Chapter 18: The Crimson Wedding Vows

The graveyard vanished without a trace,

replaced by a vision of bloody matrimony.

A crimson wedding hall materialized,

shrouded in dense, bone-chilling mist.

Blood-red silk cascaded like liquid gore,

transforming the space into a flowing scarlet sea.

Wind whispered through the corridors,

stirring rows of candles that flickered with ghostly blue flames—

their ghostlight casting spectral shadows

across silk banners rippling like fresh-spilled blood.

Center stage rose a platform where two figures stood.

Lin Ye occupied one side, clad in funerary black,

now branded by an incongruous crimson blossom

blooming upon his chest.

Opposite him loomed the phantom bride:

enveloped in blood-drenched matrimonial robes,

a veil obscuring her face—

save for the haunting curve of scarlet lips

parted beneath the shroud.

The hour of union arrived.

“Bow to Heaven and Earth!”

A jarring suona’s wail tore through the silence,

its notes clawing from infernal depths

with grief-laden, undulating melody—

at turns keening and wrathful,

then collapsing into mournful dirges.

Before Lin Ye could react,

invisible forces wrenched him forward—

crimson threads binding his limbs

like puppet strings held taut by the ghost bride’s

bone-white fingertips.

“Second bow to…”

“Parents who buried me alive deserve no reverence,”

the bride’s glacial voice interrupted.

“Husband, we bow to each other.”

The third bow commenced:

bride and groom pressed forehead to forehead

as threads yanked them into unholy union.

“Drink this shared cup, husband,

and bind our spirits forever.”

A nuptial cup manifested in her hand.

With one nail’s delicate slash,

ruby droplets cascaded into the vessel—

filling the air with metallic rot.

Lin Ye peered within.

A draught brewed from her own ichor.

“Your turn, husband.”

Lin Ye lacked grandeur for such ritual,

but needle-pierced pores provided

readily tapped reservoirs.

Drip…

The cup filled quickly.

“Did it hurt?” she murmured.

As if you don’t know?

You stitch me like a pincushion,

then feign concern?

Lin Ye bit back the retort.

Trapped men swallow pride.

“The pain is nothing,” he countered,

“compared to my lady’s eternal suffering.”

Merely survival’s lie—

yet at his words,

her hand suspended mid-air.

Then, impossibly:

a tear of blood, thick as tar,

coiled from her sightless white eye,

trailing down her veil.

A ghost’s tear of binding.

“My death is my dowry,”

she whispered with terrifying devotion.

“This tear my pledge—

to walk every shadow with you

as your eternal bride.”

Lin Ye’s thoughts tangled.

Forced into marriage—

not just to a specter,

but a deeply invested one.

He dared not shatter her solemnity.

Choosing words carefully,

he echoed her vow:

“My blood stands as bride-price.

By hellfire’s light,

through breath and darkness,

we cleave as one.”

Silence.

The blood-hall dissolved.

Lin Ye stood once more

amidst ordinary graves.

Ding! System: First Seventh Ritual Complete!

Hex Broken. Rewards: Ghost Bride + [Blood-Refining Method] manual.

Ding! Bonus: Realm Bank access granted.

Ding! Fief forcibly upgraded to Grudge Spirit tier!

Ding! Realm Advancement Bonus: [Soul-Sealing Array] acquired!

Rewards flooded his senses,

needing time to process.

First, the personal prize:

Blood-Refining Method

Rank: Unknown!

Effect: Refine all things into essence! Purify blood! Master this art—one drop may scorch kingdoms.

Powerful, yet suspicion crept in.

Her technique—Blood-Siphon Method.

His—Blood-Refining.

Two halves of one engine:

a tireless blood-forge

feeding an eternal parasite.

“A potent skill nonetheless,”

Lin Ye conceded.

Next—Fiefdom Status:

Realm: Graveyard

Rank: Grudge Spirit (Low)

Structures: Spirit Hall, Tomb Chamber, Perimeter Wall, Grave Markers

Wealth: 0

Notes: Locals unearth this cursed soil—burying ancestors here daily!

Upgrade Conditions: Hidden

The ramshackle temple

now transformed into a Spirit Hall

housing spirit tablets—

his own centrally enshrined.

A crude stone wall

demarcated his territory:

graveyard custodian

or tomb-keeper,

depending on perspective.

Burial rights now came with fees.

Finally—Soul-Sealing Array:

Rank: Adaptive (strength scales with materials)

Origin: Forged by Daoist master Qiu Tongsheng,

this array subdues restless-haunt domains.

Requires:

17 copper coins stained in virgin blood +

One vermilion pillar—carved with exorcism sigils

and crowned by Tu Bo, underworld god-beast.

He confirmed their presence in his pack.

Three-chi-three pillar height:

two chi buried, three above—

marking Daoist celestial tiers.

Coins—handled by thousands,

coursing with human yang-energy—

now primed with chaste blood.

Combined, they anchor a Minor Seven Gate array—

a ward against lingering hatred.

“Notably useful,” Lin Ye approved.

Ah, the final gift:

access to Heaven & Earth Bank.

Intrigued—and idle—

he ventured toward its unseen gates.