Ghost Bridegroom — Chapter 12

Chapter 12: “The delicate Major Protector.”

Nowadays, there were only three cultivators in the Post-Calamity realm. 

The one with the highest cultivation level was the Sect Leader of the Profound Sect, Qing Xuzi. This was a philanthropist who pursued benevolence. His temper was so good, he could be described as a saint who had achieved the pinnacle of kindness.

Next was the leader of the Thunderous Roar Buddhist Temple, Jiaye Bodhi. This was an eccentric person whose manner of speech was so mysterious, no one could ever understand what he was talking about.

The last person was precisely Qing Xuzi’s disciple, the former leader of the demonic way, He Huan. This was a nefarious person, someone who became Daoist companions with his own Nascent Soul, practically reaching the pinnacle of debauchery.

With these three people as examples, cultivators realized a very important truth—

Sure enough, normal people definitely cannot enter the Post-Calamity realm.

Actually, this wasn’t something hard to comprehend. For a cultivator, the process of cultivating to immortality is as follows: Golden Core establishes one’s Dao, while Nascent Soul is when one seeks it. Post-Calamity proves one’s Dao, and ascending is achieving the Dao.

Using your body to prove the Dao sounds easy, but really implementing your Dao in every word and action for your entire life was extremely difficult.

Once a person insists on their way of thinking for everything, losing the ability to cater to the world and adapt to circumstances, this person would naturally not be a normal person anymore.

This was also the fundamental reason why Bi Qianren kept being incapable of passing his calamity. Although he believed the Dao he had chosen, the Killing Path, was the fastest way to solve any problem, there was hesitation within Bi Qianren’s heart—whether he really wanted to be forever accompanied by only a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

Qianren understood that if he wanted to enter the Post-Calamity realm, he either needed to break the weak desire entangling him, or he should enter a different path. Naturally, the former was the easier method.

In this world, the only people Bi Qianren cared about were He Huan and You Jiang. Both of these people were geniuses with extraordinary talent bestowed by the heavens, and would ascend sooner or later. 

All Qianren needed to do was to stop meeting new people, and this desire binding him would fade away with time.

It would have been fine if this happened. However, something unexpected has appeared now.

Zhuge Qingtian had stayed by his side for too long. Bi Qianren had already decided to use homicide to counter murderers, and was prepared to massacre all the people in the world. He didn’t need a companion by his side.

Thus, before he becomes used to this person’s existence, he must break all the fetters between them. And now, an opportunity to do this was right before his eyes.

In the end, the reason why Zhuge Qingtian wasn’t afraid of him was only because the ignorant were fearless. Once this person understood how frightening Bi Qianren’s existence was, the ghost would naturally avoid him.

When he thought of this, Bi Qianren, who originally didn’t want to provoke the righteous cultivators, leisurely walked out from the shadows. Just as he expected, the moment that Sky Master Mansion disciple saw his face, his entire body froze. Even his voice began trembling.

“Demonic……Demonic Way’s Major Protector!”　　

Three portraits were circulated throughout all the immortal sects, depicting the three demonic cultivators they definitely couldn’t provoke in today’s world: Bi Qianren, You Jiang, and He Huan. Mo Pan, as the disciple of the Mansion Master, naturally saw those three faces since he was a child. 

Mo Pan still remembered that his Master had told him, when all was said and done, He Huan was an almighty person who had nearly achieved the Dao. Generally, he wouldn’t care about children like them. 

For You Jiang, whenever he went out, the man always looked grand and majestic, with a crowd of people, so it was easy to recognize him. 

Only Bi Qianren was the most troublesome. He was the most poisonous person in this world. Any cultivator below the Post-Calamity realm would die just touching him, so everyone must carefully avoid him.

And appearing before him right now……wasn’t this icily arrogant man dressed in black combat clothes precisely the most dangerous among those three, the demonic way’s Major Protector Bi Qianren?

It was too late for Mo Pan to ponder exactly why the Major Protector of the demonic way, who hadn’t entered the jianghu for many years, suddenly reappeared. He also had no time to contemplate what Bi Qianren meant by helping him catch the ghost. Terrified, he could only watch this person reach out to tap his forehead.

