novelraw Chapter 810 - 804: No Bride Price, My Blood
Chapter 810 - 804: No Bride Price, My Blood
Under the glow of the red bridal lanterns, Jia Ren’s face alternated between light and shadow, an indescribable chill spread throughout his body.
The woman in the red bridal dress easily transformed the white lantern into a red one; her ability to alter the nature of the mysterious instrument at will was truly terrifying.
This was the most frightening entity he had encountered here, far surpassing the monstrous creature he had faced throughout the night.
Why did he encounter such a dreadful figure just after leaving Fengdu City?
Jia Ren recalled the elderly ferryman by the Ming River, who had mentioned his daughter was getting married and was in a hurry.
Could the ferryman’s daughter be this woman?
This explained the trouble finding its way to him; it must have been instigated by that old ghost.
Having identified her, Jia Ren forced a couple of dry laughs, squeezing a smile onto his face: "Miss, it’s an honor to witness your grand wedding, but I have yet to present my gift."
He returned the two pieces of wedding candy he had taken, along with the pale finger bones hidden within the wrappers, attempting to buy his survival.
The Yellow Incense had already been consumed and couldn’t be returned.
"The ghost’s life wasn’t hard enough; it lasted less than half a day."
The voice of the woman in the red bridal dress was indifferent, as if she was not talking about a betrothed husband, but rather an inconsequential consumable.
Such an attitude clearly showed she had quite a bit of experience in similar matters.
"You took the wedding candy, which makes you the groom I have chosen."
Her head was covered with a red veil, her features obscured, only the two beams of red light in her eyes visible, exuding an eerie aura.
Took the wedding candy and became the groom?
In an instant, the fog in his mind cleared.
No wonder no one would trade wedding candy for Yellow Incense, avoiding it as if it was some ominous curse.
Initially, he thought it was because of the white lantern.
This mysterious instrument wasn’t that powerful, certainly not enough to scare strong supernatural beings away.
They were always wary of the wedding candy associated with the woman in the red bridal dress.
No wonder the ferryman casually handed out wedding candy without paying for the ticket; it was a trap laid long ago.
If he left with the woman in the red bridal dress, he would certainly become a new sacrifice like the previous groom.
"I don’t mind becoming your groom, but I need to go back to the city to fetch the bridal gift; I can’t marry empty-handed."
Jia Ren nodded with apparent willingness, and without hesitation, turned back towards Fengdu.
Running away directly would lead to failure and provoke the woman in the red bridal dress; he adopted a roundabout tactic, verbally agreeing to buy time, allowing him to return to Fengdu smoothly.
Revealing the identity of Emperor of Fengdu might offer him more information, better than a hasty death at the hands of the woman in the red bridal dress.
The laugh of the woman in the red bridal dress echoed behind him, and Jia Ren’s body, like a rusted machine, moved slowly until it was immobilized.
"I need no bridal gift, only you."
As her words fell, the woman in the red bridal dress turned around and walked ahead.
Jia Ren, carrying two festive red lanterns, followed her steps like a marionette.
In the low black woods, prying eyes occasionally emerged, only to withdraw as if electrocuted.
Passersby also made way, retreating.
Only his body was out of control; his thoughts still churned. He desperately tried to regain control of his body.
However, how could an ordinary person contend against the bizarre woman in the red bridal dress?
With a wave of her hand, more than a dozen red paper figures and a red paper sedan chair appeared, their flat bodies inflating into three dimensions.
Their cheeks painted with unnatural white powder, corners of their mouths upturned with a fixed smile.
Two of the paper figures took the red lanterns from Jia Ren’s hands and walked ahead, lighting the path with their crimson glow.
Perhaps affected by the woman in the red bridal dress, only now did he notice the range illuminated by the red lanterns had doubled.
The two middle paper figures played trumpets, heralding the wedding festivities.
The last eight stood respectfully at the side, waiting until the woman in the red bridal dress and puppet-like Jia Ren boarded the sedan before lifting it.
They did not head towards the Ming River but went along a winding, rugged path leading southwest.
The sedan swayed rhythmically, with the woman in the red bridal dress beside Jia Ren, this close to her for the first time.
She bore none of the vitality or fragrance of the living, instead exuding a stench of decay, nearly identical to the ferryman.
Out of the corner of his eye, Jia Ren saw through the ornately carved crimson window bars the wantonly growing branches beside the road, seemingly alive, retracting under the red light’s glow.
He could not sit and wait for death; he had to find a way to save himself.
"Huh!"
His tongue immobile, he could only produce sound with his nasal cavity and vibrating throat.
The woman in the red bridal dress seemed to understand something, turned her eyes to him, and the puppet-like, controlled state vanished.
"Do you know the Emperor of Fengdu?"
Jia Ren’s mind raced, the words from his mouth difficult to decipher.
He seized the chance to learn about the Emperor of Fengdu, his identity possibly the only means of breaking the stalemate.
The woman in the red bridal dress turned back to look towards Fengdu, smiling: "Who in the Netherworld does not know the Emperor of Fengdu? But he is already dead."
The Emperor of Fengdu is dead?
The news struck like a bolt from the blue.
The white lantern had turned traitor, he couldn’t even escape from the woman in the red bridal dress, so how could he resist?
