"Damn it, she slipped away!"
"Keep looking. Call for more people. As long as she's somewhere in the city, there's no way we won't find her."
"When we catch her, she'll regret it for sure!"
...
Several students from Balak Academy had lost track of Zhu Zhuqing.
At this moment, Zhu Zhuqing was hiding in a narrow alleyway.
She knew she had successfully shaken off her pursuers.
Zhu Zhuqing was experienced in running away.
Having faced life and death multiple times, she wasn't afraid of these thugs at all.
Just as she cautiously scanned her surroundings, a voice suddenly appeared nearby in the air.
"Don't worry, those jerks are long gone."
Zhu Zhuqing immediately became alert. Her gaze shifted toward the voice and she saw a birdman—
Well, it was actually Xu Yunhan, who had a pair of tiger wings.
Sensing the powerful soul force radiating from Xu Yunhan, Zhu Zhuqing grew even more wary, ready to unleash her spirit beast and soul skills at any moment.
"No need to be so tense. I just happened to witness what was going on between you and them. I got curious and came to take a look."
Xu Yunhan landed gracefully, retracting his tiger wings, and faced Zhu Zhuqing directly.
Zhu Zhuqing stared him down without saying a word, carefully guarding her words.
Clearly, she wasn't going to trust or warm up to Xu Yunhan that quickly.
Even with Xu Yunhan's "Charm" soul skill assisting him, building trust and goodwill would take time, little by little.
Unfazed by Zhu Zhuqing's coldness, which was normal in this situation, Xu Yunhan continued, "I mean no harm. I just happened to come across this and got curious about you—especially your spirit beast. It caused a reaction with mine."
Zhu Zhuqing didn't believe a single word. She suspected Xu Yunhan was just interested in her because of her looks.
If he hadn't deliberately held back because his power was far greater, he would have attacked long ago.
"I know you don't believe me."
Xu Yunhan smiled, "I saw your spirit beast earlier—it's some kind of spiritual cat, right? Mine is a tiger, both are feline species."
With that, Xu Yunhan released his spirit beast—the Three-Eyed White Tiger.
Zhu Zhuqing was startled. First, her own spirit beast, the Netherworld Spirit Cat, reacted. Then, she noticed Xu Yunhan's spirit beast resembled the Corrupted White Tiger—only it had wings and an extra eye.
A mutated Corrupted White Tiger?
Someone from the Dai family?
At that moment, Zhu Zhuqing somewhat believed Xu Yunhan's claim that his spirit beast had reacted to hers, and even suspected he might be from the Dai family.
Driven by curiosity, Zhu Zhuqing finally spoke, her voice clear and charming, fitting her delicate yet commanding presence: "What's your name?"
Xu Yunhan didn't expect her first words to be a question like that and smiled, "Xu Yunhan, thirteen years old, a student of Shrek Academy. And you, miss, may I know your name?"
Not Dai? Or was he deliberately hiding it?
Still unsure, Zhu Zhuqing thought for a moment before telling him her name, "Zhu Zhuqing."
"Zhu Zhuqing, a nice name," Xu Yunhan said with genuine interest.
Zhu Zhuqing felt inexplicably shy and a little nervous, quickly turning to leave.
After putting some distance between them, she realized Xu Yunhan didn't stop her, which surprised her.
From behind, Xu Yunhan called out, "Zhu Zhuqing, I believe fate will bring us together again."
"Hmph!" Zhu Zhuqing snorted coldly in her heart, then left the alley.
"I heard Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing both escaped from the Xingluo Empire. Seems to be true. Zhu Zhuqing must be here to find Dai Mubai. I wonder if she's met him yet?"
Xu Yunhan muttered to himself, "She probably has—and even joined Shrek Academy! Haha, Dai Mubai is such a flirt, who knows how many women he's been with. Yet Zhu Zhuqing still followed him in the end. That shows just how easy she is to fool!"
If Dai Mubai could fool Zhu Zhuqing, then Xu Yunhan felt even more confident.
Even if he couldn't win her over, he'd destroy her chances—not giving Dai Mubai any advantage, and eliminating future support for Tang San.
Although Zhu Zhuqing stirred Xu Yunhan's feelings a little, she didn't cloud his judgment.