Recalling his Master’s teachings, Mo Pan felt himself collapse. He immediately crushed his Sect’s communication talisman and wailed, “Master, save me! I was touched by the demonic way’s Major Protector! I’m only fifteen years old, I don’t want to die ah!”

Although these cries sounded mournful, Bi Qianren thought they were pleasant to hear. As he watched the youth’s familiar reaction, he thought:

Very good, the jianghu was still normal. He was still the demonic way’s Protector who was shunned by the world. The abnormal person was only the freak, Zhuge Qingtian.

At this moment, as if he was telepathic, Zhuge Qingtian crawled up. He said to the frightened Mo Pan, “You’re really going this far just because you got touched by his finger? I didn’t even blame you for taking advantage of my wife.”

In Zhuge Qingtian’s perspective, if he tries hugging Bi Qianren, he’ll be kicked flying. But Qianren actually took the initiative to touch this person, it was truly Mo Pan’s great honour and fortune! 

However, when Mo Pan heard Zhuge Qingtian say this, his expression appeared so shocked, it was as if the entire world was collapsing. If this corpse hadn’t already lost his head, he would have definitely pounced onto the ghost to cover his mouth.

Wife? Was this something you could randomly call?

This was Bi Qianren, the demonic way’s innately poisonous Major Protector!

“Are you crazy?! That’s the demonic way’s Major Protector!”

Staring at the ignorant malicious spirit with wide eyes, Mo Pan decided, for his own safety, he definitely couldn’t allow this guy to continue angering the demon. He immediately warned him:

“Do you know of the Nipping Flower? He was once the number one flower thief¹ in the entire world, and an exceptional expert even the Profound Sect couldn’t catch. He wanted to take liberties with the eighteen-year old Major Protector and was spat on. As a result, just because of his saliva, the Nipping Flower began bleeding from all seven orifices before dying!”

“You must have heard of the White Cloud Sword, right? He was a Nascent Soul cultivator who already had one foot in the Post-Calamity realm. After he hacked the Major Protector with his sword, a single drop of blood splashing on him caused him to melt until only bones were left, and he forever departed from the world!”

“Don’t think you’re fine just because you’re already a ghost. Even a single drop of sweat from him is highly toxic. For the cultivators poisoned to death by him, even their Nascent Souls won’t be able to escape. As long as you’re contaminated by his demonic energy, your soul will also scatter!”

“Although I don’t know any of the people you mentioned, I think it isn’t wrong for a lecher or a person who hacks others to die.”

This sentence of his completely amazed the righteous disciple.

Zhuge Qingtian actually did understand what the boy had meant. He suddenly understood why he’d always be kicked away the moment he approached Bi Qianren. So it turns out, his wife was actually protecting him ah!

Relying on his ability to beautify the world, Zhuge Qingtian fed himself a spoonful of chicken soup². Deeply moved, he turned his body toward the black-clothed man, “You cannot sweat nor can you bleed. Wife, you appear so tough, but you’re actually quite delicate ah.”

To be honest, Mo Pan exaggerated a lot when he said those things. When Bi Qianren was eighteen years old, he was merely a Golden Core cultivator. Regardless of how strong his demonic energy was, it wouldn’t be enough to poison a Nascent Soul expert to death.

Instead, that flower thief had totally been courting death. He actually dared to assault Qianren right in front of his Master He Huan. Thus, he had been slapped to death by his Master.

As for the White Cloud Sword, Bi Qianren was really the one who had killed him. However, Qianren actually used a lot of effort in order to successfully poison him.

The rumours of the jianghu had always been like this, following the thoughts of the majority. However, there was one piece of information that hadn’t been incorrect.

Whenever Bi Qianren was injured, the demonic energy in his body would go berserk. Any person who harms him would inevitably become a corpse, and even their souls would scatter. 

This was the real reason why nobody dared to become Daoist companions with Qianren.  It was unknown whether one would suddenly die while being intimate with him, and no one was willing to stake their lives to try. 

In addition, Bi Qianren also didn’t want to experience the pain of killing someone close to him by accident again. He rather exist as He Huan’s sharp blade, never approaching anyone for his entire life.

