thefictionvixens Chapter 48 Cinderella 7
Chapter 48 Cinderella 7
The woman who called herself "Cinderella," bathed in the flickering glow of phosphorescent light, seemed like a ghost emerging from the dust of time and endless suffering. Her words, low and hoarse, were clear and articulate, carrying an almost icy clarity forged by repeated hammering of cruel reality. Behind this clarity lay a hatred that had burned for three thousand years (or perhaps longer?) and a desperate, all-or-nothing resolve.
"Weakness?" She repeated Chu Xuan's question, a faint, mocking, and painful smile curving her lips. "That monster, the 'Fairy Godmother' you saw, doesn't have the weaknesses of a mortal being as you perceive them. Her essence is this town, this castle, the collective will of the entire distorted 'Law of Happiness,' a vast spiritual entity that exists by devouring beauty, hope, souls, and life. She is omnipresent yet elusive. Attacking her appearance directly is like trying to pierce a mountain with a wooden spear."
She paused, then pointed to the shimmering crystal shard in Zheng Zha's hand: "But any existence, as long as it relies on specific 'rules' and 'rituals' to maintain itself and draw power, must have its own 'nodes' and 'core' on which it operates."
"The first node is the 'Crystal Shoe.'" Her gaze swept over the scattered fragments and twisted pumpkins in the pit, her eyes deepening with grief. "The Crystal Shoe is not merely a vessel imprisoning souls; it is also a 'converter' and 'resonator' through which she transformed pain, resentment, and distorted 'beautiful' emotions into the power that sustains this world and nourishes her own. The complete shoe is the core of her ritual chain, capable of completely binding and extracting the chosen 'sacrifice' soul from the underlying rules of this distorted world. You have damaged a part of it, weakened it, but it is not enough. It needs to be completely destroyed, or, with a stronger, opposite 'contamination,' you need to reverse-force its transformative core, causing it to overload and collapse."
"Stronger 'pollution'?" Wang Lin keenly caught the word.
"Yes, pollution." A strange light flashed in Cinderella's eyes, a light that mixed hatred, pleasure, and a deep-seated pity. "The power from the forest, which she regarded as 'unclean' and 'dangerous.' The power of 'us,' which comes from those who have been forgotten, tormented, and devoured, yet have never truly yielded, and have ultimately merged with the most primal resentment, madness, and pain of this land."
She stomped her foot lightly, and a faint echo came from the cold rock beneath her feet. The few quiet gray-black mice at the edge of the cave entrance also made soft, seemingly echoing squeaks.
"Deep in the forest lie buried ancient, primal memories and resentments belonging to this land, predating the establishment of this town. It is also the final resting place for countless souls like us who tried to rebel, failed, were exiled, and ultimately assimilated into the forest in madness and pain. The Godmother forcibly suppressed, rejected, and purified the forest's 'pollution' using the 'Law of Happiness,' but she could not truly eliminate it. Because this 'pollution' is an 'antibody' naturally produced after this land was forcibly distorted and endlessly exploited; it is the 'other side' of the underlying rules of this world."
"My 'children,' Cinderella, refers to those rats. 'They' are the 'messengers' and 'bridges' between the power of the forest and the pain of the castle. They can travel between two isolated realms, carrying 'pollution,' and they can also... sense the source and convergence point of 'pollution.'"
She looked at Wang Lin, her gaze seemingly piercing through his clothes to see the small, now-dormant metal box in his arms: "You have a familiar aura on you... faint, but the same essence. It was left to you by 'Ella,' wasn't it? That poor woman who lived in that dilapidated house on the edge of town."
Wang Lin's heart skipped a beat. He nodded, took out the small metal box containing the rat pendant, and opened it. The pendant was dim and lifeless under the phosphorescent light.
Cinderella saw the pendant, a complex emotion flashing in her eyes—a mixture of sadness and relief: "As expected... Ella... ultimately chose this path. This pendant is a 'beacon' forged from her last breath, her blood, and her call to the 'children.' It has no offensive power, but it can mark, attract, and briefly communicate with the 'pollution' of the forest, especially when near the glass slipper or the core power of the Godmother. You used it to interfere with the ritual, good. But that's not enough; its power is too weak, exhausted after just one use."
