Douluo: The Venom System is Awesome

She was dead wrong.

No matter what that beast Qian Xunji had done to her, the child was innocent. Because of her own pain, she had cruelly deprived her daughter of the maternal love she deserved for over a decade, pushing her into the same abyss of loneliness she inhabited herself.

A powerful impulse drove her. She stumbled forward two steps, hesitantly and with agonizing slowness, reaching out a hand to touch that trembling head of golden hair.

Her fingertips were trembling as well.

...Xiao Xue.

Her voice was dry and hoarse, thick with obvious choking sobs and an unprecedented tenderness.

"I'm sorry... Mother... was wrong..."

The moment these words left her lips, it felt as if something solid had shattered within her. She was no longer the cold, hard Pope of the past, but merely a mother filled with guilt and remorse.

Hiding behind a tree, Mu Junyu watched this scene, silently withdrew his gaze, and let out a soft sigh.

The glow of the setting sun stretched the shadows of the three of them long, blending them tightly together.

Qian Renxue wept in her mother's arms for a long time, as if she wanted to cry away all the grievances of the past decade.

Bibi Dong patted her back with clumsy but incredibly gentle movements, whispering "I'm sorry" over and over, her purple eyes brimming with moisture.

Hiding behind the tree, Mu Junyu watched this scene of the two finally embracing, and a heavy stone in his heart finally fell.

He waited patiently for over ten minutes, until Qian Renxue's crying gradually turned into low sobs and her emotions seemed to have calmed slightly.

He felt it was time.

Mu Junyu adjusted his expression, deliberately pouted, put on an exaggerated, jealous look, and hopped out from behind the tree.

"Hey, hey, hey!" he shouted, his voice filled with feigned dissatisfaction. "You two! Did you forget about me?"

Without waiting for an answer, he squeezed between Bibi Dong and Qian Renxue, forcefully shoving his head into the space between them.

He looked left, then right, and finally opened his arms, hugging both of them tightly at the same time.

"Teacher doesn't want me now that she has Sister Xue! Sister Xue doesn't see me now that she has Teacher! I'm so pitiful!"

While fake-crying, he secretly observed their reactions.

This sudden bit of clowning instantly diluted the heavy, sorrowful atmosphere of the scene.

Bumped by him, Qian Renxue almost lost her footing and subconsciously reached out to hug him back.

Looking at his antics, her tear-swollen eyes couldn't help but curve, and she chided him with a heavy nasal tone.

"You... what nonsense are you spouting!"

Bibi Dong was also taken aback by this sudden "fight for favor."

She looked at the fuzzy little head wedged in the middle and felt the warm little body suddenly added to her embrace; the cold corner of her heart seemed to be completely filled.

She shook her head helplessly, but the corners of her lips curled upward involuntarily, and though her eyes were still teary, they bloomed with a genuine smile.

"You little brat... you're everywhere."

Her voice was still a bit hoarse, but it was filled with an unprecedented softness and doting.

Mu Junyu pushed his luck, hugging them both tighter, and said with a grin.

"Of course! We're a family! If we're going to hug, we have to hug together!"

Under the setting sun, the two looked at each other and smiled, their eyes still carrying traces of undried tears, yet their hearts were closer than ever before.

They tightened their arms in unison, pulling the "jealous" little guy in the middle into a firm embrace.

The three of them stood like that in the empty training ground, holding each other tightly.

There were tears of relief, warm smiles, and that bond called "family" that had arrived late but finally broken through the soil.

The evening breeze blew by, bringing a hint of chill, but it could not blow away the warmth of this tight embrace.

[Bibi Dong Favorability: 85% (Guilt and love intertwined, sense of family belonging increased). Qian Renxue Favorability: 55% (Received maternal response, emotional void filled, dependence and affection for Mu Junyu deepened).]

[Special Status: [Family Bond] initially established.]

Although the process was a bit convoluted, the result... was really not bad.

Mu Junyu found a more comfortable and softer position in their arms.

Two mountains on the left, two mountains on the right.

Mu Junyu's little head was tightly wedged between the mountains, his cheeks inevitably sinking into an indescribable softness.

