Who knew whether there was something wrong with the woman's head? After dragging Yu Mian inside the palace and casually throwing her into a room, she'd disappeared without a trace.
Yu Mian sighed, holding the bundle of clothing the woman had tossed her.
Her Minor Yin Sacred Body hadn't awakened yet. In the novel it would awaken six months later, when her remarkable aptitude had already made her Lu Wuqie's true disciple.
A true disciple of Perfected Master Lu of Soaring Wind Mountain, within the Wayward Immortal Sect—who would dare covet someone with such a supreme cultivation-vessel constitution when she carried that title?
Moreover, because of her constitution, Yu Mian at that time resembled a flower bud just about to open. Every smile and movement stirred the heart, attracting countless admiring disciples. Naturally, that didn't include the male leads.
For a time, her fame was unrivaled, and people called her the Peony Fairy.
Pah! What Peony Fairy?!
As far as Yu Mian was concerned, that was nothing but pretty talk from people who wanted to sleep with her!
In this dangerous world, no member of the opposite sex could be trusted!
Who knew how much lust the author had poured into these characters when creating them?!
Forget it. First she'd better inspect where she was supposed to sleep tonight.
She stepped into the room. Every pace revealed carved beams; everywhere she looked stood painted screens. The luxury was so overwhelming that her eyes had no chance to rest.
Everything was gilded and painted. It looked less like a cultivator's dwelling than the palace quarters of an empress or princess in the mortal world.
Yu Mian even placed her toes carefully, afraid the floor tiles might be valuable treasures too.
Then she remembered that she'd effectively “sold herself” to the mistress of Floating Jade Palace and become her disciple.
What difference would a couple of tiles make?
With that thought, she strode in more comfortably. Once inside, she spread the clothing out across the bed and studied it carefully. How was she supposed to wear these ancient garments?
Why did a single outfit have so many pieces?
Thankfully, she was ignorant, not stupid. She could at least figure out roughly how to put her arms through sleeves and get things onto her body.
Knock, knock—
Someone knocked on the door, making Yu Mian tremble. Was it that rotten master?
No. If it were her, she would never bother knocking; she'd barge straight in. It must be someone else in Floating Jade Palace.
Perhaps a menial disciple, perhaps a maid or servant.
At least that meant she wasn't the only person here.
The thought was mildly comforting.
Yu Mian went over and opened the door.
Outside stood a figure with beautifully painted brows, alluring eyes, a fine nose, delicate fingers, and a beaming face… made of paper.
Yes. That's right. A paper person.
Perhaps the mistress of the palace was obsessive about beauty. The paper figure's eyes, brows, and strands of hair had been painted with startling realism, but her clothes were rendered with broad, impressionistic ink strokes. Below the neck, her body was unmistakably paper.
Yu Mian slammed the door shut.
She really shouldn't have entertained any fantasies about this place or that woman.
How could there possibly be another normal person in this damned place besides herself?!
As she pressed her back against the door, the knocking began again. Knock, knock—
“Eldest Senior Sister, the Immortal Venerable instructed me to show you around Floating Jade Palace.” The voice outside was gentle and sweet, indistinguishable from a real woman's. A voice that lovely naturally inspired a little affection.
But that would only have worked if Yu Mian hadn't opened the door.
She had opened it. And she'd seen that the speaker was made of paper!
“No need. I'll look around myself when I have time!” She braced herself against the door, trying hard to remain calm and keep her voice from trembling.
The voice outside seemed tinged with sadness and grievance. “Eldest Senior Sister, this is something the Immortal Venerable ordered me to do. If you don't cooperate, Xiaolian will be punished.”
The complaint sounded so genuinely human that Yu Mian couldn't help feeling sorry for her. Considering what her rotten master was capable of…
Perhaps a real living soul had been placed inside the paper figure. What if the girl really was punished because of her refusal…?
No. She was scared!
She didn't dare go outside!
The paper person's voice fell silent. Yu Mian swallowed, turned toward the door's window, and saw that the silhouette was still there!