"We need a more powerful 'Pollution Source' token, or... to directly guide the 'pollution' power of the forest to impact the core of the castle," Chu Xuan summarized. "How exactly do we do this? Where is the core of the castle? And where is the 'conversion core' of the crystal shoe?"
Cinderella paused for a moment, seemingly organizing her memories, or perhaps weighing how much to reveal. Finally, she gritted her teeth and made her decision:
"The core of the castle is the 'Heart of Happiness Forge,' located deep beneath the main tower. It is the absolute domain of the Godmother's will, where she refines, transforms, and absorbs the 'happiness' energy and soul power she has collected. It is also her most powerful location; to directly attack it is to commit suicide."
"The core of the transformation of the glass slipper lies not in the slipper itself, but in the energy loop created by the 'trying-on ritual' itself. The end of this loop connects to the 'furnace.' But the loop has a crucial, relatively fragile 'transfer node'—the prince."
"A prince?" Zheng Zha frowned.
"Yes, that perfect puppet." Cinderella's tone was filled with cold sarcasm. "He was a tool meticulously crafted by the godmother, carrying a portion of her will, specifically for carrying out the tasks of 'selection' and 'initial absorption.' He wasn't a complete puppet; he possessed a certain degree of autonomy. However, his core was inextricably linked to the godmother and bound to the glass slipper's conversion circuit. He himself was a living, powerful energy conversion and transmission node. Attacking him, or interfering with his connection to the glass slipper and the godmother, could disrupt the energy flow of the entire ritual and might even trigger a backlash, harming the godmother herself."
"At the ball, you've already partially succeeded. You interrupted the fitting, stole the pieces, and instigated the 'children's' riot, which has already taken a toll on the godmother and the prince. But they'll recover quickly, especially with the support of the 'forge.'" Cinderella's eyes sharpened. "To truly cripple them, you must deliver a more fatal blow while they're trying to repair themselves or undergo their next, more important 'forge.'"
"The next smelting?" Zhan Lan asked.
"Whenever enough soul fragments are extracted, or a powerful rebel soul like Ella's is 'purified' and absorbed, the Godmother initiates a small-scale fusion to strengthen herself and the Prince. The midnight bell ceremony was interrupted, but the disturbed and partially extracted soul energy, along with the conflicts and negative emotions that erupted at the ball, are 'extra fuel' for the Godmother, even though it's disruptive. She will definitely try to absorb and transform this energy as quickly as possible to make up for the loss, and may even... forcibly initiate a larger-scale fusion, attempting to completely purify us, along with the threat from the forest, in one fell swoop." Cinderella's speculation made everyone's hearts sink.
"Where will she smelt the metal? At the furnace?" Chu Xuan pressed.
"No, the activation of the 'Heart of Happiness Forge' requires preparation and is too crucial; she won't easily open it fully when threatened. The most likely location is the prince's 'bedroom,' or rather, his 'charging room' and 'repair chamber.' It's located on the upper-middle level of the main tower, where the prince and godmother's wills are most closely connected, energy transmission is most convenient, and defenses are relatively easy to set up. If I'm not mistaken, the prince and godmother should be there now, trying to repair the glass slipper, treat the prince's arm injury, and begin the initial smelting of the 'fuel' obtained tonight."
Cinderella looked at the Central Continent Team members, especially Wang Lin and Zheng Zha: "You have crystal shards, the lingering aura of Ella's pendant, and... the soul fluctuations and powers you carry that are incompatible with this distorted world, more 'real' than they actually are. In the Godmother's perception, these are both a threat and... 'high-energy fuel' and 'foreign objects that need purification.' She will definitely deal with you first."
"So, our opportunity lies in how she handles us?" Wang Lin understood.
"Yes. They're offering themselves up, but not to die; rather—to send deadly 'contamination' into her 'furnace.'" Cinderella's eyes flashed with a mad yet calm light. "The prince's palace must have underground energy transmission channels connected to the 'furnace.' That's the key point of defense, but also the place where energy flow is most active and most sensitive to 'contamination.' If we can detonate a sufficiently strong 'contamination' power from the forest there, or use that crystal shard in your hands containing the resentment of imprisoned souls as a 'fuse,' it might be possible to send the contamination back into the 'furnace' through the energy channels, triggering a chain reaction of collapse!"
