jiang Luyuan, meanwhile, had completely turned to stone.
"B-Bing'er too..."
When Yue'er had made the ranking, he could still accept it. After all, having one daughter catch Brother Cao's eye was something to be proud of.
But now both his daughters had made the ranking?
Had Brother Cao taken both of his daughters?
"That's too greedy!"
"Those are my daughters! I raised them with so much care, and you're just going to whisk them both away?"
What Jiang Luyuan failed to notice was that the expression on another figure behind him was even more complicated.
Shui Qing'er.
Jiang Luyuan's wife, and the mother of Shui Bing'er and Shui Yue'er.
She stood there quietly, gazing at her elder daughter wrapped in golden light, a guilty look on her face.
Those scenes from her dreams, those nights spent with Brother Cao, those cultivation sessions that made her cheeks burn and her heart race...
She didn't dare tell Jiang Luyuan.
She didn't even dare let anyone else know.
But sooner or later, she would make the ranking too.
And when that happened...
Shui Qing'er lowered her head. A faint blush spread across her still-lovely face.
Jiang Luyuan was still sighing up at the sky, completely unaware of the sort of surprise that awaited him.