Chapter 88: Sote Is Brainwashed

“Of course she is. As the daughter of me, Zhu Xiaxia Gracia, what else could she be if not the future Dragon King?”

“???”

Zhu Qiu didn’t know how to answer for a moment, so she simply didn’t answer.

“You can’t master this ability yet, but it will always exist in the depths of your heart, appearing on its own when you need it — just like it did just now.”

Zhu Qiu nodded, half-understanding.

“So it was this ability that stopped the giant ice spike and kept them both from moving?”

“Yes. The discovery of a new ability shows that my daughter is growing. In the future, more abilities exclusive to the Dragon King will be discovered. Mother has high expectations for you.”

‘More abilities in the future?’

Zhu Qiu scratched her head.

‘But if I’m a Sword Saint and have the Dragon King’s abilities, is that right? It’s simply unbelievable.’

“Zhu Xiaxia, I have another question. How did you suddenly come here? This place is so far from the Dragon Race Imperial Palace. Even if you flew, it would take a while, right?”

“It is indeed very far, but I am the Dragon King. It was just a little bit of Magic; there is nothing I cannot do. My heart sensed my daughter’s growth, so I wanted to come and see. It’s about time now; I need to go back.”

“Remember, Zhu Qiu, you are my daughter. Our hearts are connected — mother and daughter~”

With that, Zhu Xiaxia vanished from the spot in an instant.

‘Connected… hearts?’

‘Ugh, how cheesy. Zhu Xiaxia really is something; she doesn’t know how to express herself at all.’

‘By the way, what was that magic she used to suddenly appear and then disappear? It must be something like Teleportation.’

Zhu Qiu began to scheme in her mind.

‘If I can learn that, traveling won’t be such a hassle in the future.’

While she was thinking, time around her suddenly returned to normal.

The massive ice spike crashed toward the ground.

Not only did it maintain its original shape, but it also kicked up a thick layer of smoke.

“Brother!”

Seeing this, Sote stepped forward anxiously, but he was pulled back by Dinksway.

“Sote, don’t go over there. Treat this as a battlefield. You don’t need to pity anyone. If he’s to blame, blame his own lack of ability.”

Dinksway’s words were cold-blooded.

“But Teacher, that’s my brother!”

“You’ve already taken this step, so why talk about brothers? He is your enemy now, do you understand? An enemy who wants to stop you from becoming stronger!”

Dinksway gave Sote a stern reprimand.

When the smoke cleared, only a deep pit remained on the ground, with the ice spike embedded at the bottom.

“Sote, you see the result. You succeeded, and you won. As expected of the Young Mage I favor the most, you are full of potential from head to toe.”

Sote wanted to go forward to check, but he was once again stopped.

“There’s nothing to see. He’s been turned to ashes, and not even a corpse was left. Let’s go. The era ruled by us has officially begun.”

“Wait, it’s not over yet. You’re already thinking of running away? You two are too spineless.”

“Huh?”

The two turned around.

Zhu Qiu jumped onto the ice spike, her red and purple vertical pupils staring intently at them.

As soon as Dinksway met those deep, sharp eyes, his body suddenly couldn’t move.

It was as if he were falling into an abyss, falling deeper and deeper under Zhu Qiu’s control, and his eyes became hollow.

‘These eyes… so eerie.’

After Zhu Qiu blinked, from Dinksway’s perspective, her eyes returned to normal, and the feeling of being controlled gradually vanished.

Dinksway rubbed his eyes and looked back in disbelief, but everything he had just seen was gone.

‘Impossible! That was definitely not something a member of the Human Race should possess!’

“Little brother, you’ve truly disappointed me.”

Zhu Qiu emphasized the last three words.

“Since you are heartless, then don’t blame me for being cold!”

Zhu Qiu was truly angry.

At the same time, clouds drifted across the sky, blocking the sunlight and casting shadows on the ground.

“Sote, hurry and prepare your defense!”

Dinksway quickly reminded him.

“Ice Wall!”

Because he didn’t know when the opponent would attack, Sote could only choose a small defensive spell that could be chanted quickly to block his front.

Zhu Qiu’s body on the ice spike gradually became ethereal, vanishing into the air like fragments.

Dinksway and Sote: ???

‘Where is she? Did she disappear?’

“Slash!”

The next second, Zhu Qiu suddenly appeared from the shadows in front of Sote’s defensive magic and swung her sword down.

“You think a broken Ice Wall can stop my Holy Sword? Do you really think the Holy Sword is just for show?”

Zero point one seconds after the Holy Sword touched the Ice Wall, the wall shattered, and the blade pointed straight at Sote’s chest.

Sote’s mind went blank for a moment.

Dinksway wanted to intervene and save Sote, but it was too late; he didn’t have time to chant a spell.

Just as the Holy Sword was about to touch Sote, Zhu Qiu stopped and put the Holy Sword behind her.

In that moment, the whole world went quiet.

Disregarding his image, Sote slumped to the ground and began to cry, having wet his pants in fear.

“Waaaah, don’t kill me! I’m not even 18 years old yet…”

“I’m not killing you because I’m human and have feelings, and because you’re my brother. If it were anyone else, this sword would have pierced their chest long ago.”

Zhu Qiu angrily thrust the Holy Sword into the ground and turned her gaze toward Dinksway.

“To incite my brother to do this, you’re an even worse piece of work.”

“I’ll be back. No matter what your plan is, as long as I, the Sword Saint, am here, you people with ulterior motives can forget about letting Magic Creatures multiply, and Magic Creatures can forget about threatening the Human City.”

Finally, right under Dinksway’s nose, Zhu Qiu cleared out all the Magic Creatures he had intended to use and walked away.

Dinksway watched Zhu Qiu leave and grinned.

‘Those words just now were good material.’

‘Sword Saint, just you wait to be wanted by the Human Race.’

He unhurriedly helped up the terrified Sote and said earnestly, “Sote, look at your brother. Is that even your brother anymore? He actually dared to attack his own flesh and blood.”

“Waaaah, Master, I’m scared. I’m afraid to die.”

“Right? We’re all human and afraid to die. But your brother actually wanted to take your life just now. If I hadn’t stepped in, you’d be dead by now.”

“You stepped in?”

Sote asked, confused.

“Otherwise, why do you think the Sword Saint stopped? He clearly had the ability to kill you, yet he didn’t deliver the killing blow. Why do you think that is?”

“Why?”

“Because I released magic in time, generating an invisible shield in front of you to save you. To hide his lack of strength, the Sword Saint fled in a hurry. Didn’t you notice?”

Sote’s head was full of question marks.

“Teacher, is that really true?”

“Would I lie to you? Aside from Teacher, no one in the world truly wants the best for you. The Sword Saint doesn’t want you to learn simply because he’s afraid you’ll surpass him. His claim that he’ll come back every day is further proof of how much he fears you.”

Dinksway patted Sote on the shoulder.

“Do you… understand?”

Sote stared into the distance, his pupils turning entirely black.

“I… understand.”