"This requires precise timing, location, and a sufficiently strong explosive force of 'pollution'," Chu Xuan quickly analyzed. "How do we guide the 'pollution' from the forest to the prince's palace? And what is the 'source of pollution' that will trigger the explosion?"
Cinderella took a deep breath, as if she had made a momentous decision. She slowly raised the hand that was leaning on the wooden stick, her fingers trembling slightly, and unbuttoned the top few misshapen buttons of her tattered clothes, revealing a patch of thin, dirty skin below her collarbone.
There, near the heart, beneath the skin, a faint, writhing, grayish-black shadow emanated from within, emitting an extremely weak yet piercing and heart-palpitating aura that Wang Lin's spiritual visual instincts instinctively found painful. The shadow was irregularly shaped, as if countless tiny tentacles were crawling beneath the skin, radiating an aura of resentment and madness shared with the forest, the rats, the woman in the dilapidated hut, and those giant rats, but far more restrained, deeper, and more… dangerous.
"This is... 'contamination.'" Cinderella's voice was eerily calm, as if she were recounting someone else's story. "It's the 'seed' that I actively introduced, bit by bit, through my long years of imprisonment, communicating with the 'children,' resonating with the forest's resentment, and forcibly preserving through countless 'purifications' and torments. It's almost become one with me, constantly eroding my life, yet it also keeps me sliver of consciousness, preventing me from being completely brainwashed. It's weak, insufficient to fight against my godmother, but..."
She looked at the crystal shard in Zheng Zha's hand, then at Wang Lin: "If we combine this 'seed' with this shard that embodies the most painful resentment of the imprisoned, and use the 'beacon' aura of Ella's pendant as a catalyst, then when we approach the energy node of the prince's palace, I... will actively detonate it."
She paused, looking at the Central Continent Team members with a resolute, unwavering determination in her eyes: "This will unleash a powerful, pure 'contamination shock' targeting the essence of the Godmother's power. It may not kill the Godmother, but it will be enough to severely pollute and damage the energy nodes of the Prince's palace, and even, through the pipes, severely damage the 'Forge,' interrupting her forging process and plunging her into chaos and weakness for a long time. Without the Prince and a stable energy supply to the castle, the suppressive force of the 'Law of Happiness' will be greatly weakened, the power of the forest will retaliate, the suppressed vengeful spirits will awaken, and this false 'Sweet Dream Town' will begin to collapse from within."
"Then you..." Zhan Lan's voice trembled as she understood what Cinderella meant.
Cinderella twitched the corners of her mouth, a truly serene smile that blended endless pain with ultimate liberation.
"Me? I should have long ago buried with Ella and those girls beneath this cursed land. To be able to take that monster with me, even if it was just to severely wound her, to fight for a glimmer of hope for those who come after, for true peace in this land... that is my, this ridiculous 'Cinderella,' in the end, and only... 'happiness.'"
Inside the stone chamber, there was a deathly silence. Only the flickering phosphorescent light and the silent weeping of souls could be heard.
The members of the Central Continent Team, looking at the emaciated woman before them, covered in wounds, yet with eyes burning with a resolute light more dazzling than the stars, were filled with indescribable shock and heaviness. What hatred, what resilience, and what... sacrifice this was.
Chu Xuan adjusted his glasses, and the gaze behind the lenses no longer held only cold calculation, but also contained a rare hint of "respect." He looked at Zheng Zha and Wang Lin, his eyes questioning.
Zheng Zha clutched the crystal shard tightly, its light illuminating his angular face. He nodded emphatically, his eyes filled with unwavering ferocity and agreement. Wang Lin closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and felt the faint lingering vibrations of the cold pendant in his arms, as well as the equally heavy yet resolute will of his teammates in their mental connection. He slowly opened his eyes and nodded.
"We need to know the exact location, structure, and defenses of the prince's palace, as well as how to safely get there and the evacuation route after detonation." Chu Xuan's voice regained its usual calmness, but his speech was faster. "Also, the specific steps for detonation, the necessary coordination, and... after detonation, how we confirm the effects and safely leave the castle for the forest."
