“Why don’t you put some clothes on first, daughter? It wouldn’t be good if someone saw you like this, all naked.”
“Huh?!”
Zhu Qiu looked down, her pupils dilating as they filled with pure shock.
“Wah!”
With a loud scream, she rushed out of the room in a panic.
“Your clothes are in your own room! Don’t accidentally wander downstairs!”
Zhu Xiaxia didn’t forget to remind her.
It was getting late; it was time to get up.
If she didn’t start now, she wouldn’t be able to finish today’s work.
Zhu Xiaxia dressed herself, finished washing up, and stepped out, only to run right into Zhu Qiu.
“Zhu Xiaxia! You’re just in time! Explain what happened yesterday! Why was I lying in your bed completely naked? Did you do something bad to me while I was asleep?!”
Zhu Qiu was currently furious, looking like she wanted to kill Zhu Xiaxia on the spot.
“What is my darling daughter talking about? Your mother doesn’t seem to understand~”
“Zhu Xiaxia, don’t play dumb with me! I’m serious.”
“Nothing really happened~ Everything was done of your own free will, daughter~”
“There’s no way I would do that willingly! You must have done something!”
“Oh? Is that so?”
Zhu Xiaxia became interested.
“Why don’t you think back, daughter? Who was the one who purposefully didn’t wear clothes last night, wrapped themselves in only a towel, and climbed into my bed? And who was the one who took the initiative to ask for a hug?”
“!!!”
Zhu Qiu thought back.
“These… these were all true!”
Not only that, she had actually been acting on her own desires at the time.
She had even thoroughly enjoyed the hugging part.
‘Could it be that as the Human Sword Saint, I’m truly going to fall into depravity!’
Zhu Qiu stared at her trembling hands in a fit of self-doubt.
‘Impossible! Absolutely impossible! I am the Human Sword Saint; I will not fall!’
“Holy Sword, Gegeyi!”
“Zhu Xiaxia, let’s duel!”
“Oh?” Zhu Xiaxia couldn’t help but chuckle. Zhu Qiu was being naughty again today. “Does my daughter want to challenge her mother?”
“Cut the talk! Zhu Xiaxia, show me your full strength!”
“It seems my daughter really does possess the Dragon King’s Air~ I’ll give my daughter a chance. You get to decide the method of the challenge.”
‘I get to decide?’
Zhu Xiaxia was far too naive!
“Wasn’t this just writing victory across her own face!”
“You said it yourself! No taking it back!”
“I won’t. Your mother is a woman of her word.”
“Then…”
Zhu Qiu’s little brain whirled.
If she couldn’t win in a head-on fight, she would attack from behind.
Besides, Zhu Xiaxia said she could set the rules…
“Turn around and face away from me. Let me use my full power for one strike. During this time, you aren’t allowed to use any defensive magic.”
“Is that all?”
“?”
‘Shouldn’t Zhu Xiaxia be terrified? Why is she so calm!’
“Whatever.”
She must be bluffing, trying to scare her when she was actually scared to death inside.
“That’s all.”
“Alright then. Hurry up, daughter. We have to eat soon.”
Zhu Xiaxia turned around, her back facing Zhu Qiu.
“Fine! Here I come!”
Zhu Qiu held the Holy Sword high with both hands, staring at the inscriptions appearing on the blade, and began to chant.
“By the Sword Saint’s Oath, I accept the promise of 100 generations of heroic spirits, upholding the Covenant of Light. Tempered by the 10,000-year fires of the Abyss Purgatory to burn away all falsehoods and filth, I forge immortal power. I hold the ultimate sword intent transformed from the sacred Holy Sword Gegeyi…”
Zhu Xiaxia thought, ‘What is this girl mumbling about?’
“Holy Light Final Slash!”
After chanting a bunch of useless nonsense, Zhu Qiu unleashed her Holy Sword’s ultimate move: the Holy Light Final Slash.
The sword strike aimed straight for Zhu Xiaxia’s back.
