Chapter 77 077 Princess, it loves it when you whip it...
The system didn't keep them in suspense, asking, "Have you ever heard of puppetry?"
Lu Yuanyuan murmured repeatedly, "Puppetry?"
In this world of cultivation, no sect or sect would teach such a spell. Yet, those three words gave her a sense of déjà vu… Where had she heard them before?
Lu Yuanyuan lowered her eyelashes, clearing away her chaotic thoughts, and began to recall. The room she was in seemed to be disintegrating and rebuilding; the window frames were broken, the walls shifted, piecing together fragments of distant memories… The candlelight in the glass lamp went out with a thud, and darkness fell all around. The cool moonlight quietly fell on the porch, and the night breeze carried the subtle fragrance of begonias. She held her breath and tiptoed like a cat towards Yin Xiaozhu's bedroom. Turning the corner, she saw him standing in the shadow of the begonia tree, with a female cultivator standing before him, her arms hanging limply, her gaze stiff and unfocused.
“I did not summon you, you should not have come here.”
"What's there to be afraid of? This barrier of Mount Shu can't stop my puppet technique."
...
Lu Yuanyuan let out a gurgling sound.
She remembered!
This happened three or four years ago, and it's part of the side quest "Bitter Night".
On that chilly autumn night, she stumbled upon Yin Xiaozhu's two-faced secret, witnessing him secretly meeting with certain shady cultivators, and even contemptuously referring to Master Xugu of Mount Shu as an old immortal...
She thought this episode had been buried with the end of "Bitter Night," but who would have thought that it would still be connected in some mysterious way!
System: "Puppetry is a secret art from the demon realm. It can not only seize the mind of the living, control their bodies, and turn them into puppets, but also create new bodies."
Lu Yuanyuan understood the implied meaning: "You mean, you want me to learn puppetry and create a body for Yue Hong?"
System: "Correct. But simply creating a shell is not enough. A shell is just an inanimate object, a tool to be manipulated. You must collect the key materials to bring this shell to life, to transform it into a real flesh and blood, and to nurture Yue Hong's soul. From planting to awakening, the waiting time may be ten years, or it may be hundreds of years."
"It's going to take this long?"
System: "Yue Hong is a mortal. A mortal's soul is not as adaptable or resilient."
That makes sense.
Fine, let it take a little longer. As long as there is hope, everything is negotiable.
Lu Yuanyuan perked up again, rubbing her temples: "What key materials do I need to prepare? Where should I collect them?"
As soon as she finished speaking, a flower emitting a faint blue glow descended above her. The flower and stem were less than ten centimeters long, with its leaves closed and still in bud. Lu Yuanyuan quickly reached out to catch it, but the flower seemed to have its own barrier, slowly descending and hovering a little distance from her palms without touching her skin.
System: "This item is called the Reincarnation Flower. When you come into contact with Yue Hong and absorb his life force, it will promote its blooming. When it is fully bloomed and the petals have turned white, bring it back and blow the fragrance of the flower into the body you created for Yue Hong, and you will be all set."
"But... Yue Hong is gone. How should I contact him?"
System: "The current Yue Hong is gone, but the Yue Hong of the past is still here."
Lu Yuanyuan was slightly surprised: "You mean, you're going to send me back to the past to find Yue Hong?"
Why is a system that's always been fair in its rewards and punishments suddenly being so kind?
The system seemed to have guessed her inner thoughts and explained calmly, "The host should still remember that before you came to the mortal realm this time, Duan Lansheng invited you to team up for a mission. At that time, you triggered a hidden main storyline called [Puppet]. However, because you refused Duan Lansheng, this hidden storyline was not successfully activated."
Lu Yuanyuan: "..."
System: "As is customary, hidden main storylines with closed entrances will not be reopened. However, this situation is special: firstly, the dungeon has many bugs and is very difficult; secondly, you requested the use of the item [Resurrection Qualification Card]. In order to meet the conditions for using this item, we have made an exception and reopened the [Puppet] entrance for you. This is why I suggested that you can learn the Puppet Technique."
Knowing the system wouldn't be so generous for no reason, Lu Yuanyuan nodded: "I see. So what's this hidden storyline about?"
System: "Unknown".
Lu Yuanyuan was stunned.
System: "Reopening the hidden storyline entrance a second time is considered an exceptional procedure. Therefore, the treatment you receive will definitely not be as good as the standard procedure. You will not receive any story previews or extra assistance. If the host accepts the above conditions, I will teleport you to the appropriate spacetime coordinates and pause time here."
Back when Yue Hong was still alive...
The system's arrangement must be to send her back to the time when she was still a princess of Yan and was suffering as a hostage in Yong.
Back then, after the original owner was sent to the Yong Kingdom's palace, she was like a lamb among wolves, and was bullied terribly by the noble children there. Yue Hong was the living Yama who struck fear into her heart; even a glance from him would make her legs tremble.
However, things are different now. She not only understands Yue Hong's temperament, but she's also not afraid of the dark or ghosts. Locking her in the cold palace, a group of people using her as target practice... those are just child's play. What does a grown woman have to be afraid of?
Lu Yuanyuan said without hesitation, "I accept, take me there."
The next second, a tremendous force pulled from the top of her head, tearing her very soul out of her body. Lu Yuanyuan's vision began to distort, and soon, she lost consciousness amidst the intense dizziness.
...
The system is incredibly efficient; it can process tasks quickly and efficiently.
After an unknown amount of time, Lu Yuanyuan's drifting, hazy consciousness suddenly settled, landing firmly on the ground. Her lost senses gradually returned, with her sense of smell recovering the fastest.
She smelled a very strong fragrance.