"If I claimed to be the Emperor of Fengdu, would you believe it?"
Jia Ren didn’t waste time, speaking directly.
The woman in the red bridal dress turned, her scarlet eyes fixed on him.
The red candy paper affixed over his eyes floated down as if by magic, revealing his handsome face, now unmasked before her.
After quietly examining for a long time, the woman in the red wedding dress said, "You are not the Emperor of Fengdu."
I’m not the Emperor of Fengdu?
Then why did the Gatekeeper Ghost Face call me the Emperor...
Wait, it only called me Emperor, not the Emperor of Fengdu.
It was only because he linked the title with Fengdu that he thought it was referring to the Emperor of Fengdu.
What kind of emperor am I in the Netherworld?
Hopefully, the woman in the red wedding dress is not only all hair and no brains, and can recognize my true identity and know well enough to let me go.
Jia Ren’s hope was dashed, as the woman in the red wedding dress didn’t have the Gatekeeper Ghost Face’s insight and couldn’t identify his true identity.
"Why do you think you are the Emperor of Fengdu?"
"If I could marry an emperor, it would indeed be a wonderful thing."
The woman in the red wedding dress leaned in, her head covered by the red veil resting on his shoulder, strands of black hair hanging down, and as she spoke, a dense aura of death and stench overwhelmed him.
Jia Ren’s body stiffened; the smell permeating the sedan chair almost made him vomit out last night’s incense.
Should he burst out in rebellion?
Even if he gave it his all, hurting the woman in the red wedding dress would be impossible, and he would only die quicker.
"That vast expanse of scorched earth is where the Emperor of Fengdu died."
"It was from that time that my strength began to wane more and more."
At this moment, the sedan chair didn’t continue forward, but bypassed the area of charred earth and the large pit.
Jia Ren turned his head and saw only the pervasive black mist; the size and extent of the hole were too vast to see clearly.
He wasn’t the Emperor of Fengdu, so the death of that person was unrelated to him.
His power was waning?
Could it be that this battle caused immense trauma to the Netherworld, affecting nature’s spiritual energy, which is why I cannot cultivate?
In the dark, there’s a sense that the scorched earth might hold the information he longs to know.
"My dear, let me go and have a look, perhaps I could find a fitting emperor husband-to-be."
Jia Ren struggled to suppress his nausea, gazing towards her with tender affection.
To escape, he had to endure humiliation.
"No, this place is saturated with a terrifying power, no one can withstand it!"
The woman in the red wedding dress refused without hesitation; no matter what, he’d die in her bridal chamber, fulfilling his role, rather than in the remnants of a powerful battle.
"I’ll just stroll around the edge, I won’t go in."
"Can’t you satisfy this tiny request of your husband?"
Jia Ren sounded disappointed, with a touch of heartbreak.
The woman in the red wedding dress hesitated for a moment, then slowly nodded.
Unlike the hundreds of dead grooms she married before, who were emotionless like the Corpse Suppressing Stones in coffins, smelly and hard.
The soon-to-be new husband wasn’t bad, more capable of making her happy, and fulfilling a small request wasn’t an issue.
Moreover, no matter what tricks he had, they were all useless.
The sedan chair changed direction, returning to the previous fork and stopped not far away.
Jia Ren stepped down from the sedan, feeling his body lighten up a bit.
The paper figures turned their bodies, all looking over, the red glow from the sedan never leaving him, his every movement was watched.
A massive deep pit came into view, with the edge several meters deep, the interior shining faintly, an unknown force resonating there.
Is this... my power?!
His eyes showed faint joy, quickly concealed, a strong desire drove him to enter it.
Rush straight in?
Most likely, halfway through, he’d be controlled back again.
Jia Ren took small steps, stopping near the edge.
"This flower is so beautiful, it truly complements your beauty that would shame the moon and flowers."
"Beauty like a fish sinking or a goose falling, the moon shamed and flowers blushing, listening to it is heartwarming, incomparable to any deadwood stump."
The woman in the red wedding dress increasingly wanted Jia Ren to live a few more days.
She was briefly lost in the compliments, allowing Jia Ren to jump into the pit and run afar, only realizing it as if waking from a dream.
Ten fingernails painted red swayed, as if controlling invisible strings, trying to manipulate the puppet attempting to escape her control.
The controlling force was futile, as if it sank into the sea.
Was it the residual power from the battle that interfered?
The sedan’s curtain was lifted, and the woman in the red wedding dress, floating without wind, chased after Jia Ren at an astonishing speed.
Upon entering the pit, Jia Ren felt a powerful force of corruption assail him.
His body covered in mold spots, pus oozing from everywhere, rotting at an alarming rate.
However, the residual power here wasn’t just one type.
As if sensing his arrival, something dormant awakened, flying towards Jia Ren at an astounding speed.
"Where do you think you are going?!"
The woman in the red wedding dress silently appeared behind Jia Ren, her red-glowing nails pressed on his shoulder, and his blood froze at that moment.
Before she could drag Jia Ren away from the outskirts of the polluted area, a streak of red light flew towards them.
It was a drop of black-golden blood, its intense heat seemed to burn the Void, and it didn’t stop, burrowing fearlessly into Jia Ren’s body.