Chapter 186: Chapter 154: The Fate-Defying Spell of a Ghost Marriage into the Mortal World, and a Fragrant Young Man

Fengdu was the foundation of the Ghost Dao. Although the Eight Sceneries Palace had smashed it into a bottomless abyss, burying it within the Netherworld...

...a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. In terms of true legacy, it was no weaker than a Grand Sect’s Dharma Lineage, and so it never lacked for Cultivators who came to join it.

Aside from the ghosts and ghouls that naturally formed from the accumulated turbid yin, Fengdu had always seen a steady influx of Human and Demon Cultivators who had abandoned their mortal flesh or whose Furnace Cauldrons had been damaged.

Some had received a relevant inheritance and intended to absorb the turbid yin, while others secretly worshipped ancient ghost-deities, performing rituals in hopes of being accepted.

As for the reasons why...

There were but two.

First, their path of Cultivation was severed, and they lacked the five-generation protection afforded by a Foundation Establishment True Master. Even if they underwent ’martial liberation’ to reincarnate, they would be afflicted by the ’delusion of the womb,’ making it nearly impossible to awaken their past-life memories.

Second, their time was up. With their lifespans depleted, they were unwilling to simply perish and have their Dao dissipate. They would rather endure the ghostly torments of hunger, thirst, cold, and heat in exchange for a wretched continued existence.

Once the Celestial Book presented its findings, Jiang Yi slowly rose and picked up the Cat Master, who was absorbed in counting on its paws, muttering something under its breath.

"Jiyun Cave. Ghost Granny. I’ve heard of old trees seeing a second spring, but never an old ghost taking a bride. I must go and broaden my horizons."

True Master Xuanmiao wriggled its round, plump body, then leaped nimbly onto Jiang Yi’s shoulder and settled down before speaking suddenly.

"Xiao Jiang, what kind of temperament would you prefer in a mistress to serve?"

Serve? Mistress?

’How can those two words even go together?’

Jiang Yi glanced at True Master Xuanmiao’s twitching whiskers and grumbled internally. ’I didn’t think the Cat Master was one for telling bawdy jokes.’

He considered this for a moment before replying with a straight face.

"This Disciple has no preference. Whatever my mistress requires, I am willing to undertake the task."

True Master Xuanmiao mused to itself.

’Xiao Jiang’s disposition is nothing like my former master’s. He’s fundamentally kind and straightforward, without any devious complexities. He’s more like my former master in his third life, who walked a path of noble integrity, pure as ice and jade.’

’Perhaps he might even win the favor of True Monarch Ye and True Monarch Lu.’

Jiang Yi, oblivious to True Master Xuanmiao’s intricate thoughts and schemes, strode out of the city. He collected the thrall-ghost into his Five Yin Pouch, then activated his Dao Embryo, transforming its Qi Mechanism.

His body had recently devoured a massive amount of turbid yin. By refining and releasing a mere fraction of it to envelop his form, he was instantly surrounded by a whistling yin wind and a bone-chilling cold.

He looked just like a true ghost!

"Xiao Jiang actually looks quite handsome as a Ghost Cultivator,"

True Master Xuanmiao couldn’t help but praise, its amber eyes reflecting the image of a youth with a paper-white face and features as delicate as a painting.

"I can hardly compare to True Monarch Shao Yang, who’s handsome enough to live off a Dragon Girl,"

Jiang Yi gave a faint smile. Logically speaking, accomplished True Masters and True Monarchs shouldn’t be swayed by mere physical appearance.

And yet, from what he knew, that same True Monarch Yu was ranked first on the New Year’s List of Beauties.

The appraisal consisted of sixteen words.

He is like piled jade, like a row of green pines;

His beauty is singular, unequaled in the world.

In comparison, Jiang Yi could only be described as "handsome, with a heroic bearing."

’In that case, it seems Shao Yang has quite a few advantages over Tai Yang,’

Jiang Yi thought with a wry smile. He then summoned a roiling black cloud and shot into the sky, bursting through the thick, mountainous canopy of yin clouds and streaking toward Jiyun Cave like a lightning bolt.

...

...

Jiyun Cave was a boisterous scene, with the clamor of drums and music filling the air.