The ambergris, mixed with a rich floral and herbal scent, couldn't mask the faint, damp smell of blood in the air. And beside him, it seemed, someone was speaking.
Lu Yuanyuan slowly opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw was her own legs.
She sat on a chair covered with silk and satin, her back resting on soft pillows, wearing only snow-white silk stockings and footstools. A string of pure red coral beads hung around her neck, and her body was adorned with dazzling jewels, radiant and gleaming.
Lu Yuanyuan's eyelids twitched, and she vaguely sensed that something was wrong.
In my memory, the life of the princess of Yan Kingdom didn't seem to be this extravagant, did it?
Could it be that she was transported back to the time before the original owner went to Yong Kingdom as a hostage?
But wasn't the original owner also a pitiful, neglected person in his own country?
Furthermore, the hand she was looking at didn't seem to be the hand she was used to seeing—the knuckles were white and tender like scallions, and there was a very obvious light red birthmark at the base of the thumb.
Anxiety was creeping in. Lu Yuanyuan rolled her eyes and searched her mind for confirmation with the system, asking, "System, have I arrived at my destination?"
There was no response from her.
Lu Yuanyuan: "?"
Lu Yuanyuan refused to believe it and called out a few more times, finally confirming that the system was indeed not there!
Not only that, when she opened the system panel, she saw that the lights on several major functions were off, just like the computer was in hibernation mode.
Lu Yuanyuan: "..."
Before setting off, the system said that if she entered the hidden storyline a second time, she would not receive any help. So, the so-called "not receiving help" meant even the system would malfunction?
It seems she'll have to rely on herself for this mission.
Fortunately, the inventory on the panel could still be opened normally. Lu Yuanyuan saw that the Reincarnation Flower given by the system was in the first slot, shimmering faintly.
The key props are still there, so she shouldn't have come to the wrong place.
In the short time it took to gather her thoughts, Lu Yuanyuan finally felt that she had complete control over this body. She couldn't wait to raise her head and observe her surroundings.
This was an unfamiliar palace room, with painted screens, golden windows, jade railings, and fragrant smoke rising from a golden incense burner. To her surprise, she was surrounded by palace servants, all dressed in the attire of the Yong Kingdom.
Lu Yuanyuan's fingers tightened, and when she looked down, she realized that she was still holding a whip in her right hand.
This is an exquisitely crafted long leather whip. The handle is made of forged silver, making it light and delicate. The whip itself is jet black and slender, with short, sharp spikes.
The whip snaked down from her palm, trailing on the ground like a coiled snake, stretching all the way forward. Following the whip, Lu Yuanyuan looked down and saw a deep, unsettling black stain in the very center of the carpet embroidered with wisteria and peonies in the palace.
Above the carpet sat a golden cage, about a meter tall, shaped like a birdcage. The bars were wide enough for a small child to squeeze through sideways. Inside the cage lay a strange creature.
At first glance, it looked like a human child, but its limbs were incredibly thin and twisted, and its charred body was completely naked. Its face looked as if it had been burned by fire, ugly and deformed, with no hair, two flat little holes for nostrils, and a mouth stretched horizontally into a line. It was the kind of monster that would give you nightmares for three nights just by looking at it.
At this moment, it lay dying in the corner of the cage, its tongue lolling weakly out of place, a pool of blood staining the carpet black. Its thin, bony back and emaciated legs were covered with crisscrossing, shocking whip marks.
Such an ugly face, yet it was adorned with a pair of clear and beautiful golden-green eyes, like a priceless treasure forged in flames.
Because this creature is so ugly, and because of its golden-green eyes that are completely mismatched with its appearance, it is hard for an ordinary person to forget it after seeing it just once.
Lu Yuanyuan stared wide-eyed, completely stunned.
This monster… she was 100% certain that she had seen it before—right there in Duan Lansheng’s sea of consciousness!
At that time, she was sucked into Duan Lansheng's childhood consciousness. While searching for him in the freezing snow, she stumbled upon this monster covered in black smoke, sitting beside the unconscious Duan Lansheng, doing something unknown. As soon as she approached, the creature was frightened away.
What's going on?
How did this monster get here?
Isn't it part of Duan Lansheng's memories? Then it should live in the world of cultivation.
How could he appear in the mortal realm, in a plot related to Yue Hong?
Seeing Lu Yuanyuan staring intently at the cage, a palace maid with a face painted white approached, her wrinkled face almost turning into a chrysanthemum with a smile: "Your Highness, look, listen, how happily this monster is howling! It loves it when you whip it!"
The scene left Lu Yuanyuan somewhat stunned. Mainly, she realized that she seemed to be the abuser, so she subconsciously responded, "What?"
The palace maid smiled and flattered, "The princess is the most noble person in the world. Anything that can earn her a lash is an unparalleled honor."
Lu Yuanyuan: "???"
Lu Yuanyuan's mind was in turmoil. She took a deep breath, sat up straight, and felt the stool she was standing on move. She looked down and realized that her footrest wasn't a proper stool at all, but a living person.
It was a handsome, fair-skinned eunuch who lay flat in front of her chair, warming her feet with his belly. Seeing that she seemed to be getting up, the eunuch skillfully crawled out from under the chair, bent down to put on her embroidered shoes, and even wiped the pearls on the toes of her shoes with a handkerchief.
What is all this?
With a snap, Lu Yuanyuan opened her mouth, and the delicate little silver whip slipped from her palm and fell to the ground.
Upon seeing this, the pale-faced palace maid next to her immediately ordered in a shrill voice, "Someone, bring a suitable whip right away. This whip is tiring Princess Manjushri's hand."
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