Chapter 29: The Token of Affection from the Ghost Bride

The death rules of the Ghost Bride are nearly impossible to bypass. Whether one answers "willing" or "unwilling," one is destined to be devoured by her. Xia Tiangong is currently trapped in this dilemma, at a complete loss for what to do. Time slips away second by second; cold sweat has already soaked his shirt, and every passing moment feels like a year. According to the death rules of the vast majority of specters, once a question is posed, one must answer within a short period, or the rule will be triggered. He frantically searches his mind for a solution, but remains empty-handed. Time, however, is running out.

"Damn it! I'll fight her to the end. If I die, I'll die heroically!" Out of options and desperate, Xia Tiangong decides to strike first. He quickly pulls out his mirror, aims it at the Ghost Bride, and unleashes "Mirror Swallows All." A massive suction force envelops the Ghost Bride, attempting to drag her into the mirror. Yet, she remains seated firmly, completely unaffected. Even the red veil atop her head does not flutter.

"So it doesn't work? Of course. Even the power of the rules cannot shake this ghostly woman; how could the art of a Mirror Specter have any effect?" Although Xia Tiangong was mentally prepared, seeing this scene leaves his heart filled with despair.

"Hee hee!" The Ghost Bride suddenly laughs. The sound is like copper bells—crisp and melodious, like that of a teenage girl. "Just a joke. As the owner of this restaurant, how could I bear to eat such a wealthy patron as you?"

"You use death rules to tell jokes?" Xia Tiangong stares at her, feeling a mix of relief and utter speechlessness. Once a death rule is initiated, it normally either kills the target or is broken by them. For the Ghost Bride to terminate the rule herself is a violation of the rules. If any other specter dared to do this, they would be torn apart by the power of the rules. Yet, she is perfectly fine.

"Is that any way to joke? You nearly scared me to death." Xia Tiangong wants to curse but holds back.

"If you don't like this joke, I can make it real!"

"No, no! I like it, I like it!"

"Hee hee! You can also consider it seriously. I will ask you this question again in the future, and by then, you must give me a definite answer." The Ghost Bride says this playfully, as if joking with a friend. Xia Tiangong, however, senses a dark, twisted sense of humor and suddenly realizes that the Ghost Bride is teasing him. He never expected to be teased by a specter, let alone one as unfathomably powerful as this.

"I don't even know what you look like; how can I easily agree? Why not lift your red veil and let me see your peerless beauty?" Xia Tiangong is fairly certain that for the sake of his gold, she shouldn't be willing to kill him. He decides to tease her back, otherwise, he would be at too much of a disadvantage!

"Do you really want to see?"

"Of course." Xia Tiangong stares intently at the Ghost Bride across the table. He watches as she lifts a small hand, grips the corner of the red veil, and slowly raises it. First, he sees a slender, elegantly curved swan-like neck, followed by a smooth, rounded chin. Xia Tiangong’s heart begins to race without him realizing it. He suddenly has a feeling that she must be a peerless beauty. As the veil is about to be completely lifted, her small hand suddenly stops. "A bride never lifts her own veil. If it is to be lifted, you must be the one to do it."

This remark from the Ghost Bride catches Xia Tiangong off guard. "If you want me to lift it, I'll lift it." Lifting the veil might also be a death rule, but he trusts that even if it triggers, the Ghost Bride will not kill him. After all, one human life isn't worth much, and keeping him alive means collecting one thousand taels of rent every month. Unless she is brain-dead, the Ghost Bride wouldn't want him to die.

Xia Tiangong rises slightly, reaching across the table to lift the Ghost Bride's red veil. She doesn't dodge, allowing him to grab the edge and pull it away in one motion. Expecting to see her true face, he is shocked when the Ghost Bride instantly vanishes. The red veil remains in his hand, but the Ghost Bride is nowhere to be found.

"Ran away? Are you afraid to be seen? Don't be scared, I don't mind if you're ugly!" Xia Tiangong shouts into the empty room.

The Ghost Bride's voice drifts from all directions, ethereal and indistinct. "The red veil is a gift for you. When you decide to be my groom, you will naturally see my true face."

"This isn't good, right? I was just joking. Can I give it back?" Xia Tiangong holds the red veil as if it were a hot potato. Spectral items are not easy to handle, especially unique objects belonging to such a powerful entity. Accepting it creates a karmic bond with the specter, and she will haunt him from now on.

"No! That is a token of my affection for you. How could you return it?" The Ghost Bride’s tone is mournful, as if she were speaking the truth.

Xia Tiangong feels his forehead vein throb. You were the one who made me lift the veil; how did it become a token of affection? It is clear that the Ghost Bride has taken an interest in him and intends to entangle him. The red veil feels like it is made of silk, soft and smooth, with almost no weight. Xia Tiangong looks at it, a sudden thought occurring to him: could this red veil be a spectral artifact?

"Does this red veil have any special function?"

