Chapter 33: A Disobedient Daughter Must Be Punished

Zhu Qiu raised the Holy Sword high above her head.

“Bye-bye! Dragon Queen Zhu Xiaxia.”

Hearing her daughter’s outrageous declaration, Zhu Xiaxia didn’t even bother taking a defensive stance.

Zhu Qiu leaped up and struck with all her might, swinging the Holy Sword and successfully hitting Zhu Xiaxia’s dragon horn.

But at the very moment the Holy Sword touched the horn, the already dim and lusterless blade instantly shattered into countless tiny fragments.

“??”

“!!”

Zhu Qiu froze on the spot, her eyes wide with total disbelief.

‘This is impossible!’

‘How could my Holy Sword fail to even scratch Zhu Xiaxia’s dragon horn?’

Zhu Xiaxia must have used some kind of Magic again, she just couldn’t see it.

“It had to be that.”

However, Zhu Xiaxia hadn’t used any Magic at all.

She simply stood there quietly, smiling at Zhu Qiu without saying a word.

Zhu Qiu suddenly realized she was no match for Zhu Xiaxia.

Her eyes darted around, searching for the best escape route.

“It seems my daughter is being a bit naughty today…”

Zhu Xiaxia gently rubbed Zhu Qiu’s small head.

As expected, Zhu Xiaxia had guessed correctly; the Holy Sword’s destruction was entirely within her calculations.

She had some prior knowledge of the Holy Sword.

It only possessed power when it emitted Holy Light.

Without that light, it was no different from an ordinary iron sword — perhaps even worse, shattering upon the slightest impact.

As for why the Holy Sword lacked its radiance, she had no idea.

But today, that was exactly the case.

“Aha, well, you know, nature calls. I really need to use the bathroom, so I’ll be going now, haha.”

Zhu Qiu scratched her head with an awkward laugh.

However, Zhu Xiaxia was blocking the doorway.

If she wanted to leave, she would have to squeeze through the gap between Zhu Xiaxia and the doorframe.

And that was exactly what she tried to do.

“Zhu Xiaxia, would you please move aside?”

Zhu Qiu tried to slip through the gap on the left, but Zhu Xiaxia deliberately blocked her with an arm.

She ran to the right, and Zhu Xiaxia blocked both sides.

She was doomed.

It seemed Zhu Xiaxia had no intention of letting her leave.

But to ease the awkwardness, Zhu Qiu maintained her forced smile.

“Don’t be in such a hurry to leave. You haven’t explained why you’re bullying your Mother yet~”

“Huh?”

Hearing Zhu Xiaxia’s question, Zhu Qiu was completely bewildered.

‘Is this strange Dragon Queen off her meds again?’

“I… I wasn’t. I just… uh… had a little accident. Yeah, a small accident.”

Zhu Qiu made excuses as she backed away.

But such flimsy lies were utterly pathetic in the face of Zhu Xiaxia’s smile.

“Look, who was it that cheered you up when you were unhappy this morning? Who brought food when you were hungry? And who gave my lovely daughter a gift?”

Zhu Xiaxia kept her smile from beginning to end, listing almost everything that had happened today in one go.

“Uh…”

Zhu Qiu had already backed up to the window; there was nowhere left to go.

“Mo… Mother?”

“That’s right. So, am I a good Mother?”

“I suppose so?”

“Then…”

Zhu Xiaxia walked toward Zhu Qiu step by step.

“Am I a dutiful Mother?”

“Dutiful.”

‘Ugh, why can’t I find a way to talk back to her! And why am I being led by the nose? She’s coming this way, what do I do!’

“So, today, my precious daughter used such a dangerous weapon to try and harm a Mother who has been so good to her. Wouldn’t that be called bullying your Mother?”

“Uh, I… I don’t know! Don’t ask me!”

Zhu Qiu waved her hands in frantic denial.

How did this transform into her bullying Zhu Xiaxia?

Wasn’t it the other way around?

“Since my daughter bullied her Mother today, shouldn’t Mother punish her?”

“Huh? Punishment?”

“Yes, punishment.”

“What kind of punishment?”

“It seems my good daughter is quite looking forward to her Mother’s punishment~”

“Ah?”

‘Why is Zhu Xiaxia’s train of thought so different from a normal person’s? Yet it follows its own logic; it’s not just random nonsense.’

“No, no, I’m not looking forward to it at all!”

“You’re not? Mother is a bit surprised to hear that~”

Zhu Xiaxia accelerated her pace toward Zhu Qiu.

Sensing things were going south, Zhu Qiu fearfully climbed onto the windowsill behind her.

“You, you, you, you… don’t come any closer! If you take another step, I — I — I — I — I’ll…”

The innate pressure emanating from Zhu Xiaxia had driven Zhu Qiu to a dead end.

She could only climb the window to seek a way out.

But looking out, the drop was incredibly high.

From this height, she couldn’t even see the ground.

There were only patches of clouds around the area where the Dragon Race Imperial Palace stood.

These clouds were specially modified; they were soft but possessed the capacity to bear weight.

However, Zhu Qiu didn’t know that.

In her mind, clouds were thin things that would break the moment you touched them.

Zhu Xiaxia fully grasped Zhu Qiu’s fear.

She was certain the girl wouldn’t dare jump.

“Is my daughter going to bully me again? First you tried to harm your Mother, and now you’re trying to threaten your Mother with your own life. Mother is truly heartbroken~”

Listening to Zhu Xiaxia’s flowery words, Zhu Qiu felt that this Dragon King was simply too powerful — not just in strength, but in the art of conversation.

No, she couldn’t let herself be confused by Zhu Xiaxia’s words.

“I won’t be fooled by you! If you take one more step, I — I’ll jump off from here!”

“If my precious daughter really did that, Mother’s heart would be completely shattered.”

Zhu Xiaxia continued to walk forward, betting that Zhu Qiu wouldn’t dare to jump.

But this time, she miscalculated.

“I… I’m really jumping!”

Zhu Qiu closed her eyes and, without further hesitation, leaped down.

“Waaaah… Dad, I’m sorry! I didn’t think I’d kick the bucket like this. This definitely isn’t a suicide; I was driven to a dead end by Zhu Xiaxia!”

Zhu Qiu finished her last words and peacefully embraced her fate.

However, the long fall and the pain of impact she expected never came.

Instead, clouds as soft as marshmallows caught her, causing her to bounce twice.

“?”

‘Why is the ground soft?’

Zhu Qiu lay on the clouds and pinched the surrounding mist.

‘Eh? It really is soft!’

‘If I took this home to make pillows, blankets, and sheets, sleeping would be so comfortable.’

“Hehehe…”

“Hmm?”

Wait, what was she doing!

Realizing she hadn’t died, Zhu Qiu scrambled to get up.

As soon as she stood, she came face-to-face with Zhu Xiaxia.

The smile on Zhu Xiaxia’s face had long since vanished, replaced by a stern expression.

“Ha… haha… Zhu Xiaxia, we meet again.”

“Yes, we meet again. Based on your behavior today, Zhu Qiu, your Mother is utterly disappointed. I believe it is absolutely necessary to properly punish a disobedient daughter.”

Seeing things were looking grim, Zhu Qiu tried to run again, only to have her tail snatched by Zhu Xiaxia.