Chapter 490: Feeling Wrongfully Judged
On this day, at the port near the ocean in Douluo Two, a soldier responsible for monitoring maritime changes suddenly noticed a massive shadow on the distant sea, covering a vast area.
At first, he was stunned, then quickly raised his telescope for a closer look. However, he soon realized that the shadow wasn't coming from below the sea it was cast from above, blocking out the sun.
Could it be an enormous storm cloud?
With this thought in mind, he slowly lifted his telescope to follow the shadow's source.
Suddenly, a blinding light struck his eyes. The sharp reflection of sunlight forced him to close them tightly. It took a long moment before he could switch to a pair of tinted lenses to reduce the glare and continue his observation.
What he saw next left him utterly frozen, his mouth hanging open in disbelief.
Above the sky
A vast fleet of flying ships.
They looked just like massive seafaring vessels, yet they completely defied gravity, soaring freely through the sky as if the air itself were an ocean and the heavens their endless sea.
And it wasn't just one or two ships it was an entire fleet, at least dozens of them.
Their polished hulls gleamed under the sunlight, and it was their reflective surfaces that had momentarily blinded him.
"This… Am I dreaming?"
The soldier pinched himself in disbelief. If this wasn't a dream, then why were ships flying? And why were there so many of them? It was a scene straight out of fantasy.
In this era, soul tool technology had not yet advanced to this level. Although personal flight devices existed, large airborne ships like these had never been heard of.
At least, he had never heard of them.
Faced with these colossal skyborne vessels, the soldier was at a complete loss.
If these had been traditional warships sailing across the ocean, they could have fired artillery shells to intercept them.
But these ships were in the sky.
Far beyond their attack range.
There was only one thing he could do report the situation immediately!
This was far beyond the responsibility of a mere soldier. If disaster was about to strike, it was up to the higher ups to handle it.
Meanwhile, high above in one of the airborne battleships.
Inside a spacious cabin designed as a luxurious café, with massive glass windows offering breathtaking views of the sky, four young women sat together, engaged in conversation.
These four were the most promising goddesses of humanity each possessing the potential to one day reach the realm of the God Kings.
They were:
Zhu Zhuqing, the City Lord's first disciple.
Ning Rongrong, the City Lord's younger sister.
Huo Wu, representing Blazing Academy.
Shui Bing'er, representing Tianshui Academy.
At this moment, Zhu Zhuqing set down a document detailing the history of Douluo Two and sighed.
"I never expected this world's history to have unfolded in such a bizarre way."
"Seriously," Ning Rongrong scoffed, arms crossed. "And don't even get me started on this world's 'Ning Rongrong.' She actually ended up with that sausage uncle? What the hell did she see in him?"
She was clearly displeased.
Even though that Ning Rongrong was technically a different person, their identical names had permanently linked her to that Oscar in this continent's history.
It was completely unfair!
That bastard Oscar had nothing to do with her!
Hmph!
If she ever got the chance, she'd force that imposter to change her name.
Otherwise, people might start assuming she was married.
And she was still an innocent young lady, thank you very much!
"Zhuqing," Ning Rongrong pouted, "when my brother eventually leads us to conquer the Divine Realm, we have to make those people with our names change them. There can only be one Ning Rongrong in this world! We are the originals! The rest are knockoffs!"
"You actually care that much?" Zhu Zhuqing raised an eyebrow. She was much calmer in comparison. After all, she had long since matured beyond her past impulsiveness.
She was the definition of composed.
But then Ning Rongrong said something that made even her expression stiffen.
"Well, in this world's history, 'Zhu Zhuqing' ended up following her family's arrangement and married Dai Mubai." Ning Rongrong smirked. "Aren't you bothered by that? In this world, you're nothing more than a background character meant to highlight Dai Mubai's greatness. They completely erased your existence as an individual. That doesn't make you angry?"
Zhu Zhuqing's face twitched.
Okay, that did annoy her.
Because now, she was no longer the brainwashed little girl she once was.
She had long since broken free from her family's toxic traditions, shattered their outdated rules, and seized her own destiny.
The old Dai Mubai?
She didn't even know where that failure had ended up. Probably rotting away in some forgotten corner of the world.
Having come this far, she now understood the truth about the so called "Martial Soul Fusion" between the Starcrown White Tiger and the Netherworld Spirit Cat.
It was never an equal partnership.
The Netherworld Spirit Cat was merely a supplement to the White Tiger's flaws.
In essence, Zhu Zhuqing's entire bloodline had been bred to serve the Dai family.
So she wasn't surprised that this world's Zhu Zhuqing had ended up with Dai Mubai.
Martial Soul Fusion had a natural side effect it deepened emotional bonds between the users over time.
Even if this world's Zhu Zhuqing had originally despised Dai Mubai, that hatred would have faded, slowly transforming into affection.
By the time she realized it, she would already be his possession.
Zhu Zhuqing had no doubt that even if this world's version of her did become a god, she would never escape Dai Mubai's influence.
She would always be his subordinate.
This was the fate of every woman born into the Zhu family.
A lifetime of servitude to the Dai clan.
Eternal submission.
A destiny of never being allowed to defy them.
And Zhu Zhuqing hated that fate.
The old her might have silently accepted it, believing she had no choice.
But the new her had rejected it.
She had stepped beyond her preordained path and carved out her own future.
And now, seeing this world's Zhu Zhuqing still trapped in that fate…
She felt a surge of anger.
Even though it wasn't her, the fact that someone named Zhu Zhuqing was suffering through such a miserable destiny irritated her.
She couldn't just sit by and do nothing.
Perhaps…
She should kill this world's Dai Mubai?
Or maybe she should help this Zhu Zhuqing turn the tables?
Make him the subordinate for once?
(End of Chapter)
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