CHAPTER 53
The Beginning Of A New Arc: Intimidating Female Figure.
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"I was informed that you lost your ability of speech, as well as your memory. Discerning from how you were speaking earlier, the aphasia was clearly true. But never mind that now. My Beguiling Mind Pearl has clearly solved the problem of your inability to understand our tongue."
The middle-aged man paused, his expression flickered for the slightest of moment.
"As for your memories, the Pearl should have restored them as well. Take your time to digest them. Although they may feel foreign to you currently—like a story read by a stranger—they will naturally settle in with time."
He offered a thin, practiced smile. "As for what we may want from you... you can believe me when I say we bear no ill intentions."
It was then that it suddenly struck Lu Xietong. Along with the flood of linguistic knowledge, a batch of foreign memories—clearly not her own—had settled into her mind like oil floating on water.
She wouldn't have noticed these quickly if he hadn't mentioned "restoring" them. She knew best that she hadn't lost her memory; the amnesia had been a facade.
'They are mistaking my identity for someone else, and this Pearl is trying to force her life into my skull.'
However, Lu Xietong's insight was deep. She could pick up subtle clues from the middle-aged man's gaze when it flickered ever so lightly. He seemed desperate for her to accept these memories as truth.
Hence, she decided to probe.
"And that's why you kidnapped me and have me bound like a sacrificial lamb? Because you bear 'no ill intentions'?"
She spoke sarcastically, her gaze scrutinizing his face for even a micro-expression of guilt.
"I understand completely."
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A few hours went by quickly in the real world, but inside Lu Xie's mind, they felt like decades.
She was really beginning to miss the good old days when she played the mischievous, pampered Little Miss—even though that was just yesterday.
With nothing to keep her company but her thoughts and a newfound toy in the form of stolen memories, she began ruminating.
From the memories she had obtained—though fragmented and blurry in many aspects—she could now piece some of the puzzle together.
Lu Xie learned from the implanted memories that the name of the girl she was confused with was Alia.
However, she wasn't even sure if these memories truly belonged to Alia. There were too many grey areas, too many conveniently blurry patches. This strengthened her resolve that these memories were tampered with. They were deliberately hiding something from "Alia," which they believed to be her, though the reason behind such deception eluded her.
But the biggest revelation was how this mix-up happened.
She had her identity confused with Alia because Alia was required to always wear a veil.
To her relief, she wasn't the leader of a cult. Not yet, anyway.
This place was actually a Coven—a secret society that Alia had been initiated into at birth, as a "Child of Principalities," a status that required her face to remain hidden from the world. No one was allowed to see her true features, not even her own birth family.
This rule served as both a blessing and a curse.
It was a curse because this rule had caused the mix-up in the first place. Since hardly anyone had seen her real face, the real Alia must have stumbled upon an unconscious Lu Xie by the riverbank. Seizing the opportunity, the real Alia swapped their clothes, passing her burden onto Lu Xie before vanishing.
Hence, Lu Xie landed here.
But it was also a blessing. Because of this rule, no one here could recognize her as an imposter. She could very well use this identity to understand what was happening in this world while hiding in plain sight.
This Coven referred to themselves as the Order of Principalities. A mysterious power that had forcefully snatched Alia from her birth parents' hands upon her birth.
Surprisingly, the place she had been "kidnapped" from—where she had woken up surrounded by luxury—was actually Alia's birth family's manor. The heavy guard and the "entourage" were a failed attempt by her parents to protect her from returning to this Coven.
Lucky for Lu Xie, Alia's birth parents were not around when she had unintentionally impersonated their daughter, otherwise the situation would have been far more awkward.
After sifting through the memories for a while, Lu Xie finally gained a basic understanding of this world. She decided to stop, her mind drifting back to the middle-aged man who had left hours ago.
The subtle flinch in his eyes when she made her sarcastic comment told her there were hidden cards at play.
Which meant, she, Lu Xie, was officially tangling with a level of trouble she didn't sign up for.
'He is really a bad actor.' Lu Xie added mentally.
'So in summary, a fresh batch of troublesome cookies has been served on my plate!' she swore at herself as her memory flashed back to the moment after her sarcastic remark with the middle aged
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"Do not be afraid."
The middle-aged man's voice echoed in her memory. He had tried to sound comforting.
'That is only more reason to be afraid,' Lu Xie commented mentally.
"In earnest, you are one of us. One of the Children of the Order of Principalities."
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"The Order of Principalities... Children of Principalities..." Lu Xie mused to herself in the damp silence of the cave.
But then, a thought struck her.
Where was the real Alia?
"Could she simply be in hiding? Or..."
"What if she actually returns in the future to reclaim her spot?"
"No! If she wanted to return, she wouldn't have run in the first place," Lu Xie dismissed. "But what could make a girl run from such a powerful organization without looking back?"
"Whatever it is, I am now the one heading straight toward it."
"Either way, I have to get out of here as soon as possible. If she is hiding, there will definitely come a day when she proves me to be an imposter. Furthermore, this matter is increasingly complex. One shouldn't dabble in muddy waters without knowing the depth." Lu Xie concluded.
Just then, a wet, squelching sound broke her concentration.
Squelch... drip...
The living sludge binding her began receding. Drop by drop, it dripped off the chair, remerging on the floor.
In just a moment, the puddle morphed into a headless black python. It slithered away across the stone floor. Lu Xietong's curious eyes followed it.
She watched as the viscous creature crawled up a slender leg clad in leather, wrapped around a curvy, thin waist, and finally slithered across a full bosom.
It vanished into a glassy black pendant that rested between the woman's collarbones. The pendant glowed with a green ring of light, pulsating as it swallowed the sludge whole.
The most remarkable part of this pendant was its size. It was miniature, smaller than a fingernail, but looked incredibly brittle. Its surface was covered in fine cracks, as though it would shatter with just a touch.
Lu Xietong quickly determined that it must be a high-level, perhaps unstable, spatial tool.
Finally, Lu Xietong looked up to see the face behind such a curvy figure.
To no surprise, it was a seductive-looking woman.
She was dressed in tight crimson leather that hugged every inch of her body, covering her from neck to toe, save for her face.
In stark contrast to her blood-red clothes, her hair was icy white, falling in long, loose waves down her back. Delicate sea-blue eyes stood out against her pale skin, and small cherry lips added a bit of "icy spice" to her appeal.
She stood with an arrogant kind of grace, her posture relaxed yet predatory. Her eyes ran through the entirety of the figure called Lu Xie, dissecting her.
Lu Xie judged that this woman should only be in her mid-twenties.
For the first time in a very long time... Lu Xie felt genuinely intimidated by a female figure.