However, for some reason, the sword qi seemed as if it were being controlled.
Just as it was about to hit Zhu Xiaxia, it reflected back.
With a ‘whoosh’, the sword qi grazed past Zhu Qiu’s ear and pierced through the ceiling of the Imperial Palace.
Zhu Qiu collapsed to the ground, terrified by her own sword qi.
The Holy Sword slipped from her hands.
“How… how is this possible! Why? Why did this happen!”
Zhu Xiaxia turned around, looking triumphant.
“That strike of yours was quite powerful, daughter. Unfortunately, you still lost.”
“Zhu Xiaxia, you cheated! You broke the rules! I should have won!”
Zhu Qiu refused to accept it, still trying to argue her way out.
“Mother didn’t break any rules. You said I couldn’t use defensive magic, but I used a bit of Control Magic. That doesn’t count as breaking the rules, does it?”
‘Huh? Control Magic? There’s such a thing as control in magic?’
This touched upon a blind spot in Zhu Qiu’s knowledge.
She had suffered this time because of her lack of education.
“Wah! Again! This time you can’t use any magic at all!”
Zhu Qiu rolled around on the floor, throwing a tantrum.
Zhu Xiaxia didn’t indulge her at all, picking her up with one hand.
“A loss is a loss. A Human Sword Saint wouldn’t be a sore loser, would they?”
“Hmm?”
Zhu Qiu stopped instantly.
“I’m not! A loss is a loss, it’s no big deal.”
Zhu Qiu acted as if she didn’t care, as if nothing had happened.
Zhu Xiaxia set Zhu Qiu down and helped tidy her hair.
“Alright, alright. It’s time to eat.”
Zhu Qiu had barely taken one step when Zhu Xiaxia pulled her back.
“Don’t be in such a hurry to leave, daughter. You’ve challenged your mother; now it’s your mother’s turn to challenge you.”
“Huh? You’re challenging me?”
Zhu Qiu looked on in disbelief.
“What kind of challenge was this?”
This was clearly a blatant excuse to bully her.
“Aha… about that… maybe we should just forget it?”
“That won’t do. Even though we’re mother and daughter, we have to be fair.”
“Can’t we just not fight?”
“No.”
‘It’s over. Zhu Xiaxia is doing this on purpose. I can’t escape a beating.’
“Wu~”
“How do you want to challenge me? I mean… when you strike later, can you… go a little easy?”
Zhu Qiu’s legs went weak from Zhu Xiaxia’s aura, making it hard for her to stand.
“That won’t do. Since it’s a challenge, I must give it my all. Wasn’t that what you just did, daughter?”
“Huh?”
“Let’s go. We’ll find a training ground.”
“Wu~”
Zhu Xiaxia took Zhu Qiu’s small hand and led her out of the Dragon Race Imperial Palace.
As they passed the first floor, Xiaguang asked, “Her Majesty the Queen, are you and the Princess heading out? Are you not eating lunch?”
“We have some business to attend to. You and Ilanka eat first. Just make a fresh portion when we get back.”
“Yes, Her Majesty the Queen.”
‘Speechless. Who the hell makes lunch twice in one afternoon?’
Xiaguang thought.
Ilanka was also stunned by the scene, questioning herself.
‘Am I even here to be a teacher? Where is the student? Does she even act like a student?’
At the entrance of the Dragon Race Imperial Palace, Zhu Xiaxia transformed into her Dragon Form.
She had Zhu Qiu sit on her neck and flew into the sky.
A short while later, they reached the level above the Dragon Race Imperial Palace.
Clouds and mist swirled here, surrounding countless floating islands, otherwise known as the Sky Island.
The height and environment of each island varied.
Some were as scorching as hell, some were as freezing as the poles, and there were even forested islands with pleasant environments.
“So there’s a hidden paradise above the Dragon Clan Urban Area…”
Zhu Qiu’s eyes were opened.
She really hadn’t expected the Dragon Kingdom to have such a magnificent hidden world above, in addition to the great environment below.