Father

At the man's words, everyone present settled down.

Under his father's icy gaze, Zhu Zhufeng set down the little sister he held in his arms, then withdrew to one side without another word.

Everyone's eyes now converged on the petite Zhu Zhuqing.

Zhu Zhuqing felt that icy gaze. She had wanted to reveal at once that she had twin martial souls, and that her martial soul was the Chaos White Tiger. But when she caught the disgust her elder sister secretly showed, her heart sank to the bottom of a valley.

She immediately knew she could not do that. She was still young; if she did, she might never live to see the day she became powerful.

"Martial Soul Possession!"

A tiny white tiger formed from soul power behind Zhu Zhuqing. It was utterly adorable, its eyes narrowed as though it had just woken up. Yet it seemed listless, as if it had not eaten its fill. It could not even be bothered to spread its little wings, which clung to its back like two extra lumps of flesh.

A pair of adorable, fluffy white ears stood upright, while a little white tail formed from soul power drooped behind her. Once Zhu Zhuqing finished releasing her martial soul, she trotted over to the man in silver armor.

"My martial soul is the Nether White Cat." Zhu Zhuqing looked curiously at her father in this life.

She had lied, withholding the fact that her martial soul was the Chaos White Tiger. In its current form, it had neither the bearing nor the appearance of a white tiger. It looked entirely like a weak little white cat.

A large hand slowly reached out and settled on Zhu Zhuqing's head.

Zhu Zhuqing wanted to dodge, but perhaps because she was too young, she could not avoid it at all.

Then she felt a strange power flow from that large hand, carrying a faint warmth.

"Go make yourself presentable. The Third Prince is coming tonight. Whether your martial soul is good or bad, you are his woman. Do not disgrace the Zhu Family!"

Those words rang out alongside the torrential rain outside. His voice seemed truly devoid of even a trace of feeling, cold to the extreme.

The man in silver armor vanished straight into the pouring rain. Some mysterious power seemed to protect him, keeping every drop from coming anywhere near his body.

"Ho, ho, ho!" Zhu Zhuyun was delighted. She had thought it might be some powerful mutated martial soul, only for it to turn out to be a sickly white cat. A Nether White Cat, no less-her little sister really knew how to spout nonsense.

Zhu Yang was mortified. He had just given the Clan Leader such a vivid account, spending a particularly long time describing that oppressive force upon their bloodlines.

From the situation before him, the Clan Leader clearly thought nothing of this so-called mutated martial soul and had simply given it the cold shoulder.

"Clan Leader, perhaps we should take another look?" Zhu Yang tried to follow him and explain.

Zhu Zhuyun stepped directly into Zhu Yang's path. With a wicked smile, she said, "Steward, don't you know how busy the Clan Leader is? His Majesty will be here soon. From now on, don't report such trifles on a whim. Understood?"

"Remember, not every martial soul mutation succeeds. Perhaps that bloodline suppression you mentioned only suppresses mutated martial souls like yours. Who knows? Hee, hee, hee!"

A pretty little umbrella appeared in Zhu Zhuyun's hand. Then she took out a soul tool bracelet and, in a flash, appeared before Zhu Zhuqing.

"Little sister, congratulations on your martial soul awakening today. These are your big sister's gifts to you. And don't forget tonight's family celebration. You're Dai Mubai's companion, you know. Remember to wear something revealing. I hear that boy likes pretty girls. Don't let another girl steal your man."

Zhu Zhuyun handed the little umbrella and soul tool bracelet to the tiny Zhu Zhuqing, deliberately stroking her hair as well.

"Ding! The Destiny System has detected the host's unwillingness to submit to fate and hereby issues the following mission."

Option 1: Accept the two gifts from Zhu Zhuyun and express gratitude. Completion reward: 10 gold soul coins.

Option 2: Refuse Zhu Zhuyun's gifts and throw them onto the ground. Completion reward: One Custom Storage Soul Tool earring.

Option 3: Take the gifts, throw them straight into the rain, and stomp on them hard several times. Completion reward: 1 destiny point.

Just as Zhu Zhuqing was feeling speechless, the Destiny System she had previously bound to actually issued her a mission-and one with rewards, at that.

Zhu Zhuqing was already in a foul mood. She truly had no interest in a mere two gifts, especially when the person giving them had said such vile things.

So what if she was her elder sister? What clothes Zhu Zhuqing wanted to wear and what man she wanted were no one else's business.

Zhu Zhuqing snatched the two gifts. Before Zhu Zhuyun's delighted eyes, she actually hurled them out of the corridor.

"Have you gone mad?!" Zhu Zhuyun shrieked. She had installed a Soul Power Sensor inside the soul tool so that, whenever her little sister came within ten zhang of her, she would be able to sense her.

Yet now, the things she had finally managed to give away had been thrown out. How was she supposed to keep watch over her little sister from now on?

The torrential rain seemed unable to halt Zhu Zhuqing's steps. Her tiny body leaped over the corridor railing, and she ran straight into the rain, stomping hard on the two gifts several times.

"Zhu Zhuqing." Soul power surged through Zhu Zhufeng, and a large black umbrella appeared in his hand. In a flash, he reached Zhu Zhuqing's side and held the umbrella steadily over her already drenched body.

As her elder brother, he naturally had to protect his little sister. Although their father had spoken coldly, surely she did not need to throw such a terrible tantrum. He had always been easygoing and oblivious, so he had completely missed the barbs hidden in his eldest sister's words.

Zhu Zhuyun had now fully released her martial soul. She, too, flashed out of the corridor. Two yellow soul rings and one purple soul ring spun constantly around her body, and the potent aura of a Soul Elder spread rapidly outward. She said coldly:

"Zhu Zhuqing, I demand an apology!"

Feeling that powerful aura, Zhu Zhuqing trembled slightly. The icy rainwater combined with that sinister aura made her uncomfortable. The mission's reward point had already arrived, but she was in no mood to investigate destiny points right now.

Zhu Zhufeng could not stand watching any longer. He activated his soul power as well, and two yellow soul rings rose from beneath his feet. The aura of a Soul Grandmaster immediately emerged, enveloping both him and Zhu Zhuqing in his arms.

"Enough, big sister! Zhu Zhuqing is still a child. Why stoop to arguing with her?"

Two Hell Spirit Cats appeared, one large and one small. They bared their fangs and brandished their claws at each other in midair, as though battle would erupt at the slightest touch.