She Was Sentenced to Life Imprisonment [Unlimited] - Chapter 20

Chapter 20: Beauty Porcelain (2)

A Little Too Superficial

The sudden words made everyone in the courtyard look over.

Standing by the old door was a gentle woman in a shimmering, light purple gradient dress. A silver-white pibo (a type of silk shawl) was draped over one shoulder and passed through her long arms, making her look like a noble and elegant lady from ancient times, yet one had no intention of defiling her.

The woman’s face held a gentle smile. Her presence was completely out of place with the dilapidated surroundings.

And her words aroused suspicion in everyone present.

“Who are you?”

Even though the woman was very beautiful, Shi Hui had not forgotten how terrifying this instance was. Moreover, the woman’s appearance made it clear that she was not a player.

The woman just smiled at their wariness and didn’t seem to mind. She said in a chiding tone.

“How could you even forget your master? If you don’t want to learn this craft, you can leave.”

Master… She must be the Mother Ci the system mentioned.

After everyone realized this, Shi Hui and Li Feng couldn’t resist such a beautiful woman’s chiding. They immediately waved their hands and said with silly smiles.

“Misunderstanding, misunderstanding. We’ll go back and learn right away.”

This was a clearly stated quest. Even if it wasn’t for anything else, if they didn’t learn or couldn’t make it, their fate would surely be worse than the people in the coffins in this courtyard.

Mother Ci gently patted the nonexistent dust off her shoulder. Her gaze swept across the courtyard. The depths of her gentle, watery eyes seemed to flash with a hint of disgust, and then they were replaced by a graceful smile.

“Hurry and leave. This place is truly disgusting.”

The last sentence seemed to be emphasized. The others only thought that she was disgusted by the dead people here.

Jiang Nan followed behind Mother Ci, thoughtfully looking at the person in front of her.

The potter is old…

But Mother Ci looked like she was in the prime of her life.

Then, her gaze glanced at the Lin Manor behind them. The old, broken door had been closed again, isolating the terrifying scene inside.

When all the players followed Mother Ci to her courtyard, the system’s emotionless voice rang out.

【Congratulations, players, on arriving at Mother Ci’s courtyard. Please try to survive while completing the Beauty Porcelain. Good luck, and I look forward to meeting you again.】

【A warning from the system: Dear players, you cannot seek death, only survival. Those who violate this rule will be sentenced to life imprisonment, living forever in the instance’s cycle.】

The hypocritical warning fell, and the system’s voice disappeared again.

This courtyard was much smaller than the Lin Manor, but it had a lot of porcelain, and they were all exquisitely beautiful. To one side, there were multiple square columns built with bricks, with wooden boards embedded to serve as racks for placing and drying the freshly made pottery. Because it had just rained, a canopy had been put up.

Two little boys were carrying porcelain pieces that were about their size. They walked to the kiln that was burning with a fierce fire. The brick kiln had been so smoked by the fire that its original color was unrecognizable. Black smoke continuously billowed from the chimney on top of the kiln.

Mother Ci looked at them, her smile still gentle. She said.

“You all came here with great admiration, and I have chosen you all as people with extremely high talent. But only those who truly create a Beauty Porcelain can earn my approval.”

Li Feng stared at Mother Ci’s beautiful face and swallowed. His vulgarity reappeared as he said teasingly.

“Does a Beauty Porcelain look like a beauty like you?”

Mother Ci was playing with a small ru ware porcelain in her hand. Hearing his words, she looked up at him, her deep eyes untainted, as if they had been dirtied by this man.

“It doesn’t have a specific appearance, but if you believe that is the most beautiful, then it is.”

She was subtly implying his vulgarity. How could the most beautiful thing be the appearance of a beauty?

Li Feng didn’t understand the hidden meaning and just chuckled.

Yi Fei, who was wearing the black-rimmed glasses, understood and let out a scoff, as if he were looking at an idiot.

Hearing his laugh, Li Feng turned his head and saw the mockery that he hadn’t had time to hide. He was immediately furious and grabbed the other’s collar, ready to hit him.

Then he saw Luo Ning take a step forward and say with a smile.

“I don’t know how to do it. Master, please demonstrate once.”

Such a direct statement made the others shiver. They looked at the tall figure with a look of terror.

No matter how gentle Mother Ci was, she might still get angry.

Jiang Nan looked at Luo Ning, then thought for a moment. She also didn’t seem to know how to do this kind of intricate work, so she said.

“I don’t know how either.”

The others were even more horrified, as if they were looking at two lunatics.

How could the final apprentices chosen by Mother Ci not know how to make porcelain?

But they forgot that players have the right to ask questions, and as an NPC, Mother Ci also had the right to solve the problem.

So, Mother Ci just looked at the two of them. She lingered on Jiang Nan for a moment, as if with some hesitation and confusion, then she smiled at her with a profound meaning.

“You’re a little different, but I like you very much.”

Jiang Nan: ??

Didn’t Luo Ning propose this first? Why was she saying she liked her?

However, she didn’t know that Mother Ci’s gaze had originally lingered on Luo Ning as well, but it quickly moved away as if she had seen a plague.

Mother Ci led them into a room. Inside, there was a potter’s wheel, and next to it were some finished but not yet dried pottery pieces.

“It’s been raining all these days, so it’s not good to dry them. It would be a shame if they were ruined, especially with such good materials.”

Mother Ci sighed and quickly had someone take them out. She then took off her pibo and wrapped it around her hand, pulling her flowing sleeves up to her elbows to make it easier to move.

