Chapter 118: The Path of a Lady

Mo Han caught these words, a flash of surprise crossing his eyes. With a smile, he asked Nuonuo, "Do you know why?"

"I don't know..."

Nuonuo bowed her head in agony, whispering, "I don't know! I don't know! I don't know!"

Her emotions spiraled into instability, tears streaming down her cheeks. She could not fathom—nor did she wish to—why the family she loved most had treated her this way.

"I have always loved them. I have always been so good to them, yet my younger brother wanted me dead, and my parents abandoned me. What did I do wrong?"

Nuonuo lowered her head helplessly, eyes squeezed shut. Her hands twisted her dress into a tangled mess against her knees, soaking the fabric with her tears.

"Oh my, look at you. This is truly unladylike. It is precisely because of this that you have never won the favor of others. You must learn to cultivate your own aura—a lady's aura. It is that peerless quality that remains unshaken, even if one were to kill their own flesh and blood. Do you understand?"

"A lady..."

Hearing Mo Han’s words, Nuonuo looked up, startled, staring at him in confusion.

"Yes, a lady. Look at yourself now, torturing yourself like this. Do you blame your brother? Your parents? Was it your brother who forced you into the inferno? Was it your brother who burned away your legs? Or did your parents force you to be disabled for life? It was you. It was your own immaturity, your own disobedience, that forced your loved ones to reach this point. The root of all this lies within you. They did not abandon you; you abandoned yourself!"

"No, how could that be? It’s not true..."

Nuonuo shook her head repeatedly, wanting to refute him but finding no words. Looking down at the hollow space where her legs once were, an endless bitterness and despair filled her soul.

"So... it was all my fault... No, I don't want this..."

"Of course you don't have to," Mo Han said, his voice once again gentle and sonorous as he observed her.

"Really? What can I do? Please, Uncle, teach me!"

Nuonuo clutched at him as if he were a lifeline, her eyes filled with a desperate, final hope.

"Will you be obedient, then?"

"Yes!"

"Will you be sensible?"

"Yes!"

"Good..." Mo Han said, finally stroking her small head. "As long as you follow Uncle Mo’s arrangements, I will mold you into a little lady whom everyone loves. How about that?"

"I... can I really?" Nuonuo asked, looking up with a mix of surprise and uncertainty.

"Naturally. But first, Uncle Mo needs you to do one thing."

"Hmm?" Nuonuo looked up, gazing at him with curiosity.

"It is nothing much. Kill your parents and your brother. Since they have abandoned you, denied you, and no longer love you—having instead conspired to harm you so cruelly—they are no longer your family. They are merely... obstacles on your path to becoming a lady, the source of your most wretched memories. Don't be afraid. Kill them, and your life can be reshuffled, opening a brand new chapter!"

Countless lights suddenly flared to life. Behind Mo Han, a massive screen illuminated, displaying a beautiful girl dressed as a lady. Her adorable dress, curled cherry-blossom-colored hair, and sweet smile crafted an aura of natural elegance that stirred the imagination.

"This is your future. You only need to take that one small step, and I will pave the rest of the road for you... Come, be brave. Look up and see your future self."

Mo Han had appeared behind her, gently lifting her chin to force her gaze toward the 'self' on the screen. Nuonuo was stunned by the beautiful girl in the image.

"Do you want to become like this?" Mo Han continued to entice her.

"I want to... I want to so badly..." Nuonuo whispered.

"As long as you desire it, no one has the right to stop you. All you must do is slaughter the trash and obstacles blocking your path to ladyhood."

With that, Mo Han placed a giant machete into Nuonuo’s hands. He then pricked his fingertip, letting two drops of blood fall onto her knees.

Instantly, a startling sight occurred: where her legs had been empty, they began to regrow, becoming exactly as they were before.

Nuonuo tentatively stood up. When she realized she had regained her freedom, a look of ecstatic joy flooded her face. She looked at Mo Han with gratitude, bowing politely and ladylike to thank him.

"Thank you, Uncle Mo. It seems only you truly understand me, and only you... are truly good to me. I will listen to you now; I will never fail your expectations."

Shouldering the snake-bone blade, Nuonuo walked slowly toward the corner, where her father, mother, and brother were bound, shivering in terror.

"Mmph! Mmph!"

With their mouths gagged, they let out desperate, muffled cries, shaking their heads frantically, their expressions filled with pleading.

Seeing this, Nuonuo felt no softness; instead, her anger only grew.

"Father, Mother, Brother—I have finally transformed. Are you not happy for me? I have finally become a lady; why do you shake your heads? I have always been the one sacrificing for you, yet you betrayed me, denied me, rejected me, and even abandoned me time and time again! But it doesn't matter. Uncle Mo accepts me; he is truly good to me. I will never let those who truly care for me down, never!! So... all of you, die!"

As she spoke, the snake-bone blade cut through the air with a chilling glint. Amidst the spray of blood, the scene before Nuonuo faded into total darkness.

Mu You was puzzled, wondering what had just happened, when he detached from Nuonuo’s body. Everything around him dissolved into nothingness, yet the experience—even the inner feelings of the characters—had felt so visceral, so hauntingly real.

Looking at Nuonuo again, Mu You felt as if something had been stripped away from her, never to return.

It was... a self. A person who loses their self, even if they remain alive, is no different from the dead.

Suddenly, the four characters "Death Breeding" burned themselves into Mu You’s memory. Before he could make sense of it, the scene shifted once more.