The last trace of hesitation vanished from Cinderella's eyes, leaving only a pure, desperate sharpness. She began to roughly sketch the structure of the castle's main tower on the ground with a stick. Although crude, the key passages, the approximate location of the prince's bedchamber, and the possible routes of the energy pipes were clearly marked. At the same time, she quickly explained the distribution patterns of the guards (which might change after an attack), possible traps, and a relatively hidden but dangerous route of attack (rat trails, abandoned pipes).
"The detonation requires me to be near the energy node, ideally when the prince is repairing or smelting, and the energy flow is at its most intense. I need you to cover my charge in, and when I detonate, use your strength to temporarily block the Godmother's possible first wave of counterattack. The detonation will be quick, but the contamination shockwave will be indiscriminate. You must immediately retreat the moment I detonate and follow the route I indicate to the nearest abandoned drain leading to the outside of the castle. 'The Children' will meet you there and lead you through the maze beneath the castle to the edge of the forest."
"And then what? Is it safe in the forest?" Mingyanwei asked.
"The forest is a place where the Godmother's power cannot fully control it, but it is also full of dangers—mad beasts, twisted plants, lost vengeful spirits, and... the forest's own corrosive 'pollution.' But it is the only way out than staying in the castle. Moreover, if the plan succeeds and the Godmother is injured, her suppression of the forest will weaken, and you may be able to find a 'crack' to leave this world deep in the forest—legend has it that in the very center of the forest, there is a 'silver oak' that is forever illuminated by the moonlight, and that is the weakest point connecting this world with the 'outside.' But it is just a legend; I have never been there."
The plan quickly took shape amidst tense and efficient communication. Time was of the essence; every minute of delay meant more time for the prince and his godmother to recover and prepare.
"Final confirmation: Target: Prince's palace, energy node. Method: Using Cinderella as the 'contamination source,' combine the resentment of the crystal shards with the pendant beacon to detonate at the energy node. Our mission: Cover the advance, assist in the counter-attack, and evacuate to the forest via the designated route after detonation. Final objective: Severely injure the Godmother, dismantle the 'Law of Happiness,' and find a way out." Chu Xuan quickly summarized, "Any objections?"
No one spoke. Their eyes met, both resolute.
"Check equipment, treat emergency injuries, and replenish energy. We'll depart in three minutes," Chu Xuan ordered.
The group sprang into action immediately. They applied the last of their potent healing spray and bandages to their most severe wounds. They swallowed their remaining mental and physical recovery potions. They checked their weapons and ammunition, installing the few remaining energy crystals in the most critical positions.
Cinderella crouched down and whispered to the nimble gray-black mice at the entrance of the hole, making some strange, short squeaks. The mice seemed to understand; two of them quickly darted back into the hole and disappeared, probably to notify their "companions" in the forest to come to their aid. The others remained at Cinderella's feet, warily watching their surroundings.
Three minutes passed in the blink of an eye.
"Let's go," Chu Xuan said in a low voice.
Cinderella extinguished her homemade phosphorescent lantern, leaving only the wooden stick in her hand to probe the way. The Central Continent Team also turned off all unnecessary lighting, relying solely on Zero Point and Ming Yanwei's enhanced dim vision, as well as Wang Lin and Zhan Lan's weak mental perception to find their way.
Led by Cinderella, the group entered the half-hidden entrance to a deeper cave. The cave was narrow, winding, and full of branching paths, the air thick with the stench of earth, rats, and a faint, almost imperceptible smell of decay. Underfoot was soft mud and loose rocks, with small bones occasionally slipping through their feet. In the surrounding darkness, a faint rustling sound could be heard, the movement of rats or something else unknown.
This is a real, hidden passageway beneath the castle's foundation, eroded by the "children" and the passage of time. Cinderella seems extremely familiar with this place, able to choose the correct path without hesitation even in absolute darkness. She tells everyone that this passageway may have originally been part of the ancient castle's drainage or ventilation system, later abandoned and blocked, then rediscovered and expanded by the rats, becoming their secret network, as well as that of "escapees" and "rebels" like herself.
The passage wasn't always downwards; sometimes it went upwards, sometimes horizontally, and sometimes it even required crawling through extremely narrow gaps. The air grew increasingly murky, but the omnipresent, suffocating pink "happiness" field became extremely thin here, replaced by a richer, grayish-black "pollution" odor belonging to the earth and resentment. This was oppressive, yet it also brought a strange sense of "security"—at least, a temporary escape from the godmother's all-pervasive surveillance.
