Douluo Continent: Tonight, a Fairy Tale Descends

If one had to pinpoint a difference, it would be that after news of that person spread, some of the collateral relatives who had previously been quite polite to her now had a hint of something else in their eyes that was hard to define.

She didn't like those looks.

Upon arriving at the entrance to the front hall, the maid bowed and stepped aside.

Zhu Zhuqing took a deep breath, and the frost on her face, which had loosened slightly due to cultivation, solidified again, becoming completely calm, before she stepped over the threshold.

The front hall was spacious, but not luxuriously decorated, exuding a rugged and simple feel befitting a military family.

In the main seat sat a burly, stern-faced middle-aged man.

He was dressed in a dark purple outfit, and even sitting there, one could feel his imposing aura.

He is Zhu Tianlin, the current head of the Zhu family, and also the father of Zhu Zhuqing and Zhu Zhuyun.

Hearing footsteps, Zhu Tianlin raised his head, his gaze falling on Zhu Zhuqing with a tangible intensity, carrying his usual scrutiny.

"Father."

Zhu Zhuqing walked into the hall, bowed slightly, and gave a greeting.

Zhu Tianlin nodded in response.

He didn't speak immediately, but looked at his increasingly unfathomable second daughter with his sharp eyes.

A slightly oppressive silence fell over the hall.

Zhu Zhuqing lowered her eyelids and waited patiently. She knew her father must have something to say to her, and it wouldn't be anything trivial.

As expected, Zhu Tianlin spoke up: "His Majesty's message has come from the royal family."

Upon hearing the words "Your Majesty," Zhu Zhuqing's heart sank.

She subconsciously clenched her hands hanging at her sides, her nails digging slightly into her palms.

"His Majesty has ordered you to go to the Heaven Dou Empire and find the Third Prince, Dai Mubai."

Zhu Zhuqing's face remained expressionless. She simply raised her eyes to look at her father, her voice still steady: "Find him, and then what?"

Zhu Tianlin looked into his daughter's dark eyes and a faint sense of surprise crossed his mind.

His second daughter's composure seemed to be even better than he had imagined.

"Then, we'll cultivate together to prepare for the next Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament," Zhu Tianlin said succinctly.

"You need to work out together, and the Netherworld White Tiger cannot be absent."

The Netherworld White Tiger.

These four words were like a heavy hammer, striking Zhu Zhuqing's heart and shattering her last shred of hope.

So that's what it was all for.

For that damned Martial Soul Fusion Skill, for the cruel inheritance rules of the Star Luo Royal Family, and to maintain the superficial balance of this struggle.

They were all just pawns. Dai Mubai was, and so was Zhu Zhuqing.

An indescribable sense of disgust surged up from the deepest part of her heart, almost shattering the calm she was trying so hard to maintain on her face.

She despised Dai Mubai.

I despise that frivolous and indulgent coward who only knows how to run away when it matters.

She loathed her fiancé who left her alone in Xingluo, to bear all the ridicule and pressure.

She loathed even more this inescapable fate that forcibly bound her and him together.

Now, the person who ran away is out there living a carefree life somewhere, while she, like a forgotten tool that has been remembered, is ordered to find him, to cooperate with him, and to be tied to him again for that ridiculous competition.

Why?

Zhu Zhuqing felt as if something was blocking her chest, making her feel suffocated.

She looked at her father, and for the first time, a barely perceptible struggle and weariness was revealed in the depths of his usually cold eyes.

"Father, must I go?"

Zhu Tianlin frowned, somewhat displeased.

"This is His Majesty's order, and it is also your responsibility."

"responsibility……"

Zhu Zhuqing repeated the two words in a low voice, a very faint smile curving her lips, which vanished in an instant.

Is her responsibility to cooperate with someone who abandoned her?

So, it's about paving the way for that person's ambition?

Seeing his daughter's silence, Zhu Tianlin assumed she was still hesitating, so he added a sentence, his tone softening, but it sounded more like he was stating a cold fact.

"Zhu Qing, you must understand. This is not only for the royal family, for Xingluo, but also for yourself."

He paused, his gaze sharp as he stared at Zhu Zhuqing.