The two little boys came in again, carrying half-wet lumps of clay.

Mother Ci’s eyes swept over the men. Her smile was still full of mirth, with no malice.

“You guys don’t know how to do it either?”

Yi Fei glanced at the determined Jiang Nan and Luo Ning who were standing to the side. He pulled out a smile and said sweetly.

“Sister, I want to watch.”

Mother Ci nodded. Her gaze fell on the other two. The smile on her face made her look like a hibiscus bathed in the sun after a rain. It immediately left the two men in a daze.

Shi Hui scratched his flat head, feeling a little embarrassed, but he didn’t leave either. Li Feng’s eyes darted around. Seeing the attitude of the people present, he also didn’t suggest leaving.

Mother Ci laughed. She took the half-wet lump of clay with her fair hand and said with her red lips, her voice as gentle as a spring breeze.

“I will only do this once. You must watch carefully, or if you make a mistake, there will be a punishment.”

Her tone was so soft that no one took the punishment she mentioned seriously.

As her words fell, the lump of clay was placed on the spinning wheel. The clay began to spin.

Her movements were skilled. Even with clay on her hands, she still had an extreme elegance, and the lump of clay seemed to come alive in her hands.

In the blink of an eye, the clay had already been formed. Every part was perfect.

A thin string was used to cut it off. She held it in her hand and examined it. A hint of coldness was subtly revealed, and for a moment, it felt like what she was holding was not a semi-finished porcelain, but a lamb waiting to be slaughtered, which was hair-raising.

Soon, she took it outside. She looked at the scorching sun after the rain, walked to a high rack where the semi-finished products were placed, and casually picked out another one that was identical to the one she had just made. The only difference was that it was already dry and only needed to be glazed and fired.

She went to a large jar. Inside was a milky white liquid. She held a scissor-like object and clamped the dried porcelain, casually scooping it up and down a few times before taking it out. Then, before they could come to their senses, it had already been placed in the kiln that had lost its original color.

A little boy immediately went to add firewood. The flames shot up into the sky. The heat wave rolled over, making them feel a little hot even from a distance, but the woman seemed to not feel it at all. She looked at the fire in the kiln, a hint of something hidden in the depths of her eyes.

“What a shame…”

She didn’t continue. A smile, a bit sarcastic, curled on her lips. Then she washed her hands with clear water, sat down to the side, and lowered her eyes. She raised her hand to pour tea, six cups.

She gestured for them to take a cup, then picked up one herself and began to sip it slowly.

Li Feng quickly ran over, picked up a cup, and gulped it down. He probably didn’t even smell the tea’s aroma. He smiled fawningly.

“A beautiful woman’s tea is just so delicious, hehe.”

Shi Hui observed Li Feng for a while. Seeing that he was fine, he went over.

Mother Ci glanced at Li Feng but didn’t speak. However, the smile on her lips made the other person mistakenly believe that she was subtly seducing him, which immediately made his bl00d rush.

She lightly placed her slender index finger on her lips and said softly.

“Shh.”

In the quiet surroundings, they could hear the sound of the wind, the birds chirping, and the crackling of the fire.

Jiang Nan didn’t go over. Her gaze remained on the kiln.

She frowned, hearing screams from inside, a heart-wrenching sound of struggling as if being scorched by a fierce fire.

Jiang Nan’s side-eye glanced at Mother Ci. The other person was still calmly and serenely sipping her tea, as if she didn’t know anything that Jiang Nan was hearing.

Innocent.

This was Jiang Nan’s impression of her. Mother Ci was like those pure, flawless lotuses that made it impossible for people to be suspicious.

She seemed to have thought of something and looked around, finally seeing Luo Ning in a corner, bullying a little boy.

“Why is your face so hard?” Luo Ning said in disgust, pinching the little boy’s face.

Hard? How could it be?

Jiang Nan looked at the little boy who was as plump as a New Year’s doll. His face looked very pinchable.

However, when she looked closely, it shimmered with an unnatural luster in the sunlight, just like the porcelain.

Luo Ning poked him a few times. Seeing that he was still expressionless, she found it boring and returned to Jiang Nan’s side. Then she heard Jiang Nan speak, her voice cold.

“They are not human.”

Her voice was low, and only the two of them could hear it.

Luo Ning shrugged. Her gaze swept over the large kiln. Her smile remained unchanged as she said.

“Two genuine porcelain dolls.”

Whether it was a porcelain that had become a spirit or a human that had been burned into porcelain, Jiang Nan still had no way of knowing.

The screams in the kiln gradually grew fainter. Mother Ci tapped her fingertips on her teacup. The crisp sound seemed to fall on their hearts, like a hypnotic melody, seducing everyone present.

She slightly narrowed her eyes, listening to the most ear-piercing screams as if they were the most beautiful songs. She stood up and said with a smile.

“Open the kiln.”

As her words fell, the porcelain that was pushed out rang with the sound of raindrops dancing as everyone held their breath. The sound was cheerful and pleasant, signaling the birth of a perfect porcelain.

The sky-blue color and ice-cracked patterns made this porcelain one of a kind.

Mother Ci held the newly fired porcelain. The smile on her lips deepened. Her dark pupils gradually turned red, becoming bewitching. She spoke.

“My apprentices, you will take my place and create a Beauty Porcelain that satisfies me. Please choose your ‘materials’ carefully. You only have one chance to bring me a finished product, or you will become my porcelain. Good luck to you all.”

The two little boys stood beside her, their lifeless eyes looking at them. The porcelain-white faces shimmered with a strange light, making the beautiful woman look terrifying.