Seven Treasures' Abandoned Daughter! Ning Jiujiu!

Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect

"Not a trace of Seven Treasures Glazed Tile light. A useless pagoda."

The moment the martial soul of Ning Jiujiu, eldest daughter of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, appeared, Sect Master Ning Fengzhi's expression darkened terrifyingly, and the surrounding elders all lowered their heads.

"Fa... Father, what's wrong...?"

Ning Jiujiu was only six years old, dressed in extremely plain clothes, completely unaware of what had happened.

"Ah! Father, I've awakened my martial soul!"

Just then, a cry of surprise rang out from beside them, drawing everyone's attention.

"Look! It's so beautiful."

Ning Jiujiu's younger sister, Ning Rongrong, held up a pagoda that shone brilliantly from top to bottom, smiling so widely that she could barely close her mouth.

Like the other elders, Ning Fengzhi nodded approvingly. "Very good. The more dazzling the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda's light is, the greater its future achievements will be. Rongrong, you are Father's pride."

"Father, what about me?"

Ning Jiujiu sensed that something was wrong. Her little hand trembled as she reached for Ning Fengzhi's sleeve.

"Get lost."

With a wave of his hand, Ning Fengzhi shoved Ning Jiujiu straight to the ground.

"Ah! Father, why...?"

"Ning Jiujiu, you have disappointed me." Ning Fengzhi turned to look at her. His usually gentle voice was now terrifyingly cold.

Ning Jiujiu froze.

This was the first time Ning Fengzhi had called her by name. In the past, he had always called her Jiujiu. Why was this happening? Could it be because she had not awakened the legendary number-one support-type martial soul in the world?

"Everyone, please remember this."

Ning Fengzhi picked Ning Rongrong up and faced all the elders present. "From today onward, Ning Rongrong is my only daughter. As for Ning Jiujiu, I will send her to Spirit Hall as a hostage to ensure the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's temporary peace!"

"...A... hostage?"

The moment those words were spoken, the room erupted into an uproar.

Some believed Ning Jiujiu was too young to ease Spirit Hall's wariness. Others suggested crippling her martial soul to eliminate future trouble.

How heart-piercing those words were.

How laughable. Everyone present was an influential figure in the Soul Master world, yet not one of them noticed Ning Jiujiu lying on the ground, her knee smashed bloody and mangled. Instead, they treated her like merchandise...

Calculating her value.

While Ning Jiujiu had lived in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, whether it was her clothes, daily necessities, or cultivation resources, none of it differed much from what ordinary disciples received.

When she had asked why, Ning Fengzhi had grandly claimed it was to let her experience hardship so she could grow. Yet she had clearly seen piles of precious clothes and cultivation resources being thrown out of her room by Ning Rongrong.

All while she kept shouting, "I don't want this, I want that..."

Wasn't that laughable? The things the other girl cast aside like trash were things Ning Jiujiu could only dream of having.

"Father, what are you saying?!"

Ning Jiujiu gritted her teeth. Still clinging to her final sliver of hope, she shouted at Ning Fengzhi, "Didn't you say before that no matter what kind of martial soul I awakened, I would always be your Jiujiu? Why has it changed in the end?!"

"Could it be that the feelings between us as father and daughter over the past six years, every 'Father' and every 'Jiujiu,' were all bound together by nothing more than a Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda martial soul? Father, tell me, is that true?!"

The room was terrifyingly silent. No one spoke.

But do not think they were moved by Ning Jiujiu's plight. Every one of them had long regarded her as a commodity, and the way they looked at her now was as though she were some... laughable insect.

"You are too noisy! Take her away! Do not let her defile the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's grounds!"

"Yes!"

Several disciples rushed forward, clamped a hand over Ning Jiujiu's mouth, and dragged her outside with all their strength.

No...

Unwilling to accept it, Ning Jiujiu kept reaching toward Ning Fengzhi. Yet all she saw before her was the warm scene of him and Ning Rongrong together.

