Chapter 565-566: Centennial Bride; The Card |
565: Centennial Bride
None of them had ever seen such a big castle before.
Not everyone was willing to go with Mo Yan, but after he released a wisp of qi, no one dared continue refusing.
The pressure from that tiny wisp had nearly torn them apart. If a mere head steward was this strong, then how powerful must the master be?!
With trepidation in their hearts, the ten girls properly entered Blue Moon castle.
Despite its size, not a single servant was present. A castle so big should have needed an army of servants for maintain, and yet there wasn’t a single servant in sight!
Despite this, everything inside the brightly lit castle was well cared for. The furniture and various decorations stood without a trace of dust.
“Ladies, this is the castle of the Duke of Blue Moon. His Grace is unable to meet you in person. Among the ten of you, one will pass and become his true bride. Only then will you qualify to meet His Grace the honorable Duke of Blue Moon castle.”
Mo Yan’s eyes shimmered with mad admiration when speaking about his master. Ai Lin secretly slandered him in her heart. Yep, birds of a feather flock together.
“Release you? This is the home of the future duchess.” The faint smile Mo Yan gave them didn’t reach his eyes.
Ai Lin noticed he wasn’t referring to everyone, only the future duchess.
The others didn’t notice. They had grabbed onto the only part that was important to them – the insinuation that the other party didn’t intend to release them.
Among the ten girls, other than Feng Wu, who never thought too much anyway, Ai Lin and Zi Cheng were the only ones who weren’t terrified. Ai Lin and Zi Cheng had aces up their sleeve. The other seven girls were incredibly scared; they hoped their families would find and rescue them from such a terrible place soon.
“Ladies, you must be hungry. Please take a seat and enjoy the meal we have carefully prepared for you.” Mo Yan said.
The moment he finished speaking, silver plates floated in from outside. It was a magical world, so the girls weren't shocked or scared by the floating plates. They just assumed it was done through magic.
It was a castle with no servants, but Feng Wu saw things differently.
In her eyes, there were many people in the castle, and they were all young girls.
The girls had vacant eyes and were intent on their tasks. They came in one by one carrying dinner trays. They respectfully left after setting everything on the table appropriately. They moved as though they were trying hard not to disturb anyone.
It was easy to guess the girls were rejected brides. Though their physical bodies were destroyed, some of them were lucky enough to keep their souls. These souls became the current maids in the castle.
The girls who were unlucky couldn’t save their souls and no longer existed.
Feng Wu was the only one who could see them. Even Ai Lin wasn’t aware the castle was being maintained by a bunch of ghosts.
The original novel was written from Zi Cheng’s perspective, and since Zi Cheng wasn’t a necromancer, she couldn’t see the ghosts. The existence of so many remained a secret.
Even the master of Star Marshall hall and the principal of Xingguang Holy academy thought all the abducted girls no longer existed.
Mo Yan stood to the side waiting for them to eat the exquisite dishes laid on the table.
The girls were frightened and hungry but they didn’t dare eat what Mo Yan prepared. What if it was poisoned?
Ai Lin wasn’t worried about that. Having already read the novel, she knew the food was safe.
Zi Cheng used her items from her cheat system to test the food and found they were safe. She picked up her cutlery and began to eat.
Her unperturbed and natural attitude impressed Mo Yan. He couldn’t remember how many brides he had seen over the years, but of all the women who came the castle, she was the most calm and elegant.
Perhaps she would have the honor of being the next centennial bride.
The reason it was a centennial bride was because the duke had to replace his wives every one hundred years.
The previous bride had been a duchess for a hundred years and now it was time to replace her. Every century saw a new beautiful bride. These girls were the candidates.
Head Steward Mo Yan hoped someone among them would be able to satisfy the duke. He didn’t want the duke to lose interest in playing with his duchess too quickly.
Though they were superior to humans in the human world, they couldn’t visit too often because of the world’s consciousness. It prevented them from visiting too frequently. Plus, the temple’s Star Marshall hall and Xingguang Holy academy probably didn’t want them to visit either.
The duke said it was best not to confront the world’s consciousness of this world; it wouldn’t be good for outsiders like them.
As for the masters of Star Marshall hall and Xingguang Holy academy, the duke didn’t want to fight with them either. It was best to avoid them.
Mo Yan knew both organizations had been trying to capture his master for some time. But no matter what they tried, they couldn’t enter Blue Moon.
No one entered Blue Moon without his master’s permission.
How could the super powers of this world fight His Grace if they couldn’t find him? Haha. Blue Moon realm was safe.
He didn’t know how long their peace would last, but as long as the super powers couldn’t reach Blue Moon, there was nothing to worry about.
When His Grace tired of playing with his bride, they would leave the current world and go somewhere else. At that time, the affairs of this world would have nothing to do with them.
Hopefully the new bride would keep His Grace’s interest a for a while. The new duchess had to give his master some fun...
566: The Card
The girls ate their meal mechanically in silence.
The food was wonderful; they were rare and delicious dishes that none of them would have been able to eat every day even if they were born into a big family.
Unfortunately, nine of the ten girls couldn’t appreciate any of it. Feng Wu was the only one who gorged happily, smacking her lips in satisfaction.