"Your engagement with Dai Mubai is a crucial link in maintaining the relationship between the Zhu family and the royal family. Your performance will directly affect the future of the family and your future situation."

The meaning behind those words couldn't be clearer.

If Dai Mubai ultimately fails, and if she cannot play her due role, then she will lose her foothold in the Zhu family, and even in the entire Xingluo.

A failed prince's fiancée, a pawn unable to fulfill her mission, her fate won't be much better than that of trash.

For your own sake.

These words, like needles, pierced Zhu Zhuqing's heart.

What else could she say?

Resistance? Refusal?

What can she use to resist? And what right does she have to refuse?

In the Star Luo Empire, in the Zhu family, in the face of absolute power and rules, her personal joys and sorrows, her inner disgust and resentment, were laughably insignificant and pitifully cheap.

A profound sense of powerlessness, like an icy tide, instantly overwhelmed her.

All her efforts and struggles seemed so pale and futile in the face of such a casual remark.

She couldn't escape it in the end.

She couldn't escape that name, couldn't escape that marriage contract, couldn't escape this predetermined fate.

Zhu Zhuqing slowly lowered her head, her long eyelashes drooping, concealing all the turbulent emotions in her eyes. She looked at her tightly clenched hands, her knuckles already turning white, and after a long while, she answered in a barely audible, almost sighing voice:

"I see."

Zhu Tianlin looked at his daughter and finally lowered her head, a look of satisfaction on his face.

He waved.

"Go and prepare, and set off as soon as possible. Be careful once you arrive in the Heaven Dou Empire. The family will provide you with the necessary support, but you'll have to figure out how to find Dai Mubai yourself."

"Yes," Zhu Zhuqing replied, her voice as soft as a breeze.

She turned around and walked step by step towards the exit of the hall.

Chapter 227 Graduation is Imminent

Notting Junior Soul Master Academy.

Yu Xiaogang sat in his office, which was filled with books and manuscripts. Sunlight streamed through the window, casting dappled patterns of light on the dusty desk.

He was staring intently at an open book of soul beast mutation diagrams, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the table, making a dull thud.

There was a gentle knock on the office door.

"Come in." Yu Xiaogang didn't even look up, assuming it was another student coming to ask a question.

The door was pushed open, and Tang San and Cinderella entered.

Yu Xiaogang pushed up his glasses, recognized them, and showed no surprise on his face, but a complex emotion flashed in the depths of his eyes.

He put down his pen and leaned back slightly in his chair.

"master."

Cinderella spoke first, her voice clear and crisp, carrying just the right amount of respect.

Today she was wearing a simple dress, her long golden hair was draped smoothly over her shoulders, and her blue eyes were clear and bright.

Tang San followed half a step behind her, remaining silent, only nodding slightly to Yu Xiaogang as a greeting.

His eyes were calm, revealing no emotion, but Yu Xiaogang could sense the impatience and probing beneath that calm.

As graduation draws ever closer, most of the students in their graduating class have already found their paths, some being admitted to intermediate soul master academies, others preparing to return home, each with their own plans.

Only the two of them remain uncertain about their future.

The reason was none other than Tang Hao's unquestionable order.

They are not allowed to go to any intermediate or advanced Soul Master academy in advance; they must stay in Notting City and stay with Yu Xiaogang.

Now, with graduation just around the corner, this order feels like an invisible shackle, making it hard for them to breathe.

The pond at Notting College was far too small for them.

“Master.” Cinderella walked to the desk, gently placing her hands on the edge of the desk, a hint of trouble on her face.

"We're graduating soon, and about the arrangements... Dad said before that we shouldn't leave early. But now..."

She didn't finish her sentence, but the meaning was already clear.

They need somewhere to go.

Tang San stood beside Cinderella, his gaze also falling on Yu Xiaogang's face. Although he didn't speak, the questioning meaning in his eyes was equally clear.

Yu Xiaogang looked at the young man and woman standing in front of him.

In just a few years, they have already shed the naivety they had when they first arrived.

Tang San had grown much taller, his shoulders had broadened, and his eyes were calmer than those of a child his age.

Cinderella grew even more exquisite and dazzling.

They are all true geniuses, unpolished gems.