He Shu endured the strange, uncomfortable sensation of the fabric rubbing against her skin. She clenched her white teeth tightly, trying to distract herself and make the feeling slightly more bearable.
Supporting herself against the wall with one hand, she took a few tentative steps.
“Mmm…”
The intense stimulation from the material rubbing against the sensitive skin at the tops of her thighs made He Shu involuntarily let out a few soft whimpers.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Already at your limit?”
Hua Yanyun’s mocking voice drifted over, filling He Shu with a deep wave of humiliation.
She pressed her lips tightly together. Her cheeks flushed with shame as she glared at Hua Yanyun with what she hoped was a fierce stare.
Hua Yanyun paid no attention to the angry look and teased, “I still have to take you to the banquet later. Don’t do anything embarrassing that would make me lose face.”
A pair of shoes slammed heavily against her calves. Sharp pain shot through her, and He Shu collapsed awkwardly to the floor.
She clenched her small fists, nails digging into her palms. He Shu closed her eyes tightly as a surge of grievance welled up inside her.
“How… truly pathetic…”
He Shu mocked herself aloud. She lifted her head slightly, her gaze meeting Hua Yanyun’s magenta eyes.
Pushing against the floor with both hands, He Shu staggered back to her feet, one hand still braced against the wall.
She looked down at the white high-heeled shoes lying beside her feet. They appeared to have nine-centimeter heels. For someone of He Shu’s petite build, this was rather demanding.
“Can I not wear them?”
“No.”
He Shu had no desire to wear them, but she was not surprised when Hua Yanyun refused.
Sitting on the chair, He Shu tried sliding her foot into one of the high-heeled shoes.
The moment her toes squeezed inside, the friction between the lining and the sole made her body tremble. Biting her lower lip, He Shu forced herself to tie the straps.
Her feet were naturally small. Once the shoes were on, her instep was stretched taut, and the pain at her ankles caused fine beads of sweat to break out on her forehead.
Enduring the pain, she put on the second shoe the same way. Then He Shu stood up from the stool.
Her field of vision had been forcibly raised significantly. He Shu felt extremely unsteady.
Nine centimeters was still too high for her. The muscles in her calves were pulled tight and stiff, and the range of motion in her ankles became extremely limited. With her full body weight pressing down, the pain grew even sharper.
“Come on, take a few steps and let’s see.”
Hua Yanyun was very satisfied with her handiwork. She stepped forward and took He Shu’s hand.
Forced to let go of the chair back she had been holding, He Shu’s center of gravity shifted uncontrollably to one side. Just as she was about to fall again, a pair of arms wrapped around her waist.
“You really are useless. You can’t even walk properly anymore.”
Hua Yanyun steadied He Shu’s body, her tone teasing.
He Shu remained silent, directing every ounce of her concentration to her feet in the high heels.
She tried taking a few steps. The pain in her ankles made her suck in a sharp breath.
Wearing these shoes, He Shu simply could not walk normally.
The corners of Hua Yanyun’s mouth curved into a smile. This was exactly the result she wanted. She enjoyed the feeling of controlling others.
“Come here, little one. Look at how adorable you are right now.”
She summoned a full-length mirror and placed it in front of He Shu, steadying the girl so she would not fall.
The black-haired young woman reflected in the mirror was identical to He Shu. Her exquisite, flawless little face was faintly flushed, as if she were shy. Her skin was a delicate pinkish-white. She wore a form-fitting, floor-length night-blue custom gown. The hem trailed along the ground, and the shimmering flakes woven into the fabric sparkled like stars in the night sky.
The sight of such a beautiful woman left even He Shu momentarily stunned.
For most of her life, He Shu had lived under the identity of He Wanyi. When she used her original body, she had spent nearly all her time worrying about cultivation resources and had never had the chance to dress up properly.
“Hehe, you look completely dazed, little one. I suppose life in Southwind Immortal Kingdom wasn’t easy for you. You never had the chance to take proper care of yourself.”
Hua Yanyun’s words struck a chord in He Shu’s heart, bringing back memories of her difficult childhood in Southwind Immortal Kingdom.