The meat was tender with a fruity fragrance. After eating a few pieces, her body warmed and the qi she used earlier was replenished.
Feng Wu nodded in satisfaction, appreciating the food very much. A pity, there was so little. Why were the people here so stingy? This wasn’t enough to fill her belly!
Feng Wu was a little resentful. She seldom felt hungry since starting classes at Xingguang Holy academy.
Contrary to Feng Wu, who wasn’t satisfied with the quantity, the other girls could barely eat.
It was impossible for them to eat and drink in such a weird environment. Even if there was the most delicious meat in front of them, they couldn’t bare to stomach much.
Feng Wu looked brightly at the girl sitting opposite her. “Are you going to eat that?” Much of the meal on her plate remained untouched.
“I can’t eat.” The girl’s expression froze and she muttered. Who in their right mind could eat and drink so heartily?
“I’ll help you eat!” Feng Wu squinted her eyes as a bit of drool began to pool in her mouth.
The girl pushed her barely touched plate over to Feng Wu. “You can have it if you want it.”
Feng Wu took it with a blank expression. Then she turned her head to the other girls around the table who hadn’t touched their food.
Three black lines appeared on their foreheads. Who was this glutton? You can really eat in this kind of environment? You are too amazing!
They didn’t wait for Feng Wu to speak, but voluntarily pushed their plates over. They couldn’t eat it anyway, might as well just share it with her and let her eat as much as she wanted.
Two of the girls muttered quietly something about ignorant country bumpkins. Their situation was too dangerous so the normally unruly and willful girls didn’t have the courage to ridicule Feng Wu loudly.
It only took a few minutes for Feng Wu to polish off the plates.
Zi Cheng and Ai Lin involuntarily twitched their lips at the sight. It was impressive, her speed.
After the meal, Head Steward Mo Yan brought them to another room. The new room was ornately decorated and filled with so much sparkling crystal accessories that the entire room was filled with refracted rainbow lights. It was so dazzling it was hard not to squint.
The girls shielded their eyes with their hands. What kind of room was this? Why so dazzling?
The head steward must have been used it as he appeared completely unphased.
“Ladies, please sit down. You will receive the first round of tests here. Among the ten of you, only one can survive to the end. Those who fail to become the duchess shall die. So please try to survive to the end so that you may be privileged to see His Grace and be the Duchess of Blue Moon castle.”
The girls looked at each other with fear and trepidation in their hearts. Did this guy want them to kill each other?
As they were thinking about whether or not Mo Yan had the ability to force them, the room suddenly changed into a forest. A blue moon hung above.
Feng Wu was standing alone in a corner of the forest when a white card materialized in her hand. It read, “You must kill one of the ten people here within two hours. Failure to do so will result in your immediate destruction.”
The other girls held the same cards in their hands as they stood in different parts of the forest. They would die if they didn’t want to kill and they would die if they weren’t strong enough to kill someone else.
It was clear the selection would be bloody. The final winner had to be superior in both mind and body with means and ability.
It was just that the winner would also die in the end. Although they would have an intact body, they would be mute and frozen, with their soul forever sealed inside their corpse.
The girls who won and were turned into dolls probably regretted winning. It would have been better to die a clean death then live as a corpse doll.
Ai Lin sighed. The duke was really perverted. She squeezed the card in her hand as determination flashed in her eyes. She had to live to the end.
Feng Wu glanced at the card before casually throwing it away and walking deeper in the forest.
Some girls tore their cards up and some cried inconsolably. But after crying, a thread of cruelty flashed in their eyes. A girl who can survive in a big family would never be so weak that she would choose to wait for death. Which of them would actually give up the chance to live?
None of them questioned the authenticity of the information on the card. They knew in their hearts if they failed to follow the instructions, they really would die a tragic death.
As the girls were getting ready to kill each other, Ming Xi was busy using the divine blood he left on Feng Wu to find her location. As long as the moon shone where she was, he would be able to find her.
Though the principal and vice principal knew Feng Wu had been chosen by the duke, there was nothing they could do.
The duke’s methods were so mysterious that neither the master of Star Marshall hall nor the principal of Xingguang Holy academy could interfere.
Ai Lin and Zi Cheng were also missing. Their disappearances were concealed by the school to prevent panic.
The school deduced the identities of the other girls who received a wedding invitation from the Duke of Blue Moon, but kept the reason behind their disappearances secret. If the existence of the Duke of Blue Moon was made public, panic would erupt amongst the girls. It was better not to reveal the matter until there was a solution.
The families of the victims were kept in the dark. Most thought it was a simple kidnapping so they were searching like crazy. No one would have guessed the girls were no longer on the continent, that they were in the gap between worlds, hidden away in the Blue Moon realm.
Feng Wu’s friends were hiding the truth from the Feng family as well. It would have been useless to tell them about it. Though the Feng family was powerful, there was nothing they could do against the behemoth that was the Duke of Blue Moon.
Everyone who knew the truth of the matter was worried about Feng Wu.
Before Ai Lin was abducted to Blue Moon castle, she told Zo about it, so he was worried about Ai Lin as well.