Qin Bo opened his eyes in an instant, his heart tightening as his gaze swept across the surroundings.
Little Black Charcoal, which had been lying prone, suddenly sprang to its feet. Its fur stood on end as it let out a low growl toward the entrance of the main hall.
Qin Bo's heart jolted. Following Little Black Charcoal's gaze, he saw that the main hall's door was slowly being pushed open by an invisible force.
A cold wind poured inside, making the fire sway as the flames flickered between light and darkness.
Qin Bo tightened his grip on the butcher's knife and looked up at Old Taoist Songhe and the others, only to find that none of them had moved.
They had fallen into a deep sleep.
Qin Bo's brows drew together as the pressure in his heart surged.
He stepped forward and called out several times, but it was useless. The others remained completely unmoved.
When he looked over again, the group behind him had already vanished.
Qin Bo's heart went cold.
"What exactly are these things? Why haven't they made a sound?"
The only response was the endless darkness outside the door and the howling wind.
Little Black Charcoal slowly moved toward the doorway, and Qin Bo followed close behind.
When they reached the entrance, they found no one outside.
But Qin Bo could sense a faint, elusive presence drifting around them, as though a pair of eyes were hidden in the darkness, spying on them.
Qin Bo had just prepared to retreat into the main hall when a faint song came from the distance.
The song was melodious, yet carried an indescribable eeriness, as though it had come from another world.
Little Black Charcoal paced anxiously back and forth beside Qin Bo's feet, the growl in its throat growing louder and louder.
The song appeared and disappeared, faintly revealing a deep, mournful resentment.
Qin Bo's gaze turned toward the area beyond the temple gate.
A figure in a dress stood beneath a tree not far away, her back facing him.
"Hiss... Isn't that the woman who came in earlier?"
"Did I... just run into a tale from Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio?! Or is this... a romantic ghost story?"
Qin Bo's heart was filled with confusion and wariness.
But his powerful instinct for survival told him that he absolutely must not go out and seek death.
Because, vaguely, he could sense that City God Temple was suppressing the aura of the outside world.
"Young master... Young master..."
Suddenly, a voice that reached straight into his soul exploded beside Qin Bo's ear.
His consciousness instantly blurred, and he drifted toward the temple gate.
He had no power to resist at all.
Little Black Charcoal grew frantic. Seeing Qin Bo walk out just like that, it kept meowing incessantly.
It even tried to block Qin Bo with its paws, but it was useless.
Step by step, Qin Bo arrived behind the woman.
"Young master, are you already betrothed?"
The woman turned around. She was devastatingly beautiful, enough to make fish sink and birds fall silent, the moon hide and flowers blush.
Qin Bo remained dazed as he answered.
"N-no."
Upon hearing that, the corners of the woman's lips lifted slightly.
She revealed an utterly seductive smile and slowly extended her jade-like hand.
She gently placed it on Qin Bo's shoulder, her voice as soft as a spring breeze in the third month. "How wonderful. A handsome young master like you—would you be willing to become my husband?"
As she spoke, a strange fragrance emanated from her body, making Qin Bo's consciousness grow increasingly muddled.
[ Ding! Detected an intent to charm. System protection mechanism activated ] [ Beginning devouring... ]
The notification that suddenly rang out in Qin Bo's mind jolted his muddled consciousness.
The strange fragrance visibly gathered toward Qin Bo's body.
Yet it seemed to be tugged by an invisible force, circling around Qin Bo's skin before gradually being devoured into him.
The woman noticed something amiss. Her beautiful eyes widened, and a trace of disbelief flashed through them. "You... How could you possibly be immune to my charm?"
She suddenly intensified the power of her charm, and the fragrance around her grew even richer.
The air around them seemed to be dyed a faint pink.
However, the system's devouring speed did not lessen in the slightest.
The pink charming aura was continuously absorbed by Qin Bo, and his eyes instead grew increasingly clear.
Qin Bo looked at the panicked woman before him.
A complicated feeling woven from curiosity and wariness rose in his heart. "Who exactly are you, and why did you use a charming technique on me?"
The woman bit her lip, a trace of resolve flashing through her eyes.
"My name is Luo Qingyan. I am the daughter of Ghost King Yanluo."
"My father wants to betroth me to the Black Mountain Old Demon."
Her voice carried a hint of choking grief and indignation.
"I refuse to marry that old demon. He is savage by nature and vicious in his methods. If I marry him, my entire life will be ruined."
"That is why I fled, but my father sent countless Ghost Guards to search for me everywhere. I was truly at the end of my rope, so I tried to charm you. I beg you to take me far away and find me somewhere to settle down."
Qin Bo felt helpless after hearing her out.
Luo Qingyan? He had thought she was Nie Xiaoqian!
Qin Bo looked at Luo Qingyan, the doubt in his eyes undiminished. "Since you are the daughter of the Ghost King, why did you use such a charming method to force others?"
Luo Qingyan lowered her head, her face showing shame.
"I... I grew up in the Ghost Domain and was accustomed to seeing the weak devoured by the strong. I thought that as long as I made the other party unable to resist, I could achieve my goal."
"I was momentarily foolish to use a charming technique on you just now. I hope you can forgive me."
Qin Bo waved his hand.
"Since you are the daughter of the Ghost King, you should understand that creatures like you can barely take a single step in this human world. Do you really still want to find a human to help you?"
"This... I never thought about that! But I have heard a few serialized romances. They told stories about love between humans and ghosts, so I wanted to imitate them."
As she spoke, Luo Qingyan's fair face actually flushed red.
Qin Bo could not help laughing and crying at once. This daughter of the Ghost King really did have an unusual way of doing things.
She was just like a harmless little girl.
"How strong is this Black Mountain Old Demon you mentioned? If we help you and he comes looking for us, wouldn't that drag us into disaster?"
"The Black Mountain Old Demon rules the Black Mountain Realm. He is one of its overlords. Even my father had no choice but to betroth me to him, so I suppose he must be very powerful!"
"Hiss... Then what you're doing won't just bring disaster upon your father. It might even bring calamity upon the Human Realm."
Qin Bo was speechless. Although he needed creatures like them to increase his lifespan and grow stronger, an enemy of this level—
Even if he earned that life, he would have no life left to spend it.
"Young master, as far as I know, the Black Mountain Old Demon cannot descend into the Human Realm."
"What?! Really?"
"It is true. Even my father cannot descend, which is why I was able to escape."
Qin Bo understood when he heard this.
There must be some kind of restriction. Those whose strength was too great could not come out. Otherwise, the human world would probably have fallen long ago.
"Then tell me, how are we supposed to help you? Humans and ghosts follow different paths. There is nothing I can do."
Luo Qingyan said anxiously, "Young master, I have a marriage contract. As long as I find a suitable partner, I can take shelter within the marriage contract."
"A marriage contract?!"
Qin Bo froze. How had this suddenly become about a marriage contract?
Could he really be about to sign an agreement with this female ghost?!
Although her looks... well... she was quite beautiful...!
Before you continue