Not speaking? Did I guess correctly?”
Seeing He Shu suddenly fall silent, Hua Yanyun reached out and lifted a lock of the girl’s long hair.
“I know what you’re thinking. You were nothing more than an unfavored collateral member of the He Imperial Clan. Since life in Southwind Immortal Kingdom was so hard, why not pledge yourself to me instead?”
“Your spiritual meridians are still intact, so you still have the chance to re-cultivate. As long as you willingly become my consort, I will grant you endless glory and wealth.”
Hua Yanyun whispered the seductive offer into He Shu’s ear, toying with the black-haired girl before her.
Faced with Hua Yanyun’s temptation, He Shu turned her head away.
Pledge herself to Hua Yanyun? Impossible!
Calling it “becoming a consort” was just a prettier way of saying she would become Hua Yanyun’s pet—toyed with, humiliated, and eventually worked to death in bed.
“Hehe, little one, I must admit I’ve developed some genuine interest in you. As long as you behave and stay obediently by my side without any thoughts of escape, I will treat you very well.”
Hua Yanyun kept talking to herself, completely unconcerned with what He Shu might be thinking.
She glanced out the window at the darkening sky and finally stopped.
“Let’s go, little one. The banquet has already started. We can’t have the main guest missing.”
……
Mu Xinlian hurried along the road without rest. Her spiritual power was already more than half depleted, yet she had only just left the southern district of the city.
Suddenly, a vast surge of spiritual energy fluctuation swept down from the sky, sensed by Mu Xinlian and many other cultivators.
“Look! Someone’s flying overhead!”
Many people instinctively looked up and saw a figure flying boldly through the air above the immortal city. The speed was astonishing, like a shooting star. In the blink of an eye, the figure vanished from sight.
“Such a powerful spiritual fluctuation… Could that have been a Void Refinement powerhouse?”
“From the silhouette, it looked like a female cultivator?”
“Never mind, never mind. This is Cloud Mist Immortal City. It’s not strange to see those great experts passing by.”
The crowd quickly dispersed, each person returning to their own affairs. As someone had said, this was the heart of the immortal kingdom. Sightings of Void Refinement experts were not uncommon.
After the brief interruption, Mu Xinlian continued on her way like everyone else.
She had no idea that the person flying overhead was Hua Yanyun, carrying He Shu in a princess hold.
Hua Yanyun made no effort to conceal her presence. This was Cloud Mist Immortal City; there was no need.
The banquet was not being held inside the imperial palace. Instead, like Wanyi Tower, it had been arranged in the outskirts.
The reason was simple. The palace was filled with power struggles. Jade Water Immortal Kingdom had stood for tens of thousands of years, and the various family factions were deeply intertwined. Every move Hua Yanyun made inside the palace was closely watched. She had no desire to let her private banquet become another battlefield for the clans’ political maneuvering.
……
The banquet was being held at Waterside Pavilion, one of the Hua Imperial Clan’s properties. Naturally, Hua Yanyun had requisitioned the entire venue for herself.
Waterside Pavilion was built beside the lake. At the center of the lake lay a sizable floating platform connected by wooden corridors to many other pavilions and small buildings constructed over the water.
The lake was not deep. Artificial rock formations and strangely shaped stones stood between the pavilions, interspersed with artificially planted evergreen ink bamboo and glowing spirit plants and herbs that shimmered faintly in the night.
Countless lotus lanterns floated across the lake’s surface. Young concubines dressed in colorful formal robes gathered in small groups, chatting and laughing as they moved between the pavilions and corridors.
Melodic pipa music served as background, lending the banquet venue an air of refined luxury.
Liu Shumei wore a light-blue cheongsam and held a folding fan. She sat in one of the pavilions with several of her followers, chatting and laughing.
“Shumei-jie, have you heard? The Wei Family ancestor from the western district has clashed with a Nascent Soul rogue cultivator. They’re going to have a public duel in three days.”
“Yes, yes! The stakes are huge. I heard the wager is a quasi-Nascent Soul-grade brush artifact.”