Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
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Fortunately, the news broadcast ended quickly, and the TV station started airing commercials. It was an advertisement for a clothing brand, and the production quality was excellent. Accompanied by upbeat music, several smartly dressed young people stepped onto the screen. Wei Xi was stunned when he saw their faces, and Tuan Tuanyi also recognized the dark-skinned youth in the lead: “Hey? Isn’t that Wild Boar Brother?”
As expected, the figure at the forefront of the screen was the wild boar spirit. He was wearing a bright-colored down jacket and approached the camera from a distance with a cool expression. He walked with a certain imposing presence, and his features and demeanor were very recognizable. From behind came Old Lady Wang’s voice: “Oh dear, what wild boar? His name is clearly Zhu Ye, it’s a nice name.”
Sure enough, there was a line of small print next to the advertisement, introducing the names of each actor as they appeared. When it was the wild boar spirit’s turn to appear, the small print read “Zhu Ye”.
Tuan Tuanyi burst out: “That’s a great name.”
However, judging from Old Lady Wang’s expression, it seemed she knew who the wild boar spirit was, which shocked him. Had he not even made his debut yet? Could he already be famous?
He asked Old Lady Wang, “Do you know him?”
Grandma Wang smiled and said, “It’s all because of my granddaughter. She insisted on showing me the video yesterday. Young people like her, still chasing after celebrities. She said this is a new artist promoted by some company. I thought he looked quite manly, so I remembered his name.”
When she mentioned it, Wei Xi did remember that Qiu Guokai had called him a while ago to praise the Wild Boar Spirit, saying that since the employee development program ended, the Wild Boar Spirit had undergone a significant transformation after returning to the company.
Qiu Guokai once mentioned the problem with these spirits. Perhaps because of their different lifespans, although they didn’t understand anything after coming down from the mountain, they were instinctively unwilling to integrate into the normal human social order. They seemed to have an instinctive contempt for humans. They were usually unwilling to cooperate with the homework he assigned and showed great disdain for money. Among them, the wild boar spirit, who was the leader of the spirits, was definitely the most difficult troublemaker.
It was really strange. Ever since the team-building activity ended, the wild boar spirit had been completely transformed. Not only had he led his group of followers to start studying diligently, staying up late to memorize the New Concept English textbook, but he had also completely changed his previous complacent and disdainful attitude towards the mundane world. He repeatedly expressed his desire to make money to Qiu Guokai. He even stated directly that as long as he could make money, he won’t be picky about how hard or tiring the work was.
Qiu Guokai, recalling his previous behavior, was initially hesitant to believe his request. However, after tentatively assigning him a still photography task, he saw that he performed exceptionally well. Not only was he highly cooperative during the shoot, but he also patiently handled the minor chaos that occurred on set, leading the other spirits to help resolve the issues. He earned unanimous praise from the filming crew, and when he finally received its payment, the fatigue on his face vanished, replaced by a happy smile.
Qiu Guokai lamented to Wei Xi that human society was truly difficult; how could a pure wild boar have become so greedy for money in such a short time after coming down from the mountain?
Wei Xi thought to himself, “That’s right.” After he came down the mountain, he was also troubled by the word “money.” For such a large sect, if it wanted to grow bigger and stronger, there was nowhere that wouldn’t cost money.
However, the transformation of the monsters was clearly beneficial to the sect, as the commissions transferred by Qiu Guokai were quite substantial.
However, he only just realized that the commission came from advertising revenue. Thinking of that six-figure sum, which was comparable to the income he would earn from performing a religious ceremony, he couldn’t help but realize once again the amazing nature of various industries outside the mountains: “Just shooting an advertisement can earn so much. What is the use of this stuff?”
As a retired business elite, Old Mrs. Wang couldn’t tolerate such remarks: “Xiao Wei, you’re wrong. How can advertising be useless? Advertising is incredibly useful. Don’t even mention other places; just look at our local TV station in Beijing. The ratings are so-so, right? But when our company’s newly launched beverage wasn’t selling well, we just sponsored a prime-time variety show with an advertisement, and wow, the effect was unbelievable! It immediately became the best-selling series in the entire company, almost selling out!”
Wei Xi asked in surprise, “Really?”
Grandma Wang, speaking with the air of someone who had been there before, said: “These days, when people want to learn about something new, they have to start with the internet or advertisements. It’s no longer the era where good wine needs no bush.”
….
Old Lady Wang respectfully left with the statue of the Heavenly Venerable she had obtained. After she left, Wei Xi sat on the sofa in his own sect, lost in thought.
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He suddenly remembered that when his sect first opened, Tuan Tuanyi had indeed mentioned promoting it online and had even used various methods like retweet raffles to manage the sect’s Weibo account. Under his diligent efforts, the Taicang Sect had indeed gained increasing popularity; recently, its Weibo followers had surpassed 300,000. What did 300,000 followers mean? Rounded up, that’s 300,000 disciples.
With disciples all over the world, this was precisely the sign of a thriving sect that Wei Dedao had once mentioned. Three hundred thousand disciples was quite a lot in Wei Xi’s mind, so he was initially quite pleased. However, when he checked the trending topics, he found that any random account had more followers than the Taicang Sect.
This couldn’t go on.
….
Today was the day for his regular physical exam. So after attending the morning meeting at the company, Wei Tianyi went home to pack his things. On his way back and forth several times, he noticed that his eldest son was always deep in thought, sitting motionless. His gaze was fixed on a spot in the distance. With his messy curly hair and his slender figure nestled in the large, fluffy sofa, he didn’t look rough at all; instead, he appeared calm and composed, with a hint of melancholy.
Wei Tianyi was shocked. Heaven knows how long it had been since his eldest son had been so quiet!
During this time, he had been trying to use his old methods, hoping that his eldest son, who was being treated coldly, would revert to his former timid and fearful self. Therefore, he not only canceled Wei Xi’s credit card but also hadn’t spoken to Wei Xi for a long time. Of course, Wei Xi was completely unaware of this cold violence— he never used the poor kid’s credit card in the first place, and besides, why would he talk to Wei Tianyi for no reason?
Shu Wanrong was also going to have a physical examination. She was carrying Wei Tianyi’s things and was about to leave with her husband when she heard her husband snort coldly and stopped in her tracks.
She looked at the other person: “What’s wrong?”
Wei Tianyi chuckled and gestured for her to look at Wei Xi: “I think he’s finally realized how powerful I am.”
Shu Wanrong said pessimistically, “…I think you’re overthinking it.”
“Hmph.” Wei Tianyi confidently abandoned her and walked straight to Wei Xi, then coldly asked, “What do you want to say now?”
Then Wei Xi pondered and said, “…I don’t think the Taicang Sect can continue like this.”
Wei Tianyi paused, his gaze sweeping over the strange ornaments inside and outside his house— the various statues, incense burners, stone tablets, and other oddities— as well as the lush vegetation outside and the worshippers offering incense.
Good heavens!!! Is he finally going to shut down this disgraceful, worthless company?!
Wei Tianyi stared at him in disbelief, and for a moment, he could almost hear the sounds of cannons firing, fireworks soaring, and two thousand firecrackers bouncing wildly in his chest.
The next second, Wei Xi continued his analysis: “The development is too slow. Taicang Sect may need a TV commercial.”
The cannons went silent instantly.
Shu Wanrong, carrying a small bag, looked at her husband, who had returned in a daze, with a complicated expression: “…I told you, you were overthinking it.”
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