"Father, what happened to Sister?"

"Shh... Little Rongrong, you have no sister. She is merely trash, unworthy."

"Oh, that's true."

Their final words were like a mountain, completely crushing the last sliver of hope in Ning Jiujiu's heart.

She did not know how she left the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. She only knew that, like a walking corpse, she had been thrown into a carriage by the disciples.

The carriage door was nailed shut. She tried to stop them, but someone outside slammed the door on her fingers.

Her fingers were connected to her heart, and the piercing pain made her cry for an entire night. Yet the people around her seemed unable to hear a thing, leaving her alone to jolt about for a long time in that windowless carriage where she could not see her own hand before her face. No one came to see her...

Meanwhile, curses and complaints rose one after another.

"Seriously, why did the Sect Master send me to escort a piece of trash? Bah! Clearly, Miss Rongrong is the true talent of our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Bah! This girl is such bad luck. Why doesn't she just die?"

"Hmph! What's the use of saying all that? We only need to make sure this little girl doesn't die before reaching Spirit Hall. Why should we care about anything else?"

The carriage traveled for over twenty days. During that time, no matter how bumpy the road was or how Ning Jiujiu cried out, they did not slow down in the slightest. They even sped up at times.

When it was time to eat, those disciples casually tossed her their leftover dry rations and filthy water.

Though Ning Jiujiu had not wanted to eat at first, the feeling of hunger was simply too unbearable. She could not hold out. To survive, she could only swallow it all.

At last, one day, the carriage's ride became smooth.

Ning Jiujiu rarely got a good night's sleep. When she woke, a ray of light shone through from a dark corner of the carriage.

Ning Jiujiu was delighted. She had spent more than ten days in darkness. Usually, she could only see sunlight outside when she was given food. This opportunity was extremely rare for her.

Despite the cramped space, Ning Jiujiu leaned her face toward it. With just one glance, she was stunned by the sight outside.

Outside stood an immensely prosperous city. Its streets were even more bustling than Heaven Dou City of the Heaven Dou Empire. What surprised her even more was that the vendors on both sides of the road were plainly dressed commoners, as were even the shopkeepers.

One had to know that in Heaven Dou City, such a thing would have been unimaginable.

The nobles monopolized nearly eighty percent of the empire's economic lifelines. If commoners wanted to do business, they had to pay all sorts of miscellaneous taxes. No matter how they calculated it, what they earned was not even enough to cover the taxes. Thus, most businesses in the empire were controlled by nobles.

That was why she disliked shopping. Everything there felt lifeless.

But the scene here was completely different. If this was what it was like, she would be willing to stay here for the rest of her life.

Her fantasy did not last long. As the carriage passed through a grand and imposing gate, the carriage door was roughly thrown open from outside.

A disciple pinched his nose and violently yanked Ning Jiujiu out.

Ning Jiujiu fell to the ground at once. Her already injured knee was hurt again, leaving her unable even to stand.

Seeing this, the disciple who had dragged her out kicked her again. "Stand properly! Do you know who you are about to face?"

Ning Jiujiu was slightly stunned. Covering her bleeding knee, she tremblingly raised her head.

Before her stood a woman dressed in the Pope's robes, holding a scepter, her entire body radiating a powerful aura. She examined Ning Jiujiu with icy eyes.

She spoke faintly, her tone so cold it made one feel as if they had fallen into an ice pit. "This is... the hostage your Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect sent?"

The escorting personnel wore fawning expressions. "Yes, Your Holiness. She is our Sect Master's eldest daughter, but now that she has been sent here, Your Holiness may deal with her as you please."

"Deal with her? Heh heh, that is true. She should indeed be dealt with."

Ning Jiujiu was so frightened that she did not dare make a sound. When she heard the words "deal with her," her heart jolted violently.

Could it be... that my end will come so soon?

Bibi Dong stepped forward several paces and slammed her scepter against the ground. The earth rumbled.

"Kill her immediately!"