They had been walking in the darkness for an unknown amount of time—perhaps half an hour, or even longer. Just as everyone's physical and mental strength were once again nearing their limits, Cinderella, who was walking in front, suddenly stopped and gestured for everyone to be quiet.
She listened intently for a moment, then pointed to an inconspicuous crevice above her, half-hidden by vines and pebbles. From the crevice, faint but regular energy fluctuations could be heard, accompanied by a low hum, like that of some large machine or energy device in operation.
"Up there... is the middle section of the main tower, the outer wall of the prince's palace. One of the concentrated areas of energy channels," Cinderella said in an almost inaudible whisper. "I can feel the intense energy flow... They're inside, already trying to repair and remelt it. The prince's damaged arm, and those interrupted energies... they're very anxious."
A cold glint flashed in her eyes: "The timing is perfect. From here, we can break through the wall, enter the mezzanine directly, and then find the access point to the internal maintenance hatch or the energy pipeline. But we must act quickly; once we break through, the energy fluctuations will leak out, and they will immediately notice."
"Lingdian, Mingyanwei, Zhao Yingkong, the three of you are responsible for clearing out any guards or automatic defenses that may appear the moment the breach is made. Zheng Zha, Wang Lin, Zhan Lan, you are to prepare to block any possible mental attacks from the Godmother. Ba Wang, Li Shuaixi, you are responsible for covering Cinderella and me, and preparing to break in. O'Connor, the three of you, guard our retreat route." Chu Xuan quickly assigned the breakthrough tasks.
Cinderella tore several seemingly ordinary but actually sturdy grass stems from her tattered skirt, stems soaked in a special potion (extracted from forest plants), and wrapped them around the thicker end of the stick. She then gestured to Zheng Zha to carefully tie the crystal shard to the top of the stick with the grass stems. The shard's light flickered eerily in the darkness, and the grayish-black resentful smoke within seemed to sense something, swirling even more violently.
"The moment I break through the wall and see the energy node, you all do your best to cover my charge. I'll plunge the wooden stick, along with the fragments, into the node interface where the energy flow is most concentrated. Then..." She looked at everyone, her gaze lingering on Wang Lin's face for a moment, as if confirming something, before calmly looking away, "Leave it to me."
There were no grand pronouncements, no poignant farewells. Only cold, resolute orders to act.
Zheng Zha solemnly handed the wooden stick, bound with crystal shards, to Cinderella. Cinderella gripped the stick tightly; her thin, bony hand was as steady as a rock.
Chu Xuan nodded, signaling the operation to begin.
At midnight, Ming Yanwei raised her sniper rifle and drew her longbow, Zhao Yingkong's figure disappearing into the shadows. Zheng Zha's red and white energy began to subtly circulate, and Wang Lin and Zhan Lan's mental powers quietly connected, preparing to construct the strongest joint mental barrier. Ba Wang and Li Shuaixi flanked Cinderella and Chu Xuan.
Cinderella took a deep breath, the last trace of humanity vanishing from her eyes, leaving only a pure, cold will burning with the flames of destruction. She raised the wooden stick in her hand, aiming the tip at the gap above her head from which the energy fluctuations were emanating, and then, with all her might, she thrust it upwards with tremendous force!
puff!
A sound, not loud but exceptionally clear, as if piercing some elastic membrane. The tip of the stick easily pierced the seemingly solid rock and vines, embedding itself within! The seven-colored crystal shard tied to the top burst forth with blinding light the instant it touched the crevice! The resentful smoke within the shard surged out wildly, flowing down the stick and into the breach!
Immediately afterwards—
boom!!!
A violent, chaotic, and raging torrent of pink energy, filled with fury and terror, erupted from the breach like a punctured hornet's nest! Simultaneously, the entire passage trembled violently, accompanied by deafening roars of shattering rocks and twisting metal, and a chilling, brutally tyrannical roar of the Fairy Godmother's will, exploding deep within everyone's souls.
"Rat!!! How dare you—!!!"
The final chapter of the attack, exposure, and desperate counterattack resounded at this moment!