Seeing that Yang Xun had grown much more compliant, the long-tongued old woman cackled, "It’s good that you’ve come to your senses! At your age, I’m sure you’ve already been married and had children. This is just another trip down the aisle. It’s like eating leftovers from a meal you’ve already had. Why pretend to be some kind of chaste martyr?"

Yang Xun’s face twitched, and his bald eyebrows shot up repeatedly.

He’d seen this exact same kind of wheedling from madams in brothels trying to persuade a ’pure’ courtesan. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

’So now I’m the whore in the brothel?’

Yang Xun cursed inwardly, ’Sons of bitches! If I had a Qi Cultivation Twelfth Layer cultivation, I’d wipe out every last one of you ghosts! Exterminate you all!’

At this point, he’d long given up any notion of protecting his "chastity." His only goal was to escape this den of ghosts.

’Worst case, I’ll let the old ghost drain some of my Yang Qi to sate her. I’ll placate her first and figure out my escape later.’

Yang Xun deliberately put on a miserable expression and tried to cozy up to her.

"This old man’s body is frail, and my face is ugly. I’m afraid I’ll be an offense to the Granny’s eyes."

The old woman was a chatterbox. The long tongue dangling from the corner of her mouth coiled and uncoiled like a snake.

"You’re certainly self-aware. Don’t worry, the Granny isn’t picky about such things. Finding a living Cultivator from the Mortal World at the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer isn’t easy in Wanshou Country these days."

"The Ghost King is marrying off his daughter, and the rewards are so rich that every poor devil out there is trying to capture a living person to send to Shangcao Manor... Jiyun Cave is just a minor power; we wouldn’t dare compete with the Ghost King."

Yang Xun narrowed his eyes. He detected something strange in the long-tongued woman’s words.

’This old ghost is looking for a husband, but she doesn’t care about age or looks? All she wants is a living person from the Mortal World, specifically around the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer?’

’It sounds like she’s picking out ingredients.’

He deliberately muttered just loud enough for the old woman to hear.

"The Granny is a Ghost Cultivator, so why must she find a living man from the Mortal World to marry?"

As expected, the old woman took the bait.

"You old coot, so many questions! It’s your good fortune that the Granny took a fancy to you. Marriages between the living and the dead have been happening since ancient times; it’s nothing new."

"Back when the gates of Fengdu were open and the foundation of the Ghost Dao was still strong, countless Human Cultivators would come to our doors, seeking to marry ghost women as their Dao companions."

"A few thousand years earlier, a specimen like you wouldn’t have even been able to get in line!"

Yang Xun put on an expression of humble learning, feigning surprise.

"This old man is ignorant; I’ve truly never heard of such things."

Seeing that the auspicious time was still a while away, the old woman pulled up a stool and sat by the bed, chattering on at the tightly bound Yang Xun.

"As far back as the era of the Immortal Dao on the Dongsheng Continent, there are records of princes from the ’Tianyin Dadi’ period marrying spirit wives from the underworld."

"And when the Ghost Dao flourished on the Nanzhan Continent, there were even matchmakers who specialized in pairing humans and ghosts. They followed all the proper procedures—exchanging betrothal notes, making paper and straw effigies... it was all very meticulous!"

Yang Xun patiently summoned the same groveling energy he used to use in front of Sui Liushu and deliberately guided the conversation.

"They say humans and ghosts follow separate paths. Doesn’t a marriage like this break some kind of taboo?"

The old woman fell silent for a moment, then looked at Yang Xun’s wrinkled face and sighed.

"You old coot, you’ve seen too little of the world. Since you’re about to go through with the ceremony, I won’t hide it from you."

"These so-called marriages between the living and the dead are all just a type of spell—a spell to ’steal fate and deceive the heavens.’"

"Whether it’s a male ghost taking a wife or a female ghost marrying a husband, the goal is always to steal the fate of a living person and bypass the laws of the Mortal World."

Yang Xun froze. Before he could process this, he heard the old woman continue.

"The way to Fengdu has rarely been open. Do you think the ghosts of the bottomless abyss actually want to stay in this lightless, hopeless place?"

"But our Daoist Lineage has fallen. We have nowhere to go. If we enter the Mortal World, we’ll be punished with the utter annihilation of our souls. Unless..."