On the left, it was Bibi Dong's full, perky mountain; even through her plain long dress, he could clearly feel its astonishing elasticity and the curve of the terrain.

Accompanied by her still-sobbing breaths, it rose and fell slightly, emitting the rich, reassuring fragrance unique to a mature woman.

To his right were the beautiful curves of Qian Renxue, still youthful yet already beginning to take shape, her softness carrying the resilience of youth and the scent of sunshine.

Pressed against his cheek, the sound of her heartbeat was clearly transmitted through the thin fabric, rapid and powerful.

Two distinctly different types of softness, yet both equally warm and elastic, like the finest cloud brocade wrapping around warm jade, submerged his entire cheek in a gentle paradise that was almost suffocating, yet he was more than willing to indulge in it.

"Mmph..."

Mu Junyu couldn't help but let out a muffled sigh, subconsciously rubbing against them, trying to find a gap to breathe within this dizzying softness.

The result, however, was that he sank even deeper into the embrace.

This overly "blissful" burden caused his little face to heat up rapidly, turning as red as a ripe apple.

Bibi Dong and Qian Renxue seemed to notice this overly intimate contact as well, their bodies stiffening slightly at the same time.

Qian Renxue was the first to react, her earlobes turning bright red instantly as she shyly and angrily gave his head a light push.

"You... what are you rubbing against!"

Bibi Dong also gave a light cough, a faint, imperceptible blush rising on her face. Her arms loosened their grip slightly, though she didn't let him go entirely, merely scolding him helplessly.

"You have no sense of propriety..."

Only then was Mu Junyu able to lift his head, gasping for fresh air while wearing a silly grin on his face.

His purple eyes sparkled as he muttered in a self-righteous tone.

"It's clearly because you two were holding me too tight... but, hehe, so soft and so comfortable." (ps: Hu Liena, who is searching for Mu Junyu in the distance, begins to grumble.)

Chapter Thirty-Two: Departure! For Martial Soul Hall!

Over the next three days, the atmosphere in Martial Soul Hall underwent a subtle and warm change.

As if to make up for the missing years of the past decade, Bibi Dong postponed almost all non-essential matters or handed them over to her subordinates to handle.

Every day, from dawn until dusk, she spent the majority of her time with Qian Renxue.

They were no longer confined to the training grounds.

Sometimes, the two would stroll side by side through the gardens of Martial Soul Hall.

Bibi Dong would softly explain the characteristics of rare plant-type soul beasts, while Qian Renxue would listen quietly, occasionally asking a question or two.

Although their conversations could not yet be called intimate or unreserved, the sense of rigidity and estrangement had clearly faded significantly.

Sometimes, they would share lunch together.

Bibi Dong even remembered to instruct the kitchen to prepare a few snacks that Qian Renxue seemed to have favored as a child, though she wasn't sure if her daughter still liked them now.

Qian Renxue would look at the exquisite snacks on the table, her expression becoming complex, before silently eating them.

Once, a guard even saw the Pope and the Young Mistress appearing together in the library, seemingly looking up information on the noble lineages of the Heaven Dou Empire and exchanging low-voiced opinions.

Under the sunlight, the pair of purple-haired and golden-haired figures, both possessing peerless beauty, formed an unprecedentedly harmonious picture.

A quiet and tacit atmosphere flowed between them, a sign that the blood-related affection, after being frozen for so long, was finally beginning to thaw.

Yet, the "instigator" of all this, Mu Junyu, couldn't quite bring himself to smile. He sat listlessly on the stone steps by the training ground, resting his chin in his hands as he watched Bibi Dong and Qian Renxue playing a game of chess in a distant pavilion, kicking at the pebbles beneath his feet in frustration.

"Sigh..." He let out a long, drawn-out breath.

In these three days, let alone engaging in "deep cultivation" with Bibi Dong like before, he had barely had a chance to speak a few words to her alone.

Qian Renxue followed Bibi Dong almost everywhere, and Bibi Dong's attention was almost entirely focused on her daughter.

