Chapter 266: Punishment

Ye Lan remained in that position, like an emotionless statue.

But Mu Xi could feel that gaze never leaving her, like a searchlight, illuminating every bit of her wretchedness and struggle with stark clarity.

Hatred sprouted and spread in the depths of her heart.

‘Using the most despicable methods to force her into submission? Why? Why can this person always so easily control everything about her?’

‘Are they suffering? Li Xin… Little An… How are they now? Are they also…’

‘Absolutely not!’ Worry and guilt gnawed at her sanity like venomous snakes. She couldn’t fail!

Mu Xi tried hard to adjust her breathing, attempting to calm herself down.

She tried curling her body up, reducing the swaying, shifting her center of gravity onto the knot.

Sweat soaked her silver hair, sticking to her cheeks and neck, bringing a cold, clammy sensation.

She didn’t know how long it had been. Maybe an hour, maybe less.

Mu Xi’s stamina was gradually depleting. The muscles in her arms began to twitch uncontrollably, and her vision blurred in waves.

Just as her consciousness wavered for a split second, her body lost its balance.

“Ah!” A short, sharp gasp escaped her.

She fell heavily from the rope, crashing onto the hard, cold floor, nearly blacking out. Intense pain shot from her back and hips, making her vision go dark.

“Waste.”

Those two icy words, like poison-tipped ice picks, pierced Mu Xi’s eardrums.

Ye Lan stood up, slowly walked over to her, and looked down at her disheveled state from above. The hatred that had been building up for so long finally broke through the restraints of reason.

Humiliation, anger, despair… All her emotions erupted in this moment.

Mu Xi jerked her head up, her bloodshot eyes fixed fiercely on Ye Lan, screaming hysterically, her voice hoarse from agitation. “Ye Lan! You bastard! Demon!! I hope you die a horrible death!!”

The expression on Ye Lan’s face didn’t change at all; she just watched her outburst calmly.

“You only know how to use these despicable tricks! Threatening me! Torturing me! Do you think this will make me fear you?! I’m telling you! I hate you! I wish I could kill you right now!!”

Mu Xi struggled to get up, but the pain and exhaustion in her body made her fall again.

Ye Lan crouched down, meeting her at eye level. Her voice was soft, yet carried a bone-chilling coldness. “Try cursing again?”

That calm tone was more threatening than any harsh words.

Mu Xi’s curses stopped abruptly.

She looked into Ye Lan’s unfathomable phoenix eyes. There were no ripples within them, only a vast, indifferent coldness.

Fear, like a tidal wave, instantly drowned her anger. She remembered Li Xin and Little An, remembered the situation they might be facing.

She couldn’t provoke Ye Lan. Not now.

Mu Xi’s lips trembled violently, but not a single word came out. The eyes that had been burning with raging fury moments ago were now filled only with terror and helplessness.

She lowered her head, avoiding Ye Lan’s gaze, curling up her body like a defeated little beast.

Ye Lan reached out, gently lifted her chin, forcing her to look at herself. “It seems you haven’t completely forgotten the lesson.”

Her fingertips were icy cold, touching Mu Xi’s skin, sending a shiver through her.

“Get up.” Ye Lan withdrew her hand, stood up, her voice returning to its previous indifference. “Continue.”

Ye Lan didn’t look at her again, turning and walking back to the bed, sitting down once more as if nothing had just happened.

Mu Xi lay on the floor, her whole body aching, her heart feeling as if it were being torn apart. She looked at the rope that had regained its stillness, her eyes utterly lifeless.

Mu Xi slowly, with extreme difficulty, pushed herself up.

She didn’t cry; her tears had long since dried up in the endless torment. Hatred was the only force supporting her to stand up again. Every movement pulled at the pain throughout her body, her muscles trembling uncontrollably.

Sweat once again soaked the stray hairs on her forehead, sticking to her pale cheeks.

She walked beneath the rope and looked up. That height, once a symbol of her yearning for freedom, had now become an insurmountable chasm.

She took a deep breath; the air, tasting of rust, choked her lungs. She leaped up again, grabbing the rope.

This time, she couldn’t even stabilize herself for the first few seconds.

The strength in her arms had long been exhausted in the previous struggles and falls; her muscles ached as if scorched by fire.

The rope’s rough surface rubbed against her tender palms, bringing a burning pain.

Her body swayed uncontrollably, her vision blurring again.

She could feel Ye Lan’s gaze, landing on her as if it had substance, carrying scrutiny and an indescribable indifference.

Once again, she fell heavily to the ground. The same posture, the same intense pain. This time, she didn’t even have the strength to gasp. Her body curled up, her silver hair splayed across the cold floor, stained with dust, losing its usual luster. Time seemed to freeze.

In the quiet room, there was only the sound of her heavy, painful panting.

Mu Xi lay on the floor, unmoving.

A heavy despair seized her. It wasn’t because the pain rendered her immobile, but because of a deeper realization—with her current physical condition, completing this task was simply impossible.

Ye Lan had known from the very beginning. This was just another form of torture.

She slowly raised her head, looking at Ye Lan not far away. That person still sat by the bed, her posture lazy and elegant, as if watching a play that had nothing to do with her.

She didn’t urge her on, didn’t speak, just watched quietly.

Mu Xi’s lips moved, but her parched throat couldn’t produce any sound.

She gave up.

Not because her willpower was weak, not because she feared the pain of failure.

But because she clearly saw reality—she couldn’t do it.

Like a bird with broken wings, no matter how it struggled, it could never fly toward the sky again.

This sobering realization was more despairing than any torture.

“I… can’t do it.” Mu Xi’s voice was so hoarse it was almost inaudible.

Ye Lan finally moved. She stood up, walked over to Mu Xi, still looking down from above.

“Oh?” Her voice held no discernible emotion. “Giving up?”

Mu Xi closed her eyes, refusing to look at her. Silence was her admission.

Ye Lan let out a soft laugh, low, yet like the icy tongue of a snake licking Mu Xi’s ear. “I gave you a chance, Little Xi.”

That form of address made Mu Xi’s body stiffen. ‘Hypocritical. Disgusting.’

“Since you chose to give up,” Ye Lan’s voice returned to its usual indifference, “then you must accept the punishment for failure.”

Mu Xi’s heart sank. She knew whatever awaited her would not be anything good.

“From now on,” Ye Lan said slowly, each word like an ice pellet hitting the ground, “without my permission, you are not allowed to sleep.”

Deprivation of sleep?

Mu Xi’s eyes snapped open, looking at Ye Lan.

Ye Lan’s phoenix eyes held no ripples, only a deep, unfathomable icy pool. “Until… I am satisfied.”

Whether in this life or the previous one, insomnia and staying up late were commonplace for Mu Xi. She was long accustomed to staying awake in extreme exhaustion. Ye Lan’s little trick seemed rather beneath her.

Her silence and the flash of contempt that flickered in her eyes did not seem to escape Ye Lan’s notice.

Ye Lan raised an eyebrow slightly, the corner of her lips curling into a meaningful arc.

“It seems you think this punishment is easy?”