Spirit City, a secluded garden on the mountain behind the Worship Hall.
Little Qian Renxue hung her head, clutching a sachet that had been squeezed out of shape. An exquisite flower pattern was faintly visible on it.
Qian Renxue had squeezed time out of her days to embroider it herself. Since it was for her mother's birthday, she hadn't wanted anyone else to help, and she had pricked her hand several times.
"Why wouldn't Mommy like it? It's really pretty..."
The girl sniffled, her nose slightly red, and murmured aggrievedly. She turned the sachet over and examined it all again. It really was exquisite. She had spent so long learning from the housekeeper.
Today, she had summoned all her courage to visit Bibi Dong at the Pope's Palace, hoping to give Mommy the sachet, but Bibi Dong's gaze had been as cold as ever.
She hadn't even been willing to accept the gift, as though Qian Renxue were something filthy.
"Is it because Xue'er hasn't been good enough? But Grandpa clearly said Xue'er was Spirit Hall's smartest, most obedient little princess."
Qian Renxue rubbed her eyes, forcibly holding back the golden beads of tears brimming in them.
She was, after all, a child with the Angel Bloodline. The pride in her bones made her unwilling to cry easily, but Bibi Dong's reaction had dealt her a heavy blow.
As a little child, how could she believe that her own mother would hate her by nature?
She must have done something wrong and made her mother angry. That had to be why.
Just as Qian Renxue composed herself and prepared to return to her sleeping quarters, she suddenly caught sight of something out of place in the grass from the corner of her eye.
It was an egg.
About the size of a watermelon, it was pure black all over, with a faint presence. Strange, scale-like patterns covered its surface, dark and magnificent.
"Huh? Did someone drop a bird's egg? It's so pretty!"
Still a child after all, Qian Renxue's curiosity was instantly piqued, and she excitedly leaned over to poke it.
For some reason, when her finger touched the egg, Qian Renxue felt a strange warmth, and even the hurt in her heart seemed to fade a little.
"Big black egg, big black egg, tell me, did you make your mommy angry too, and that's why you were thrown into the grass?"
"Aw, you poor thing. I'll raise you."
The little girl's sympathy overflowed. She looked around, and seeing that the maids and guards weren't there, she stuffed the black egg into her arms, did her best to hide it, and jogged all the way back to her room.
Meanwhile, inside the black egg.
Amid a bout of world-upending jolts, Chen Qianqiu slowly woke up.
"Urgh... stop, stop..."
Chen Qianqiu felt as though he were tumbling through the ocean. Having finally steadied his mind, he abruptly made a horrifying discovery. Had he transmigrated?
?? Am I even still in the country? Where the hell have I ended up? Why is everything pitch-black? Where did my arms and legs go?
Soon, inherited memories flooded his mind.
Vast amounts of information gradually became clear. Not only had he transmigrated to the Douluo Continent, but the bloodline of Nidhogg-the black dragon of despair from Western mythology that gnawed on the World Tree-also flowed within him!
In his previous life, he had often come across jokes about the Douluo Continent being the floor tile of fantasy worlds, but those were separate matters. If someone could really transmigrate here, who wouldn't be desperate to slap a few Soul Rings onto themselves?
Flying through the heavens and burrowing through the earth, splitting mountains and shattering stone, and even living for several hundred years-these were genuine supernatural powers!
Since he was here, he might as well settle in. The most important thing now was figuring out exactly where he was.
Thanks to the innate talent granted by his bloodline, Chen Qianqiu easily extended his spiritual power through the eggshell and spread it outward.
What came into view was a vast, magnificent raised ceiling carved with Six-Winged Angels. A bright, sacred presence surged and billowed, while his egg rested on a large, soft pink bed.
And there was also...
A little girl with a touch of baby fat, as exquisitely sculpted as jade and resembling a golden sprite, was giggling foolishly while poking him with her little hand.
Even if Chen Qianqiu wanted to fool himself, he couldn't. The little girl's golden hair was practically glowing. Even an idiot would know who she was.
Spirit Hall's Qian Renxue.
Judging by her adorably innocent appearance, the gears of the Douluo Continent's plot probably hadn't started turning yet.
"From now on, I'll call you Xiao Hei! Xiao Hei, Xiao Hei, what exactly are you? Why do I feel so safe with you?"
Qian Renxue propped her chin in both hands, pursed her little lips, and happily narrowed her eyes. Because of her status, she had never had many friends, so even having an extra egg to keep her company made her happy.
"Ah, what do you think I can do to make Mother stop hating me? She wouldn't even accept the birthday present I gave her today..."
Yet, after finally managing to be happy for a little while, the little girl grew sad again at the thought of Bibi Dong's resolute rejection today. At last, she couldn't hold back her bean-sized tears, which fell in pattering drops, and she couldn't help drawing the black egg closer into her arms.
"Daddy's always so busy too. It seems he has to catch a really powerful Soul Beast, so he doesn't have much time to play with me anymore."
"Everyone in the whole hall is very respectful toward me, but nobody wants to be my friend at all. I'm actually so bored."
Talking to an egg, the little girl opened the floodgates completely. Outside, she had to mind her manners at all times and uphold Spirit Hall's dignity. Only an egg like him, Chen Qianqiu, could let Qian Renxue speak without any reservations.
She was only a four- or five-year-old child, after all. Spending so long in this environment had made her sensitive and lonely.
Still, deep down, Qian Renxue was an optimistic little golden-haired girl.
She hadn't been down for long before she abruptly raised her head again and clenched her little pink fists. As though encouraging herself, she solemnly declared to the black egg, "But that's okay! Grandpa said I'm a peerless genius, and none of the other children can compare to me!"
At this, fighting spirit rekindled in Qian Renxue's previously dimmed eyes, and she even waved her hand imperiously.
"Once I become really, really strong, Mommy will definitely like me! I'll make Mommy see me in a whole new light and prove that Xue'er is strong and can protect her!"
With that, she lowered her head and gently touched her smooth forehead to the black egg's cool shell, adding with utmost seriousness in her childish voice, "And you too, big black egg! Once I'm strong, I'll protect you as well!"
Watching her adorable attempts to act fierce and heal her own hurt, Chen Qianqiu sighed inwardly inside the egg.
What did the Qian Renxue of today know of the grudges, love, and hatred between adults? In this world, if love for a house could extend to the crow upon its roof, hatred for a house could naturally extend to its crow as well. If this little one knew why Bibi Dong hated her, her whole worldview would shatter across the floor on the spot.
After pouring her heart out, the little girl was tired at last. Though she was still mumbling, her eyelids had already begun to fight each other. Before long, she drowsily hugged the black egg and fell into a deep sleep.
Glistening drool still clung to the corner of her mouth, with none of the bearing of the future Angel God.