Since Zhu Zhuqing was likely to enter Shrek Academy, there was no rush. Xu Yunhan went on to search for materials for his soul weapon, unconcerned that the Balak Academy students could trouble Zhu Zhuqing.
That very night, as planned, Xu Yunhan, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and Oscar were all staying at the Rose Hotel.
Good grief, Dai Mubai had brought two girls back to spend the night.
Oscar and Ma Hongjun each had only one, and their girls weren't nearly as attractive.
No choice—since Dai Mubai had the money, they all relied on him to pay.
"I wonder if the boss is back. Should we go see?"
"No need to disturb him; he's focused on training. He's not interested in women."
"True."
The three of them walked through the lobby arm-in-arm with their women, chatting and laughing.
They didn't notice Zhu Zhuqing in a distant corner.
Zhu Zhuqing had chosen to stay at the Rose Hotel partly to avoid trouble—here even Balak Academy's students wouldn't dare cause a ruckus.
She didn't expect to run into Dai Mubai here, and in this kind of situation.
"Men really aren't good things!" Zhu Zhuqing thought bitterly, cursing Dai Mubai in her heart, her resentment growing.
Not long after Zhu Zhuqing awakened her Netherworld Spirit Cat, her family had arranged a marriage engagement—to Dai Mubai.
That was when all her nightmares began.
Dai Mubai's family was part of the royal family of the Xingluo Empire; he was one of the princes.
The Xingluo Empire was a nation built on martial strength, with the royal family as the greatest soul master faction. Royal struggles were always brutal—especially here.
If you lost the power struggle, you'd either be stripped of your spirit beast forever and imprisoned, or killed.
Dai Mubai couldn't win and was afraid to die, so he fled the Xingluo Empire.
As the fiancée, Zhu Zhuqing was dragged into this misfortune. Even worse, her half-sister Zhu Zhuyun was engaged to one of Dai Mubai's brothers.
The battle for the throne was a fight to the death—brutal beyond imagination.
With Dai Mubai gone, Zhu Zhuqing's situation was even more miserable. She was hunted out of the Xingluo Empire.
She hadn't seen Dai Mubai for years, and her hatred had only grown. Now seeing him here, surrounded by women, indulging in debauchery,
Zhu Zhuqing felt only disappointment, sadness, and loathing.
Of course, all hope wasn't lost. Otherwise, in the original story, Zhu Zhuqing wouldn't have ended up with Dai Mubai.
It just shows how deeply social customs influence people!
On Douluo Continent, where polygamy is accepted and especially within the royal family, the Zhu family's behavior in matters like this was quite normal.
So, Zhu Zhuqing's hatred and sorrow could be healed—if only someone knew how to coax her properly.
Although the adorable little cat Zhu Zhuqing was easy to fool, she was genuinely heartbroken right now.
Lonely and sorrowful in the corner, she looked even more pitiable.
Unnoticed, more than half an hour had passed. Dai Mubai and the others had long returned to their rooms to enjoy themselves.
"Hey? It's you, Zhu Zhuqing."
Suddenly, a figure appeared before her.
Zhu Zhuqing looked up to find it was Xu Yunhan. She suspected he might have been following her all along.
Xu Yunhan smirked, "What a coincidence. You're staying here too? Or are you stalking me?"
Zhu Zhuqing glared at him, unwilling to speak.
Xu Yunhan studied her carefully, "Cried? Got bullied? Want me to help you?"
Zhu Zhuqing just stared at him, silent but full of anger—she really wanted to hit him, but knew she couldn't win.
Seeing her keep quiet, Xu Yunhan chuckled and then sat down beside her.
Zhu Zhuqing glanced at him but didn't shoo him away nor did she leave.
The two sat there silently.
The atmosphere was somewhat awkward.
Xu Yunhan thought to himself: Dai Mubai and the others were staying at the Rose Hotel. Zhu Zhuqing probably saw Dai Mubai playing around with women and felt heartbroken.
At this moment, Xu Yunhan felt it was necessary to prevent the little cat from sinking deeper into despair.
Seizing the opportunity seemed like the perfect moment.
When it comes to coaxing women, Xu Yunhan believed he was no worse than Dai Mubai.
Besides, just by sitting beside Zhu Zhuqing and relying on his "Charm" soul skill, he could gradually win her favor.
Dai Mubai, go enjoy your womanizing world—this little cat is mine to take care of!
...