Turning Black into White

At the very moment everyone thought Zhu Zhuqing had succeeded...

Something unexpected happened.

"ROAR!!!"

The chaos white tiger on Zhu Zhuqing began roaring at the sky. Its thunderous roar startled all four people nearby.

They felt a suppression that struck at the bloodlines of their martial souls.

Their nether civet martial souls trembled. Even Zhu Yang's mutated netherworld bloodthirsty cat martial soul was shaking, as though it had encountered a king from time immemorial.

Wisps of oppressive might radiated from Zhu Zhuqing.

At the same time, the roars of all kinds of soul beasts rang out throughout the Star Dou Great Forest. Their bellows demanded to know who dared disturb their rest.

Zhu Yang's expression grew grave. He recalled what had happened when Zhu Zhuqing first awakened her martial soul. He had thought it was merely an illusion, that this suppressive power would never appear again. Now he believed it: Zhu Zhuqing might well have awakened a super martial soul.

But this was no time to study such things. The Star Dou Great Forest began to shake, and the cries of humans and soul beasts rose from all around them.

Clearly, Zhu Zhuqing's roar had sent the soul beasts on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest into a frenzy.

Resisting the oppressive might, Zhu Yang rushed to Zhu Zhuqing's side and knocked her unconscious with a chop of his hand.

"Quick, Zhu Zhulin! Grab your sister and run! The soul beasts are rampaging!"

With that, Zhu Yang darted to Zhu Yushu and Zhu Yu Lin in several swift movements, tucked one under each arm, and raced toward the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest.

Zhu Zhulin also knew things had gone terribly wrong. She hurriedly carried her younger sister on her back and ran out of the Star Dou Great Forest. Before leaving, however, she put the Lightning Wind Tiger's long-dead carcass into her Soul Tool.

After all, the Lightning Wind Tiger's carcass alone could fetch a good price, and some of its materials could be used to make quite a few weapons.

Even unconscious, Zhu Zhuqing wanted to curse. Who on earth had hit me so hard just now? My neck is killing me!

An unknown amount of time passed before Zhu Zhuqing finally regained consciousness.

Her fingers twitched, and her eyelids slowly opened. Dazzling light shone at her from all around. She could vaguely make out several figures in the distance and hear indistinct voices.

"That wretched girl finally woke up. Look at her-what a vicious expression."

"Zhu Zhuqing, do you know that you are guilty?"

Still dazed, Zhu Zhuqing finally came fully to her senses. She snapped her eyes open. Quite a few people stood before her, both men and women.

They all looked at her strangely, especially the woman standing at the very front, who was staring at her with utter malice.

It was Zhu Zhuyun.

Zhu Zhuqing had no desire to see her. She struggled up from the floor, then looked around.

She found herself in a gloomy room with little decoration. Only the assortment of instruments of torture on the left stood out-tools used to interrogate prisoners.

Several elderly men and women sat on either side of the center of the room.

To her right was her third sister, Zhu Zhulin. She was crouched on the floor, covered in wounds, blood dripping steadily from her body. Her beautiful long hair had become a tangled mess, and tears covered her oval face.

An icy voice left Zhu Zhuqing's lips. "Where is this?"

Zhu Zhuyun seemed amused by Zhu Zhuqing's question. She threw back her head and laughed.

"Hahaha! What a colossal joke! This is the family's Punishment Hall. Don't tell me you're scared, little sister?"

An icy smile appeared on Zhu Zhuqing's face. Rather than answer Zhu Zhuyun, she walked over to her third sister and began wiping away her tears with her small hands.

One of the elders seated on either side of the gloomy room's center spoke without a trace of emotion. "Zhu Zhuqing, despite your tender age, you forcibly seized a Soul Bone belonging to Zhu Zhuyun. Do you know what a grave crime that is? Do you still remember the Zhu Family's clan rules?"

Crouching on the floor, Zhu Zhulin erupted again, shouting furiously.

"You're talking nonsense! My sister, Uncle Zhu Yang, and the rest of us obtained that Soul Bone together! How could we have stolen it from her?"

"And you arrested us without distinguishing right from wrong, then tortured us into confessing! You nearly beat Zhu Yu Lin to death, and Zhu Yushu is unconscious!"

The elder fell silent, but another elder beside him stood up.

He walked slowly to the door and opened it. After saying a few words to someone outside, he returned to his seat.

Soon, several people entered.

One wore black armor from head to toe. Even his head was concealed by a black helmet, leaving only a pair of cold eyes visible as he surveyed the room.

"Clan Leader!"

"Clan Leader!"

Everyone called out in turn. Even the elders seated on either side of the center of the room rose to bow to the man in black armor.

A middle-aged man with a grim expression followed the armored man inside.

Last came a limping Zhu Yang and the young boy Zhu Yu Lin, whose face had been beaten black and blue.

Seeing their father enter, Zhu Zhulin and Zhu Zhuqing immediately felt reassured. After all, in their current situation, their only option was to argue their case before everyone.

Zhu Zhuqing was still somewhat confused. She knew nothing about any Soul Bone, but from her third sister's words and everyone's expressions, she could more or less guess what had happened.

The Lightning Wind Tiger must have dropped a Soul Bone after dying. Zhu Zhuyun had then tried to seize it, setting off this chain of events.

Zhu Xinglong now sat in the seat of honor at the center of the room, surging waves of soul power pressure radiating from him.

He was furious that such a serious incident had occurred within the clan, especially since his three daughters had come to blows over a single Soul Bone, forcing him to return from the front lines.

"Speak. Who exactly was at fault? Whoever is in the wrong will be dealt with according to the clan rules. No one's status matters, even if she is the future Empress of the Star Luo Empire!"

At those words, Zhu Zhuyun's expression changed drastically, but she immediately regained her composure. This time, she had won over several elders and even bought off Zhu Yang. Her plan was absolutely foolproof, so she had nothing to fear.

"Father, your daughter took some clansmen to obtain a Soul Ring and encountered a Lightning Wind Tiger..."

Zhu Zhuyun turned the accusation back on them, painting black as white and claiming that Zhu Zhuqing and Zhu Zhulin had stolen the Soul Bone.

Zhu Zhuqing had never feared a debate. She had even competed in debating contests back at school. She said coldly:

"You're lying. You were the one who ambushed me and Third Sister! If you have the nerve, take off your shoes and let everyone see whether you're injured!"

Zhu Xinglong turned an icy gaze on his daughter Zhu Zhuyun.

Assassinating one's own clansmen was strictly forbidden. Even in struggles involving the Imperial Family, only open, honorable victories were permitted on the surface. Those were the rules.

Failing an assassination and then being exposed was a grave crime.

Zhu Zhuyun showed no fear whatsoever. She laughed sweetly. "Little sister, what nonsense you're spouting. I can't even dote on you enough, so how could I possibly try to assassinate you? You two, on the other hand, have certainly been up to some fine deeds!"

Under everyone's scrutiny, Zhu Zhuyun removed both her shoes and showed them her feet. She even hopped a few times in place.

"Little sister, lying is wrong," Zhu Zhuyun said with a cold smile as she slowly put her shoes back on.

Everyone immediately turned their gaze toward Zhu Zhuqing. Even Zhu Xinglong regarded his youngest daughter with icy eyes.