She hadn't left at all!
Yu Mian asked, “M-Miss Xiaolian, what would happen if I didn't go with you?”
“I don't know. Xiaolian only knows that the maids who failed to complete the Immortal Venerable's orders in the past were sent down the mountain and never hired again.” Xiaolian seemed puzzled about why the senior disciple inside wouldn't let her show her the palace. After all, she was going to live here from now on.
Sent down the mountain?
Never hired again?
Yu Mian snorted inwardly. More likely the rotten master had torn them to shreds!
She took several deep breaths. Stick her head out, and she'd be struck; keep it hidden, and she'd still be struck. Surely she couldn't be killed immediately after becoming a disciple.
She gripped the door's wooden lattice!
No… no, she couldn't. She was still afraid!
Yu Mian wanted to cry but had no tears left. Why was her life so miserable?!
“Miss Xiaolian, I'm going to open the door now.”
Yu Mian opened it a crack and looked at the paper maid outside. Following the paper body upward with her eyes, she saw no gloomy or terrifying expression on the maid's face.
Only a warmth and gentleness that felt like a spring breeze.
This reassured her a little. She opened the door fully. “Please lead the way, Miss Xiaolian.” She spoke to the maid, but couldn't bring herself to look directly at her.
“Of course. Eldest Senior Sister, please follow me.” Like the lotus in her name, Xiaolian walked with a graceful, floating step, light as the wind. It was almost as if she were gliding.
Well, she was made of paper. Of course she was light.
Yu Mian's two legs couldn't keep up with her at all. She jogged after her. “Miss Xiaolian, slow down! I can't run anymore!”
The maid covered her rosy lips with slender fingers and smiled, her eyes narrowing. “How careless of Xiaolian. Please forgive me, Eldest Senior Sister.”
Only then could Yu Mian just barely keep pace.
“Floating Jade Palace comprises nine halls and nine pavilions. Some are used by the Immortal Venerable for rest, alchemy, artifact refinement, talisman-making, formation practice, divination by the stars, and other pursuits. Those places are forbidden areas within the palace. Xiaolian cannot take Eldest Senior Sister inside.
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“I'll introduce you to Hall of Clear Harmony, where you'll be living. The room you were just in has traditionally housed Floating Jade Palace's eldest disciple. No one has lived there for two hundred and one years. If you go east from your quarters, to the end of this path, you'll reach the spring pools, where disciples bathe and wash every day. Farther along this side path…
“Over here is the woodshed. Eldest Senior Sister, you presumably haven't reached the stage of fasting from mortal food, so you'll need to cook here. Vegetables and fruits grow in the garden beside Hall of Clear Harmony, but for meat you must either hunt for it yourself or exchange sect merit points for spirit-beast meat.
“Xiaolian recommends eating mostly vegetables. At present, you're no match for the beasts on Floating Jade Mountain.”
Her tone was clearly intended to be helpful, but Yu Mian still heard a faint trace of mockery.
All right, it wasn't mockery. The girl was simply telling the truth. She really was helpless in a fight.
From the explanation, though, Yu Mian learned that her master seemed to possess quite a few abilities. She was practically an all-round immortal master. If Yu Mian could master even one or two skills, she might no longer have to fear being unable to protect her own chastity.
As long as she worked hard, the future—the future could still be worth looking forward to!
By the time they'd finished the tour, Yu Mian felt as though she'd achieved her highest level of exercise for the entire year. She returned to her starting point on weak, trembling legs.
“Thank you for showing me around, Miss Xiaolian.” Yu Mian leaned against the wall. Exhaustion had dispersed much of her fear, and she could now look directly at the maid's face.
Although her body was paper, everything above her neck had been depicted in astonishing detail. There was not the slightest unnaturalness in her expressions or smiles; she looked entirely human.
But she never breathed or made the habitual blinks a real person would. Her eyes shimmered with expression yet remained fixed wide open.
It was enough to give anyone a severe case of the uncanny valley effect!
