The Flower Cage Sect has five branches, each representing the five elents of heaven and earth. The Water Altar is located in Dongran Lake within Huaiyin Prefecture, Yu Nan Dao. It is a highly secretive place, known only to the elders who are aware of its general location. A guide must lead the way for one to enter.
The red smoke is called "Qingniao Mianmian Fragrance." It is made from "Hongyan Flower," "Calming Herb," "Stone Powder," "Jade Pond Lotus Stan," "Moon-Longing Fruit," and many other mundane substances, carefully concocted.
"Mundane substances" are actually not cheap. Li Xian’s "Tiger Saliva Stone" and "Golden Leopard Tendon" have magical effects, yet they are still categorized as "mundane substances." In martial artists’ parlance, "mundane substances" refer to items with peculiar effects but are not rare treasures passed down through generations.
Qingniao Mianmian Fragrance... its sll is gentle and aids sleep. It can calm agitation and quiet the mind. It is an excellent dicinal smoke. But it emphasizes the "hour," and the dicine taken at the hour of Hai is very effective, doubling healing.
If taken at the hour of Zi, however, it becos entirely different. The three main ingredients "Hongyan Flower," "Jade Pond Lotus Stan," "Moon-Longing Fruit," all change their properties with the ti. Every hour of Zi, the properties of Hongyan Flower and Moon-Longing Fruit clash like water and fire, while Jade Pond Lotus Stan diates.
The dicinal properties imdiately change. It still has the wonderful effects of aiding sleep and calming the mind. But it also stimulates various thoughts, subtly nurturing one’s interests.
These thoughts are wide-ranging. They can be about martial arts, love, past experiences, and more. But the various thoughts in people’s minds often change with their encounters and situations.
The arrangent in this bedroom, seemingly or not, draws people’s thoughts to matters of pleasure and affection. The bookshelf is lined with books, all of which are love chronicles.
Nangong Liuli has gradually adapted, sleeping each night with the fragrance. As she felt ever more restless, she spent a whole night analyzing the red smoke ingredients, managing to sniff out the main ingredients like "Hongyan Flower," "Jade Pond Lotus Stan," ... She vaguely guessed the function of the red smoke. She cursed, "This sect of evil and lewd thieves, if they directly used mind poison, I might even praise their sincerity. They would be truly vile. But to concoct such ambiguous sleep fragrance."
"Is my mind pure, am I afraid?"
’Qingniao Mianmian Fragrance’ although cos from the Flower Cage Sect, is regular dicine, sold in many places, and has the use of healing a wounded heart.
After sniffing it for several days, the sleep fragrance originally does not augnt emotional thoughts. But unfortunately, her own existing emotional thoughts accumulate within her heart, making her feel increasingly agitated and angry.
One day... she inadvertently glimpsed the sandalwood box on the dressing table. Rembering its contents, her pretty face flushed red. Although it had seed strange before, she hadn’t thought much, not connecting things in this way. At this mont, certain images flickered in her mind, suddenly realizing its function.
She could no longer face others. She exclaid fearfully, "Flower Cage Sect... how... how can it tamper with such peculiar things." Scared, she fled afar, shifting her gaze forcefully, fearing her gaze would taint her eyes if it landed on the sandalwood box.
In a daze, more days passed, her cheeks slightly flushed. Clearly knowing "Qingniao Mianmian Fragrance" is not a drug of enchantnt. Yet incessantly cursing, compelled to bla the changes onto it.
Actually "Qingniao Mianmian Fragrance"... inherently possesses the property of "the pure remain pure" and "the impure starts impure." Those without desires sleep peacefully with the fragrance, its uses endless. The heavily desirous, the scent entangles their mind, their desires hard to fill.
She glanced at the dresser, her mind in a daze:
"I’ve co here, there’s no hope for this life. Why mind the clan precepts anymore, rather than be coerced by those thieves, perhaps I should embrace myself first... Ah! What am I thinking, how could I think this... truly very troubling. This place is extrely strange."
She pursed her lips tightly, lightly struggling. Feeling difficult to move, slightly at ease, "Lucky I’m tied up, unable to move, hence avoiding bizarre actions. Wait... being tied up is now a good thing?"
"Damn Flower Cage Sect!"
Her thoughts churned, perpetually feeling restless. Lying on the bed for so rest, then turning over and jumping off the bed again. Looking around left and right, yearning to find sothing to distract her mind.
Her heart fluttered, recalling the little thief feeding her in the prison. She had never clearly seen his appearance, yet her mory of him was hazy, adding a different sort of charm.
Enduring in such hardship for a long ti, days passed, isolated from the world. Sleep and daze daily... nothing else to do. Precisely due to this extre idleness, her thoughts grew active.
She originally wanted to focus her thoughts on martial arts moves. However, amidst her drifting thoughts, she kept thinking elsewhere. Her interest in martial arts was actually not deep, following clan precepts and etiquette since childhood, dignified and decorous.
The world envied her as beautiful as a flower, a noble lady of the Nangong Family. Of esteed lineage.
Captured at this juncture, lost clan, lost rules. Felt an implicit sense of breaking free from imprisonnt. Bound, yet another feeling of freedom. She clearly knew this feeling was incorrect. But Qingniao Mianmian fragrance only lured thoughts, drawing out deeper reasoning.
These were her original thoughts.
But the revulsion towards Flower Cage Sect was also from the heart. In this mont, feelings were mixed, extrely complex.
One day, the door suddenly opened. Four won in black dresses, makeup exquisite, appearance fair, giggling, walked into the room.
Nangong Liuli turned her head away. The four won laughed, "Still saying you’re not a flirt. Why is your face so red?" Nangong Liuli said, "I can’t wait to kill you!"
One woman said, "Ah, ah. You know your own thoughts, we won’t argue with you."
Nangong Liuli felt furious with nowhere to vent, secretly annoyed at her lack of resolve. Yet made into this state by Qingniao Mianmian fragrance. One woman said, "Alright, sisters, let us not tease her. The feast has already started, and the prize must be prepared carefully."
Nangong Liuli exclaid in shock, "What? The feast has already started? How long has it been?"
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