As soon as he said this, the other elders of the Ye family shared the same sentiment.
In a big family like this, everything revolved around benefit.
Back when Ye Shao Hua was a talented water-spirit-root genius, those elders still cared about her. But now that her spiritual root was destroyed, they thought there was no way Xuan Yuan Che would actually become her cultivation partner.
“That’s right. Let’s just drop this matter. Tomorrow, when the Xuan Yuan family comes, we’ll bring it up first, and at least we’ll save some face,” the Great Elder said, settling the matter with finality.
If they called off the engagement privately, they could just pretend nothing ever happened.
After all, even Ye Shao Hua’s parents felt that, as she was now, she couldn’t possibly become a cultivation partner with a high-level immortal.
But today, Xuan Yuan Che had come in full force to break the engagement.
Not only did the entire Ye family know about it, but even most of the city had heard that Xuan Yuan Che wanted to call off the engagement with Ye Shao Hua.
He hadn’t considered her feelings at all. It was as if he deliberately wanted everyone to know.
How were the Ye family and Ye Shao Hua supposed to face others after this? Wouldn’t they become the laughingstock of the entire city?
“But…” Ye Shao Hua’s mother’s expression shifted when she heard the elder’s words.
If they really decided on this, Ye Shao Hua’s position within the family would become terribly awkward.
She wished the Xuan Yuan family wouldn’t make such a public spectacle. Discussing it privately between the two families would have been enough—after all, it was the Xuan Yuan family who had wanted to get engaged to the Ye family in the first place.
They were the ones who proposed the engagement, and now they were the ones calling it off.
What did they take her daughter for?
“But what?” The Great Elder shot a cold glare at Ye mother. “Isn’t it embarrassing enough? The Xuan Yuan family has come to your doorstep about this, and you’re still clinging on. Do you want to start a feud with them? What you snatch will never truly be yours. I hope you all see clearly.”
The Great Elder held no low status in the family. He was the highest-level cultivator in the clan, at the ninth stage of Qi Condensation, just one step away from becoming a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
And the gap between Qi Condensation and Foundation Establishment was huge.
Reaching Foundation Establishment would extend one’s lifespan to two hundred years.
But in this world, only inner disciples of the major sects could reach Foundation Establishment.
After all, to achieve Foundation Establishment, one needed a Foundation Establishment Pill, and those pills were extremely rare. Not only were the ingredients hard to find, but even if you found them, actually refining a Foundation Establishment Pill was incredibly difficult.
Even Qian Yuan Sect, which excelled in alchemy, had a success rate of less than fifty percent. That meant, to refine one Foundation Establishment Pill, you needed at least two sets of ingredients.
Because of this, an ordinary person at the ninth stage of Qi Condensation could already throw their weight around in the mortal world.
Although the Great Elder spent most of his time in seclusion, he still knew a bit about what had been going on.
He knew that Ye Shao Hua, for some unknown reason, had lost her spiritual root. He certainly regretted it, but at least the younger generation Ye Yuan had suddenly risen.
That gave him some comfort.
So when he heard Ye mother’s words, he scolded her.
But his words were a bit harsh. The Ye family members standing around snickered involuntarily.
“What are you laughing at? Go back and mind your own business!” The Great Elder swept his gaze over them, and when he saw Ye Yuan, his expression softened slightly.
No one dared to disobey the Great Elder’s orders. One by one, they slipped away.
Ye mother watched them leave, opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off by Ye Shao Hua.
“Great Elder, I also think I’m not suited for the Xuan Yuan family. Let’s just forget about this matter.”
She looked at the Great Elder and smiled.
The Great Elder was over a hundred years old and cared a lot about the growth of the younger Ye family members. He wasn’t particularly biased, either. Back when the original owner had talent, he had put a lot of effort into guiding her.
So, even though the original owner’s spiritual root was now ruined, he still paid attention to her.
Just now, his decision had been the right one.
“As long as you understand,” the Great Elder said, looking at this younger family member with a flicker of pity in his eyes. “Go on now. Cultivation isn’t just about spiritual roots. You can also take the path of body cultivation.”
“I know, Elder.” Ye Shao Hua nodded at him.
Then she turned and helped her mother walk back.
“Shao Hua…” Ye mother looked at her daughter, hesitating.
“It’s fine. My spiritual root is destroyed—that’s just the truth.” Ye Shao Hua shrugged casually.
Seeing her daughter seem so resigned to fate, Ye mother sighed. “I’m sorry you have to go through this.”
Ye Shao Hua just smiled. Sorry? It wasn’t that big of a deal. She had always believed that the path of the strong was never easy. In fact, if the original owner hadn’t lost her spirit and had kept moving forward, she might have carved out an even broader path on her own.
But Ye mother had no idea what her daughter was really thinking at that moment.
The next day.
The Xuan Yuan family did indeed come again.
But this time, the city lord—Xuan Yuan Che’s father—came with them.
“Che’er, are you sure you want to break off the engagement with Shao Hua?” the city lord asked, glancing at Xuan Yuan Che as they approached the Ye residence.
Xuan Yuan Che was unwavering. “Yes, Father. I hope that after the engagement is called off, you can propose marriage to the Ye family on my behalf.”
“To that Ye Yuan?” The city lord stared blankly at his son. “Why do you want to do that?”
“I promised Yuan’er that I would let her become my wife openly and honorably,” Xuan Yuan Che said.
“You…” The city lord looked at his son, at a loss for words. He just gave him a deep look and said, “I’ll help you break off the engagement. But as for breaking off one engagement and proposing another back to back—I don’t have the nerve to do that.”
With that, he walked straight toward the Ye family home.
When he saw that the powerful Great Elder of the Ye family, who was usually in seclusion, had also come out, he straightened up with renewed energy.
Xuan Yuan Che also noticed the Great Elder.
Remembering what Ye Yuan had said about the Great Elder favoring Ye Shao Hua, he frowned. Even if Ye Shao Hua begged the Great Elder to plead on her behalf, he wouldn’t back down.
“Young Xuan Yuan,” the Great Elder said directly, “I’ve discussed this matter of breaking off the engagement with Shao Hua. She agrees that she and your family aren’t a good match.”
Without waiting for a response, he took out the engagement jade pendant that Ye Shao Hua had given him and handed it to the city lord.
Xuan Yuan Che, who had been ready to argue, stood frozen, staring in disbelief. Ye Shao Hua hadn’t shown up at all.
Only the engagement jade pendant appeared.
He took the pendant.
As he was about to leave, he finally regained his composure. “Wait, Great Elder. There’s one more thing. Today, I’ve also come to propose marriage—to Ye Yuan.”
His words landed like a bomb in the Ye family.
Everyone’s eyes turned to Ye father, whose expression had suddenly turned stiff.
Not just Ye father—even the Great Elder’s face darkened considerably.
But Xuan Yuan Che didn’t notice. He turned to Ye Yuan’s father and said respectfully, “Uncle Ye, may I?”
The younger members of the Ye family had gathered not far outside the gate to watch the drama. When they heard Xuan Yuan Che’s words, they paused for a moment before bursting into chatter. “He’s breaking off the engagement and then proposing to Ye Yuan? So the direct-line pure water-spirit-root genius got outdone by a side-branch discarded-spiritual-root girl?”
