Six Years Later! Zhu Zhuqing, Hunted Down, and the Transformed Lin Yan

Time flew by, and six years passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, at the edge of the Star Dou Great Forest where the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire met, a purple-haired woman clad in black leather darted from tree trunk to tree trunk.

Though her movements were nimble, it was easy to see that her strength was failing, her ample chest heaving without pause.

"Damn it!"

"My Soul Power is almost gone, and my calf muscles are at their limit. At this rate, my pursuers will catch me sooner or later."

"What do I do? Am I really going to be taken back?"

This was none other than Zhu Zhuqing, a level 27 Soul Grandmaster who had fled the Star Luo Empire.

Behind her, a team of Soul Ancestors led by Zhu Zhuyun was closing in to intercept and kill her.

In the towering primeval forest.

Zhu Zhuqing planted a foot on another tree trunk, trying to leap to the one ahead.

But the strain on her calf muscles made her stumble and lose her balance.

Crack!

Her ankle slipped out of place with a sharp crack, and the girl plunged headfirst toward the ground.

Fortunately, Zhu Zhuqing reacted quickly, adjusting her position on the way down and avoiding injury.

"Have I reached my limit?"

On the ground, Zhu Zhuqing stared at her rapidly swelling ankle, her eyes filled with despair.

Six years ago, Dai Mubai had fled the Star Luo Empire out of cowardice, leaving her, a principal contender in the battle for the throne, alone in the imperial palace.

Today, she had finally gathered the courage to try to escape the imperial family herself.

But the result... her pursuers had driven her into a dead end.

The air fell silent.

Zhu Zhuqing watched the dark figures drawing closer behind her and remembered all the effort she had put in over the years for this day. Her despairing gaze grew resolute once more.

"No!"

"Only I can decide my own fate."

"To hell with the Zhu Family, and to hell with the political marriage! I'm Zhu Zhuqing, not anyone's appendage! And I'm certainly not a tool for the Zhu Family to use in a political marriage!"

"I can't fall here!"

With that, she put her hands on her ankle, clenched her teeth, and twisted hard!

Crack!

Her ankle snapped back into place, but Zhu Zhuqing's pretty face had gone as white as paper, and her forehead was covered in cold sweat from the pain.

If I channel all my remaining Soul Power into my calves, I can keep going.

At that thought, the girl took a deep breath and set off once more in the direction of the Heaven Dou Empire's border.

Not far away...

From a tree trunk, Zhu Zhuyun watched Zhu Zhuqing's every move, a mocking smile curling at the corner of her mouth as though she were toying with a dying insect.

"Hehe~"

"My dear little sister, you really are a pitiful sight right now."

"Run! Flee! Struggle!"

"No matter how hard you try now, in the end you'll find it was all in vain."

"When you're born into the imperial family, your ultimate fate is to become a sacrifice."

Beside him, a guard saw Zhu Zhuqing forcing her exhausted body onward, getting farther and farther away. His expression grew anxious as he spoke.

"Eldest miss, the second miss... seems to have recovered a little strength."

"Eldest miss, if we don't chase her now, I'm afraid we really will lose her."

Zhu Zhuyun looked back, her eyes full of contempt.

"Then what are you waiting for? Go after her!"

"As long as you don't kill her, you can teach her a bit of a lesson."

"Yes!"

Meanwhile...

Almost there! I'm almost there!

Once I get through these woods, I'll be at the Heaven Dou Empire's border. There must be Heaven Dou Empire soldiers guarding it. I can ask them for help.

Hang on, I'm almost there!

Zhu Zhuqing had taken the soldiers at the Heaven Dou Empire's border as her ray of hope, believing that once she reached them, all her efforts would bear fruit.

But then...

Rustle, rustle, rustle!

After several unusual rustles of leaves, a bellow suddenly erupted above her head.

[Third Soul Skill: Netherworld Continuous Slash!]

A Zhu Family guard who also possessed the Nether Civet Martial Soul suddenly sprang out, extending his cat claws and slashing at Zhu Zhuqing.

"Ah!"

The girl couldn't dodge in time and was hit. Three claw marks instantly appeared on her full, rounded thigh.

"My leg!"

Zhu Zhuqing clutched her thigh in pain. The flesh there had been torn open, and blood streamed from the wound.

Even the tendons connecting to her knee joint had been severed, leaving her unable to move.

"Damn it, I hit her too hard and injured the second miss by mistake."

"Why worry about that? These were the eldest miss's orders. As long as she's alive, nothing's gone wrong."

Several guards closed in, surrounding Zhu Zhuqing and sealing off every escape route.

"Second miss, give up!"

"Defecting from the Star Luo Empire is a capital offense, especially since you're a member of the Zhu Family. If I hadn't held back just now, you'd already be on your way to the Yellow Springs."

Hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing clenched her teeth and stared at the guard, her expression pained but defiant.

Can I still not do it?

Am I really destined to spend my whole life obediently being a sacrifice?

No!

I refuse to accept it!

The girl didn't know where she found the strength and Soul Power, but in her desperate plight, the second Yellow Soul Ring beneath her feet shone brilliantly.

The next second...

[Second Soul Skill: Netherworld Hundred Claws!]

Bang!

She unleashed Netherworld Hundred Claws, colliding with the guard facing her.

In an instant, Zhu Zhuqing was sent flying backward, crashing through a tree as thick as a bucket.

Pwah!

The girl spat out a mouthful of blood, her breath growing weak.

"Second miss, why bring this suffering on yourself?"

"We're only following orders. If you keep resisting, the rest of us will have to get rough."

As he spoke, the guard in the lead revealed a greedy look, staring at her graceful curves with an uncontrollable leer.

"No! Don't... get away!"

Meanwhile.

Above the Star Dou Great Forest.

A giant eagle with a wingspan of more than five meters circled in the sky, as though searching for prey.

On its back sat three figures: one man and two women.

They were none other than Lin Yan, Xiao Wu, and Ah Yin, who had formed a new body.

Unlike six years ago...

Lin Yan was now nearly 1.9 meters tall, with a straight back and an exceptional bearing. His short, tousled black hair and blood-red eyes gave his face a naturally aloof and haughty look.

Xiao Wu, too, had grown into a graceful young woman. Dressed in a pink skirt with rabbit ears atop her head, she radiated youthful charm, while her long legs wrapped in white stockings gave her a touch of cuteness and playfulness.

As for Ah Yin... she looked much as she had in her spirit form, with delicate features, full breasts, and a slender waist—the figure of a mature woman.

The three sat on the eagle's back, continually peering down below.

"It should be this mountain range. We didn't get the wrong place!"

"But why can't I see a single person?"

Lin Yan muttered, "Xiao Wu, have you seen anyone?"

Xiao Wu shook her head.

"No~"

"I've been staring so hard my eyes are sore, but I haven't seen a single person."

"Hiss~ That's really strange!"

Lin Yan drew a sharp breath, then sank his consciousness into the Sea of Consciousness.

"Sis, are you sure it's today? Could we have come too early or too late and accidentally missed it?"

"I'm a god, and you're human!"

"Do you trust me or yourself?"