A warm sensation spread across Zhu Qiu’s forehead, and in an instant, her small face turned as red as a ripe apple.
“Ugh…”
Terrified, she immediately scurried toward the corner of the wall, not wanting Zhu Xiaxia to get near her.
‘What is this Evil Dragon doing? Kissing people like that, honestly.’
Seeing a reaction, Zhu Xiaxia approached again and crouched down.
“My dear daughter is being so quiet. Do you want another kiss from Mother?”
“No, I don’t.”
Zhu Qiu just wanted to be alone right now, but Zhu Xiaxia kept bothering her.
“How annoying.”
Zhu Xiaxia feigned a sad tone and leaned toward Zhu Qiu’s ear.
“Do you really not want one?”
“I don’t.”
Zhu Qiu answered very decisively.
She was not a child who needed kisses whenever she was unhappy.
Zhu Xiaxia picked up the custom baby bottle and held it out to Zhu Qiu again.
“Doesn’t my dear daughter want the gift Mother brought you? It’s very exquisite.”
“I don’t.”
Zhu Xiaxia had already guessed that Zhu Qiu would refuse, so she planned to use a little trick.
She stood up with the bottle, her back to Zhu Qiu.
“Well then, Mother will just have to leave in sadness.”
“Besides, since my daughter doesn’t want her gift, I’ll just have to take it away.”
Zhu Xiaxia deliberately slowed her pace, walking toward the door one step at a time.
Just as she had spent ten minutes reaching the door and was preparing to sigh and leave, Zhu Qiu’s stomach growled.
“Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle…”
She was hungry.
Zhu Qiu looked piteously at the space beside her, but the bottle was already gone.
“Ugh…”
Seeing that the timing was right, Zhu Xiaxia quickly returned with the bottle, walking into Zhu Qiu’s field of vision with a grin before crouching down.
“Is my dear daughter looking for this?”
Zhu Xiaxia pulled the bottle from behind her back and shoved it directly into Zhu Qiu’s hands.
“I’m not… munch…”
That was what Zhu Qiu said, but her actions were quite honest.
In the grand scheme of things, eating was the most important.
She would fill her belly first and talk later.
Zhu Xiaxia left, satisfied with the scene.
After finishing her meal, Zhu Qiu felt full of energy again, her physical strength having recovered significantly.
“Hmph!”
Recalling her experience from that morning, her performance had been… so embarrassing.
‘Ugh.’
Just because Zhu Xiaxia said she couldn’t change back, she had actually stayed cooped up and depressed for an entire morning.
She only recovered because of Zhu Xiaxia’s bottle.
‘Waaaaah! Is this still the brave and fearless Human Sword Saint? This is clearly just a little brat!’
Though she had only been a little girl of the Dragon Race for a few days, the feeling of her childhood psychology gradually breaking her down was truly terrifying!
Moreover, the speed of it was getting faster and faster.
‘It’s all Zhu Xiaxia’s fault. It’s because of all her antics that I was lured into this state. I must make a change!’
Zhu Qiu stood in the sunlight, looking out the window with a resolute gaze.
“From today on, I will reclaim the feeling of being the Human Sword Saint. I can’t continue to fall for Zhu Xiaxia’s sugar-coated bullets.”
“Holy Sword, JIAN GE YI!”
Zhu Qiu summoned the Holy Sword and gripped it in her hand to boost her confidence.
Regardless of whether she could change back, at the very least, her sword heart could not be influenced by Zhu Xiaxia.
“Old friend, our common enemy is right before us. Let us challenge her together, defeat her, and return to our Human World, okay?”
Zhu Qiu’s passionate speech almost moved the Holy Sword, but in the next second, the sword’s surface turned dim and lusterless.
“?!”
“Holy Sword, what’s wrong with you?”
The Holy Sword that had accompanied her for many years had never behaved like this.
It had always been glowing and bright; how could its light suddenly vanish?
Then, the Holy Sword’s light reappeared, only to dim again, flickering at a specific frequency as if it had something to say.
Unfortunately, it was just a lifeless Holy Sword and could not speak.
Zhu Qiu had no choice but to guess.
Perhaps the Holy Sword disliked the environment here, which was why it was being so resistant.
“Don’t be afraid, Holy Sword. Once we defeat Zhu Xiaxia, we can go back.”
“Based on my observations of Zhu Xiaxia’s behavior over the past few days, she definitely treats me as her daughter now. She should have let her guard down. Plus, I’m currently a little girl of the Dragon Race, so Zhu Xiaxia definitely won’t have the heart to strike me. In the end, we just need to fight like we usually do, and we’ll win easily!”
Zhu Qiu truly felt like a genius. After she defeated Zhu Xiaxia, the dragon might even beg for mercy and finally tell her the method to change back into a human.
“Holy Sword, are you ready?”
Zhu Qiu confidently raised the Holy Sword into the sunlight, but no matter what, the blade remained dim.
‘It must be the environment. Right, right.’
“It’s fine. We’re going to find Zhu Xiaxia right now.”
Zhu Qiu took the Holy Sword, walked to the door, opened it, poked her small head out, and looked around.
“Where is Zhu Xiaxia? Oh right, she should be upstairs right now.”
“Daughter, are you looking for me?”
Zhu Xiaxia, who had been squatting behind the door the whole time, also poked her head out, coming face-to-face with Zhu Qiu.
“Ah!”
Zhu Qiu was so startled that she fell to the floor, and the dim Holy Sword in her hand dropped as well.
“Zhu Xiaxia, what are you doing?! You’re going to scare someone to death in broad daylight!”
Zhu Qiu scratched her head, picked up the Holy Sword, and stood up.
“Not at all. Mother just felt that her daughter recovered very quickly. Your mood was clearly quite bad this morning, but after eating the meal Mother prepared at noon, you perked up instantly.”
“Hmph! Who said I was in a bad mood this morning? I just didn’t want to talk to you. If Xiaguang were here, I definitely wouldn’t be like this.”
“Is that so?”
The corners of Zhu Xiaxia’s mouth curled up slightly.
She rather liked her daughter’s stubborn appearance.
She had been worried about Zhu Qiu’s psychological state, but seeing her current look, Zhu Xiaxia’s worries were completely unnecessary.
“That’s right. I’m the Human Sword Saint. I never let trivial matters affect my mood.”
“My daughter is so wonderful.”
“I’ve always been wonderful!”
Zhu Xiaxia entered the room, picked up the bottle Zhu Qiu had finished, and prepared to wash it.
As she reached the door, she asked one more question.
“Does my daughter want more milk? Mother is in a good mood today, so I’ll reward you with another bottle.”
“Yes-no! You!”
Realizing she had spoken out of turn, Zhu Qiu immediately corrected herself.
‘That was close. I almost got played by Zhu Xiaxia again. I must be more careful next time.’
“Don’t treat me like a child. Only my appearance has changed. Inside, I am still the Human Sword Saint. Now, I am going to challenge you!”
Zhu Qiu seized the moment and immediately shouted her declaration.
She raised the Holy Sword high and pointed it at Zhu Xiaxia.
“Accept my challenge!”
Initially, Zhu Xiaxia was a bit annoyed that Zhu Qiu was pointing a weapon at her, but seeing the dim, lusterless state of the Holy Sword in Zhu Qiu’s hand, she found it inexplicably hilarious.
“Daughter, we are mother and daughter. Fighting and killing isn’t good.”
“Enough nonsense! Zhu Xiaxia, accept the full-power strike of the Human Sword Saint!”