Yang Xun sucked in a sharp breath. He finally understood his purpose. "Unless," he interjected,

"...unless they marry a living person from the Mortal World, steal my destiny, and trick the Celestial Lord to avoid punishment?"

He laughed bitterly. ’This time, there’s truly no escaping their clutches.’

’I just hope Ah Yi doesn’t come barging in here and get himself killed for nothing!’

’That Ghost Granny is at the Qi Cultivation Twelfth Layer. She has no shortage of Magical Artifacts and techniques. The Jiang Yi of today is no match for her at all.’

Suddenly, the sound of drums and music swelled.

The old woman reckoned the auspicious time had arrived.

She summoned a few burly ghost women, who lifted Yang Xun from the bed and carried him straight to the front hall for the ceremony.

As they moved down the long corridor, the old woman’s long tongue slithered across Yang Xun’s cheek.

"Don’t you worry. The Granny won’t take your life. She’ll just drain you of your destiny, then toss you out like used-up herbal dregs."

"I quite enjoyed our little chat, old coot. When the time comes, we can stick together. I won’t let the other ghost hags bully you."

A deeper chill went through Yang Xun’s heart, and he couldn’t stop himself from cursing again.

’Damn it all! How can I be facing a "love calamity" in my old age!’

...

...

"Whoa! This old ghost’s wedding is quite the spectacle. What a lively affair!"

Jiang Yi canceled his flight spell, and the black cloud slowly descended.

He looked out at the vast estate, which stretched for dozens of miles. It was a cacophony of ghostly wails, and a pillar of yin energy soared into the sky.

Ghosts milled about the entrance—green-faced, dark-skinned hags and ghost servants with lividity spots on their hands and feet bustled about, welcoming guests.

Jiang Yi swaggered right in. When a ghost hag stopped him for questioning, he released a surge of his yin-aspected Qi Mechanism and announced brazenly,

"I am a Ghost Cultivator from Dongxiang in Wanshou Country, here to congratulate the Granny on her joyous occasion!"

With that, he tossed out the Blood Soul Mirror as a wedding gift.

’It’s only on loan, anyway.’

"What a lavish Ghost Cultivator! To give a Magical Artifact as a gift!"

"Didn’t Dongxiang suffer a ’human disaster’? I heard there’s some fellow over there who preys on Fierce Fiends!"

"Never seen his face before..."

Seeing his magnanimous gift, the ghost hag stopped making things difficult and immediately ushered him inside with a smile.

Jiang Yi crossed the threshold and walked straight into the front hall, where endless rows of banquet tables were laid out and laden with food.

He could see clearly that the dishes on the outer tables were mostly severed hands and feet—not exactly top-shelf fare.

The ghost hag noticed and gave an order.

"This honored guest presented a generous gift. Take him to a seat in the inner hall."

Jiang Yi followed the stiff-limbed ghost servant deeper inside. As soon as he entered the main hall, he saw tables laden with large, fresh, steaming chunks of bloody meat, with assorted hearts, livers, spleens, and lungs arranged on the side.

For ghosts, this was a true delicacy.

"Honored guest, please be seated."

The ghost servant led him to a seat, bowed, and withdrew.

Jiang Yi glanced to his left and right. On one side sat a consumptive ghost, its festering body emitting a faint green glow. On the other was a drowned ghost, its face swollen as if it had been soaking at the bottom of a river for months.

He calmly sat cross-legged and examined the table again. Livers and gallbladders were arranged like fruits, heart’s blood filled a bowl, serving as fine wine, and a string of seven or eight eyeballs looked uncannily like the candied hawthorns of the Mortal World.

The yin aura in the room was as thick as ink. It was truly a living portrait of a hundred ghosts from hell.

Jiang Yi’s gaze swept across the entire scene, but he didn’t see Yang Xun. Just as he was wondering, a soft, seductive voice sounded beside him.

"And where might this handsome young gentleman be from? The scent you carry... it’s so sweet."

He glanced to the side and saw a beautiful female ghost speaking to him.

She was holding her own head in one hand, and its soul-stealing, almond-shaped eyes were fixed on him without blinking.