Zhu Mingyan was completely stunned.
Where on earth have I been brought to? Why am I tied up?!
She tried moving her arms slightly.
The ropes were tied tightly, but fortunately they were ordinary hemp ropes. She could easily burn them with her Palm Flame technique.
With that realization, she calmed down.
According to the logic of this illusion, the people who tied her up were ordinary mortals. That meant they could only use mortal methods against her.
Now that she had a plan, Zhu Mingyan quickly began thinking about her next move.
She released her spiritual sense to examine her surroundings.
With her cultivation currently suppressed to the early Foundation Establishment stage, her detection range was limited to about two zhang (roughly six meters).
The room was small and cramped.
At first glance, it looked very much like the woodshed on Huai’an Peak. It was cold and damp, with piles of firewood stacked against the walls.
Within the range of her spiritual sense, she appeared to be alone.
The sound of drums echoed from her right side.
From time to time, she could also hear the noisy chatter of a crowd, as though a lively gathering were taking place nearby.
The sounds were almost identical to those she had heard at the village entrance.
Wherever she was now, it could not be far from that gathering.
She listened carefully for a while.
Other than the drums and distant voices, there were no other sounds.
Apparently, no one had been left behind to guard her.
A small flame appeared at her fingertips.
She burned through the rope binding her wrists and quickly freed herself.
Letting out a sigh of relief, she cautiously observed the outside while pulling down the black cloth covering her eyes.
The room was dimly lit.
Fortunately, her eyes adjusted quickly.
As expected, it was a woodshed.
A low wooden table stood against the wall.
On it was a half-finished bowl of soup that was still warm.
Whoever had been here had left only recently, likely because they had been called away unexpectedly.
Zhu Mingyan leaned closer to the bowl and used the reflection in the liquid to examine herself.
Her outer robe had been removed.
She was wearing only a red inner garment.
Her hair hung loose, and there were several scrapes on her arms, probably from being pushed to the ground.
How miserable.
She attempted to activate her communication spell.
However, neither Guan Congnan nor Duan Qingyang responded.
She also could not sense Fuchuan or Hongzhui.
It seemed she had become separated from everyone.
Just as she was about to investigate the room further, she sensed someone approaching.
Her heart tightened.
She quickly returned to the chair, pulled the black cloth back over her eyes, and wrapped the burned rope around her wrists to make it appear intact.
Then she pretended to be frightened and stretched her neck toward the doorway.
A moment later, someone pushed open the door.
There were three or four people.
Using her spiritual sense, she observed them.
The leader was a woman around thirty years old.
She wore numerous heavy ornaments and pieces of jewelry.
Several strange red markings were painted across her face. At first glance, they resembled talismans.
The woman seemed mysterious and superstitious.
After entering, she did not speak immediately.
Instead, she closed her eyes and continuously moved her lips, chanting something under her breath.
The women behind her all looked at her with admiration.
Only after she finished did one of them respectfully ask,
“Aunt Liu, what do you think of this child?”
The woman called Aunt Liu stepped forward and lifted Zhu Mingyan’s chin.
She examined her carefully.
Without saying whether she approved or disapproved, she simply asked,
“Why did you choose her?”
Thinking she might have made a mistake, the woman hurriedly explained,
“Aunt Liu, we followed your instructions. We searched for children born during the Yin Hour, with the Fire element, and exactly fifteen years old. Among all of them, only this girl and another boy fetched water from the well by Qingluo Creek for three consecutive days.”
Another woman squeezed forward and added,
“This child has quite a fierce personality and doesn’t know how to cooperate. It took us some effort to bring her here, so she ended up looking a little rough.”
Aunt Liu removed the cloth from Zhu Mingyan’s eyes and studied her face.
After a moment, she nodded.
“She’ll do. We’ll use her.”
The women behind her immediately relaxed.
“The Li Fire Festival is only three days away. Train her as quickly as possible.”
After giving that simple instruction, Aunt Liu turned and left.
The women eagerly escorted her out before finally paying attention to Zhu Mingyan.
Zhu Mingyan quietly organized the information she had just learned.
Aunt Liu was searching for fifteen-year-old youths who met very specific conditions.
Besides herself, another boy had also been selected.
Both of them would most likely appear during the Li Fire Festival.
At that moment, one of the women crouched in front of her.
It was the kind-faced woman who had spoken first earlier.
Before speaking, she sighed.
Zhu Mingyan imagined how a fifteen-year-old girl forcibly kidnapped from her home would react.
With fear and panic in her voice, she asked,
“What are you going to do to me?!”
Another woman impatiently interrupted.
“Sister Li, stop wasting time. The pre-festival ceremony is about to begin. We need to hurry and get her ready.”
Sister Li nodded.
“Don’t be nervous. You’ve been chosen to become Lord Chixiao’s Corpse Child. This is a good thing—an honor that countless people could only dream of.”
Lord Chixiao’s Corpse Child?
Zhu Mingyan was puzzled, but she kept her confusion hidden and continued acting frightened.
“If you perform well during the Li Fire Festival,” Sister Li continued reassuringly, “you might even have the chance to serve beside Aunt Liu in the future.”
Since when is becoming someone’s servant considered a blessing?!
Zhu Mingyan complained silently.
Seeing that she remained quiet, Sister Li assumed she had accepted the situation.
She quickly removed the ropes and brought out a set of clothes.
“Put these on. I’ll help you get ready. The opening ceremony of the Li Fire Festival is about to begin. When you go on stage later, just do as I tell you.”
Zhu Mingyan obediently followed her instructions.
Since she was cooperative, Sister Li did not make things difficult for her.
The woman’s movements were not especially gentle, but neither were they rough.
In a few moments, she styled Zhu Mingyan’s hair into a fashionable bun.
She inserted a delicate hairpin and then applied some red-colored clay to her face.
Finally, she stepped back with satisfaction and let the other women look.
The women immediately began chatting excitedly.
“Oh my, this child actually looks quite impressive after being dressed up!”
“I think she has the same kind of bearing as those immortal priests my husband once saw in the city years ago.”
“Chunniang, you’ve never even seen them yourself. How can you tell what kind of bearing they have?” someone teased with a smile.
“That’s not what I meant!”
Chunniang became embarrassed and angrily defended herself.
“But anyway, this is a Corpse Child personally approved by Aunt Liu. Of course she has presence!”
Zhu Mingyan could only remain speechless.
Still, she secretly thought that Chunniang had surprisingly good judgment.
After all, wasn’t she actually an immortal cultivator?