He had tried to approach them several times, only to be glared back by a "Why are you here again?" look from Qian Renxue, or gently dismissed by Bibi Dong under the pretext of "Xiao Xue and I have some matters to discuss."

[Current Status: Bibi Dong is focused on mending the mother-daughter relationship. Qian Renxue is immersed in long-overdue maternal love and feels grateful toward Mu Junyu.]

[Mu Junyu's progress: Stagnant.]

[Mu Junyu's internal monologue: Did I just... shoot myself in the foot? Did I personally create two obstacles for my own conquest?]

He scratched his head, feeling a bit aggrieved, but he couldn't bring himself to truly disrupt this hard-won reconciliation.

Watching the truly relaxed, and even slightly tender, smile that occasionally appeared on Bibi Dong's face.

Watching the coldness and loneliness gradually dissipating from Qian Renxue's eyes, he also felt...

Maybe this wasn't so bad?

"Forget it, forget it."

He consoled himself.

'I'm going to the Heaven Dou Empire soon anyway, there's plenty of time. It's more important to let them build a foundation for their relationship first.'

It's just... looking at that increasingly harmonious mother-daughter pair, he couldn't help but let his little masculine thoughts bubble up—when would he be able to continue his grand enterprise of "blissful cultivation" again!

Just then, Bibi Dong, who was in the middle of her chess game, seemed to sense something; she looked up and glanced toward Mu Junyu from afar.

The moment their eyes met, she paused slightly, then gave him a very faint yet incredibly genuine smile, carrying a hint of apology and reassurance. Mu Junyu's heart skipped a beat, and his lingering frustration vanished in an instant.

Fine, he could wait. He rubbed his nose and returned a big, goofy grin.

(ps: The following is an adaptation introduction.)

Because originally, Qian Renxue entered the Heaven Dou Empire at the age of nine and remained undercover for about twenty years.

I have changed the timeline so that we enter the Heaven Dou Empire at twelve years old, with five years to complete the usurpation of the nation.

The morning light was just beginning to break, and the atmosphere before the magnificent gilded gates of the Martial Soul Hall was solemn and tinged with a hint of melancholy.

Bibi Dong personally saw Qian Renxue and Mu Junyu off to this point.

She had donned a more formal and solemn Pope robe today, the white-gold patterns flowing with a majestic luster under the morning light, yet her gaze was much softer than usual.

Qian Renxue was also prepared for the journey, having changed into a low-key yet dignified white martial outfit, her long golden hair tied into a neat ponytail.

There was a trace of gravity and anticipation for the future between her brows, but when she looked at Bibi Dong, the sharpness of the past had faded, replaced by a subtle, imperceptible attachment.

As for Mu Junyu, he was dressed as a young page in light gray, his small stature carrying a rather large book box on his back, making him look both well-behaved and clever.

He kept his head slightly lowered, striving to play the role of a dutiful little page, only his darting purple eyes occasionally stealing a glance at Bibi Dong, betraying a hint of reluctance.

"The mission this time is arduous; prioritize your own safety above all else."

Bibi Dong's gaze swept over the two of them, her voice steady and carrying the weight of a Pope's instructions.

"The situation in the Heaven Dou Empire is complex; be cautious in all things and maintain contact through the secret line at all times."

"Yes, Mother/Teacher."

Qian Renxue and Mu Junyu responded in unison.

Bibi Dong paused, stepped forward, and first reached out to gently embrace Qian Renxue.

This hug was still somewhat stiff, yet it was much more natural than it had been a few days ago.

She whispered something into Qian Renxue's ear; Qian Renxue's body stiffened slightly, then she nodded gently, her eyes turning a little red.

Next, Bibi Dong turned to Mu Junyu. She looked at this little fellow who was much shorter than her, the emotions in her eyes even more complex.

She bent down and also gave him a gentle hug, her movements even softer than they had been with Qian Renxue, as if she were afraid of breaking something.

"Take care of yourself, and... help Teacher take care of Xiao Xue."

Her voice was kept extremely low, audible only to Mu Junyu, the tone hiding a trace of imperceptible concern.