Zhuge Qingtian was a person that longed for reincarnation very much. Bi Qianren originally thought that once the ghost knew how dangerous it was to keep following him, he’d finally give up.

As a result, that guy probably really became stupid after his head was soaked in the river water for so long. The ghost had actually reached a silly verdict like this.

Looking at him very doubtfully, Bi Qianren could only sigh and say, “You really don’t know how the word ‘death’ is written.”

“I’ve already experienced the most terrible life. What else can I be afraid of?”

Disappearing forever from the world, how could any living organism not be afraid of this? However, compared to being afraid of something that had not yet happened, Zhuge Qingtian wanted to believe in himself more.

Since Qianren couldn’t sweat or bleed, then wouldn’t it be fine as long as Zhuge Qingtian protected his wife from being hurt, or prevented him from becoming fatigued? 

Although the ghost didn’t really understand what the feelings between a normal couple should be like, or why he didn’t want to change his marriage target, he was at least certain of this: protecting your other half was originally something one was supposed to do after marrying them.

Bi Qianren only realized now, as he watched the headless corpse that didn’t react much, that without Zhuge Qingtian’s head, he could no longer figure out the ghost’s true thoughts through his expressions. 

This was truly quite inconvenient. For a while, Qianren was unable to figure out what unreliable things the malicious ghost, with his strange line of thought, was thinking about now.

Bi Qianren thought this ghost might not believe others until he saw things happen himself. So there was no rush; as long as Zhuge Qingtian personally sees him make a move, he’ll know then just how powerful he was. 

Thus, Qianren coldly told Mo Pan, “Your Sky Master Mansion is best at the art of seeking souls. Find his head from the river, and I’ll let you go.”

Bi Qianren has the principle of always making the best use of everything. Since this Sky Master Mansion disciple had sent himself to their door, he naturally had to squeeze him dry. Thus, this order had been made fairly straightforwardly.

On the other hand, after encountering this demon, Mo Pan never expected that there was the possibility of being set free. For a while, he inevitably began struggling between the dignity of the righteous and his own life. “What if I rather die than agree?” 

At this moment, Bi Qianren only looked at him like he was an idiot. “You really want to hear me threaten you? You’re not afraid of having nightmares?”

Mo Pan completely didn’t know how terrible a threat would need to be to actually give him nightmares merely by hearing it. As a matter of fact, he decided that it was better to not know the specific details. 

Comforting himself that helping a malicious ghost find his head wasn’t flouting the law, he enthusiastically approached Zhuge Qingtian to grasp his hands. “This malicious ghost brother, come, come. Let me feel the aura of your soul.”  

However, when facing his rare enthusiasm, Zhuge Qingtian immediately withdrew his hands vigilantly. He said solemnly, “I’m someone with a wife, please respect it.”

The moment he said this, Bi Qianren once again had the urge to kick him into the river. However, his reason told him that if he continued entangling with this malicious ghost, he was afraid they wouldn’t be able to enter the city even when night fell.

In order to not spend the night outside in the wild again, Bi Qianren expressionlessly gave the ghost a great threat. “If you say any more nonsense, I’ll let him marry you.”

Facts prove that the observation skills of the Great Murderer Bi were still very strong. Although he couldn’t understand Zhuge Qingtian’s peculiar line of thought, he still managed to figure out the ghost’s fatal weakness.

The moment he heard this, the ghost obediently gave his hands to Mo Pan. His voice was so serious, he was like a completely different person. “Feeling my aura, right? How can we do it?”

Mo Pan watched them silently. He didn’t know why he would encounter the demonic way’s Protector when he only left the city to catch an ordinary ghost. He also didn’t know why he needed to help a malicious ghost find his head.

However, he now understood something very clearly. To this ghost, Mo Pan couldn’t even be compared to the demonic way’s Major Protector, who was shunned by all the realms!

His Master was right. Sure enough, demonic cultivators weren’t good people. Mo Pan had only been in contact with them for such a short period of time, but his self-confidence had already suffered such a critical hit!

Mo Pan never wanted to talk to demonic cultivators ever again!

1. This is figurative language for a r*pist.
2. Figurative here, like chicken soup for the soul.