"Cover it over your head, and you will be cut off from the world." The Ghost Bride's tone shifts, and she says playfully, "You aren't planning to put it over your own head, are you? I would really like to see that!"

Xia Tiangong can't help but roll his eyes; he always feels this female ghost is far from proper. He flips his mirror and stores the red veil in the mirror space; he might find a use for it later. After a few more idle words, the conversation ends.

A few minutes later, food and wine are served, and Xia Tiangong continues to eat heartily. He feels a sense of crisis and must grow stronger as quickly as possible. Otherwise, if the Ghost Bride ever turns on him, he will have no power to resist, nor will he be able to escape.

As he is enjoying his meal, the manager arrives on the sixth floor with eight shop assistants. Seeing him, Xia Tiangong smiles faintly. "Manager, your boss has already rented the basement to me. Did you know?"

The manager nods slightly, though for some reason, its expression is strange. "I am aware, but..." It hesitates, leaving the sentence unfinished.

Xia Tiangong wonders if he has been deceived. Could it be that the Ghost Bride isn't the owner here? "But what? Isn't the Ghost Bride the owner?"

"She is one of the owners. You can rest assured; she has the authority to rent that floor to you. However, I advise you to consider it carefully."

"Why consider it carefully? Please, manager, explain clearly."

A look of hesitation appears on the manager's chubby face. "First, accept these shop assistants. I will take you to the basement in a moment, and you will understand once you are there."

Standing behind the manager are eight shop assistants of varying heights and builds—some handsome, some ugly. They are unwilling to be sold to a human, but they have no choice; they are the property of the restaurant, and the manager has the authority to sell them. They stand in a row, glaring at Xia Tiangong with looks of resentment and hatred.

"I am merely selling them to you. As for how to form a contract, that is your own business." The manager notices their reluctance but doesn't care, nor does it intend to help Xia Tiangong.

"I have my own ways to subdue them." Xia Tiangong is full of confidence. Adding eight shop assistants at once—even if they are all the same type of specter with the same arts—will increase his overall strength through sheer numbers. He points his mirror at the shop assistants and pulls them all into the mirror space.

"I'm going in to handle this. I'll be right back." Not entirely at ease, Xia Tiangong tells the manager and enters the mirror space himself.

As soon as he enters, he hears the Mirror Specter complaining. "Bringing so many in at once? I have to copy many clones to suppress them. This is a huge loss for me!" Each time the Mirror Specter manifests a clone, it consumes its own Nether energy. Thus, it has always been resentful, feeling that since it contributes the most, it should receive a larger share of the gold than the other two specters.

"Stop whining. I'll give you fifty taels extra this time. Subdue them immediately."

"Very well! Watch and learn, Master!" The Mirror Specter is delighted and instantly copies dozens of Xia Tiangong clones.

The eight new shop assistants had been secretly plotting to join forces and kill the human and his contracted specters. But in an instant, a large number of clones condensed from Nether energy appear, surrounding them completely. The mirror clones can extract the souls from human bodies, a very effective move for killing people. However, specters have no souls, so the clones have no inherent advantage against them and can only resort to brawling like thugs.

The shop assistants' spectral art, "The Abductor," can affect the mirror clones. Once they strike a clone's shoulder, the clone falls into a brief state of stagnation. In a one-on-one fight, the shop assistants would win steadily. Unfortunately, the number of clones is too great; as soon as one is struck, it is swarmed by several others. Furthermore, the Delivery Specter and the Gambling Specter are lurking on the sidelines to ambush them, and even the shop assistant contracted earlier joins in the fray.

In the blink of an eye, the eight shop assistants are subdued, pinned to the ground, and lined up.

"Sign the Human-Master Contract with me, or die!" Xia Tiangong stands in front of them, looking down as if a monarch observing his slaves.

"Don't even think about it. We would rather die than sign a Human-Master Contract with you."

"The Human-Master Contract is an insult to us. We would rather die than submit."

"If it were an equal contract, we might consider it. A Human-Master Contract is absolutely out of the question. If you won't sign an equal contract, then just kill us all." They seem to have already discussed this, knowing they cannot escape and hoping to bargain for a better contract.

Xia Tiangong laughs coldly. "You came to the human world to kill and eat people. What's wrong with me insulting you? Is there a problem?" He paces in front of the eight shop assistants, then suddenly stops and points at one. "This one is too ugly. Kill it for me."

The command is given, and the Delivery Specter is the first to rush forward, opening its mouth to tear into the target. The Gambling Specter and the Mirror Specter are a beat slower but follow suit, and the previously contracted shop assistant is the last to help. It is somewhat hesitant, as these were once its colleagues and they had a decent relationship, but now it must kill them with its own hands.

Xia Tiangong takes out a paper ingot, standing to the side to absorb the Nether energy dispersed as the specter is destroyed. Two or three minutes later, the shop assistant’s body dissipates, and all its Nether energy is absorbed into the paper ingot. This time, only one paper ingot was used, so the gold ingot is exceptionally large; Xia Tiangong finds it heavy to carry and has to place it on the ground.