Excitement coursed through Jingrui's veins. She had been at the Floating Abyss for more than a fortnight, and each day, she had lived like a prisoner. She didn't know what went through Prince Zhanying's mind to make her run an errand, but a smile brightened her face.

The guards by the palace door let her out upon seeing her errand scroll. She skipped out into the long alleyway. The breeze brushed against her skin, bringing with it a sense of freedom. Jingrui was determined to make the most out of this errand.

Soon, she approached the lotus garden, the centre of the Heavenly Palace. A perfectly circular pond laid in the middle of four junctions that led to different palaces. Lotuses bloomed from the water surface, and golden carps swam around, forming ripples and jiggling the stems. Several maids and guards clustered around the pond, holding scrolls similar to hers and conversing loudly with one another. As Jingrui walked on the side pavement to exit the junction, a high-pitched cry stopped her in her tracks. She looked up, her body tensing.

"There's no way I'm walking past that alleyway again!" a maid shrieked as she clutched her hands over her head. "I told you, didn't I? That alleyway is haunted!"

Another maid beside her went pale. She placed her finger on her lips. "Be quiet, will you? How could you say that the Golden Alleyway is haunted, Hua? That's the Alleyway that leads straight to the Stardust Palace where the Heavenly Emperor Yihuai resided. It is an auspicious alleyway!"

"Auspicious? Auspicious, you say!" the maid, Hua, frantically shook her head. "A few weeks ago, I went past that alleyway at night. It is really haunted. I-I really did see her, the female ghost. Her hair was as black as the night, and her skin was as white as the moon. Blood was dripping down from her face, covering her skin. Her eyes were bloodshot and hungry, and she was running to get me. T-There's no way that alleyway is auspicious!"

Jingrui's heart thumped in her chest. A haunted alleyway? A bloody female ghost? She stepped towards the two maids. Her words trembled as she blurted out, "E-Excuse me, where is the Golden Alleyway?"

Hua's face immediately blanched white upon seeing Jingrui, and she pointed at Jingrui's face. "T-The female ghost! She's the female ghost!"

The other maid furrowed her brows as she held Hua up from collapsing to the ground. "Calm down, Hua, she's just a maid like us." The maid turned to Jingrui and let out a sigh. "Don't mind her, she's been like this ever since she had last passed by the Golden Alleyway. I don't recommend you to go there, but if you must, the alleyway is that way."

The maid pointed ahead, and Jingrui followed her finger. Muttering a thank, she took a run in the direction the maid had given without a further thought.

Walking a few distances ahead, she approached a majestic alley. Several polished pillars, made from pure gold and carved with five-clawed dragon markings, towered into the clouds. Dark miasma emitted from every corner of the path, tempting her towards it. Jingrui knew instantly that this must be the Golden Alleyway.

She scanned the dark alley, and her eyes fell upon a distinctive, red-brown coloured stain against the wall. The stain was faded as if someone had tried to wash it off, but didn't scrub well enough. It trailed along the wall, forming four large and crooked characters.

Jingrui took a deep breath, her heart hammering violently against her chest as she stepped into the alleyway. Hesitantly, she peered closer at the letters. "Jade . . . dragon. . ." her eyes widened. "Jade Dragon Mountain?"

She gulped, goosebumps crawling down her skin. Why would anyone carve these letters here? The name rang overly familiar in her ears. Jade Dragon Mountain, the land between the Celestial Tribe and the Demon Realm, the property owned by the Phantom Sect. As she stared at the carvings, an uneasy feeling crept into her heart.

With all her courage, she began to walk, following the blood trail that led her on forever. The deeper she ventured into the alleyway, the more profuse the stain became.

As her pace quickened to follow the trail, her head banged against something hard, and she tumbled onto the ground. Her flesh scraped against the floor, and blood seeped from her pale skin.

A person stepped towards her, casting an intimidating shadow across her body. Anxiety gnawed its way into her bones, and the taste of saliva thickened in her mouth. She gazed up towards the figure. He was clad in gold from head to toe. The sky above him was blinded by his bright aura. A five-clawed dragon embroidered his delicate hanfu, and a golden crown sat above his head.

Her heart squeezed in her chest, and fear popped her eyes wide open. Jingrui scrambled away from the man's feet and bowed down low, her forehead touching the ground. "This servant greets Your Majesty, Heavenly Emperor Yihuai."

"You . . . little maid, you just ran into me, dirtying my clothes with your Earthly Immortal Essence," the Heavenly Emperor remarked, his voice echoing throughout the alleyway. Behind him, rows of guards and maids stood straight, ready to act upon his command.

Jingrui hit her forehead against the ground. "Please have mercy, Your Majesty. Please have mercy-"

"You look quite familiar, lowly maid. Lift your face," he demanded.

Jingrui clenched her fists and held her chin up without looking into his eyes.

"Indeed you do look familiar. . ." He scratched his head, unable to recall. "What palace do you work under?"

Jingrui trembled as she forced her voice out of her throat. "The Floating Abyss Palace, Your Majesty-"

She was cut off when Emperor Yihuai broke into menacing laughter. "So, you are a maid at my little brother's palace?" He spat the word 'little brother'. His eyes turned amused, but then, he put on a feigned rage. "You, lowly servant, ran into me and caused me casualties. Besides, this is the Golden Alleyway, restricted to mundane, little slaves such as yourself. According to the Heavenly Law, the like of you should be punished!"

Jingrui's eyes widened, and she banged her forehead against the floor several times until she felt a wet and warm substance trickle down from it. "Please have mercy, Your Majesty. Please have mercy-" Her voice caught in her throat when the maids behind him carried over a plate filled with needles. Tears surged into her eyes, and she tried to gulp them down.

Emperor Yihuai held a large smirk as he waved for his guards to hold her down. The guards pressed her flat against the floor and she winced. Her eyes grew with layers of tears, her head shook rapidly as one of the maids held the needle up. Another maid pried open her clenched fist.

Her pupils shook as she tried to back away. "Don't. . ." She couldn't struggle against their strength. A scream escaped her throat when the maid penetrated the sharp needle in between her finger and her nail. Sharp pain lanced through her nerves. Her bones and limbs convulsed with fire, and she hissed at the maids. By the time they pierced her tenth finger, colourful spots had filled her vision, eating away at her senses. She couldn't even hear her own blaring screams.

Tears sprung from her eyes as they pulled the needles out and threw her onto the floor like a sack of sand. Blood ran from her fingertips as the Heavenly Emperor stepped over her fragile body. He did not cast a glance at her as the trail of maids and guards followed behind him.

So this is Heaven. . . A laugh croaked out of Jingrui's throat as she watched their figures disappear within the shadow of the palace.

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