Golden Silkworm Marriage

Golden Silkworm Marriage

My chest had been jabbed by the black umbrella and my neck seized, nearly choking me to death. It took me a while before I could answer, "Your Camellia Village really has a lot of strange people."

Xiaodao stepped in front of me and spread his arms to shield me. I could feel his body trembling violently—a sign of utter terror.

The man in golden clothes looked at Xiaodao and let out a strange cackling cry, seemingly quite puzzled.

The big black dog began barking wildly. Xiaodao stopped it, then dropped to his knees with a thud and cried, "Golden Silkworm Deity, I don't want him to die anymore. Please spare him. We never meant to offend you."

I stared at the man in golden clothes in astonishment. Golden Silkworm Deity? What the hell was that?

The man in golden clothes took several steps forward. The big black dog bared its teeth and barked furiously, refusing to let him approach Xiaodao.

The man raised his right hand, and a stream of black vapor shot from it, swiftly and precisely wrapping around the big black dog.

The dog flew through the air and crashed against a rock, knocked unconscious. With three loud bangs, the three black jars Xiaodao carried exploded. The Gu insects inside had already lost all signs of life.

Xiaodao's face turned even paler. He raised his firewood knife and shouted, "Don't come any closer, Golden Silkworm Deity. We're just children. Please spare us!"

I could not help asking, "Xiaodao, isn't the Golden Silkworm Gu an insect? How could it be some freak?"

Xiaodao turned to look at me, his black eyes filled with panic. "He is the Gu Spirit of the Golden Silkworm Gu. In Camellia Village, he controls the Golden Silkworm. Whether the entire village can raise Gu insects successfully depends on his favor. When I went back today, I made a wish to him, hoping he would teach you a lesson. Then you came charging into Camellia Village with the Three-Corpse Snake Gu and offended the Golden Silkworm Deity. I was worried, so I ran out to find you."

Warmth rose in my heart. Xiaodao really was not made of stone. Still, this was the first time I had ever heard the term Gu Spirit.

Only later did I learn that witchcraft and Gu arts were combined in the art of Gu. Gu Masters would choose a spirit entity as their Gu Spirit to protect themselves and the Gu insects they raised.

Any truly skilled Gu Master would raise a Gu Spirit of their own.

The Golden Silkworm Deity before me and the Grudge Spirit I had encountered yesterday were probably the same kind of thing. Neither had a true physical body; both were spirit entities. But this Golden Silkworm Deity seemed even more savage and tyrannical, utterly devoid of human feeling.

I took the firewood knife from Xiaodao's hand and shouted sternly, "Even the Golden Silkworm Deity has to be reasonable. I, Xiao Kunlun, do not deserve to die, and I'm not afraid of you."

Xiaodao shook his head. "Xiao Kunlun, kneel quickly. We're no match for him."

The man in golden clothes took a few more steps forward. His fat body seemed to have swollen even more than before, making him look even more terrifying.

At last, he stopped several meters away. His gaze fell on Xiaodao and never moved again, as though he had been stunned stupid.

"Cackle... cackle..." The man in golden clothes made strange sounds, his black umbrella pointing at me one moment and Xiaodao the next.

Xiaodao's face was deathly pale. He collapsed to the ground and shook his head like a rattle drum. "You are the Golden Silkworm Deity. How can you marry me... I'm not worthy of someone as exalted as you."

It seemed Xiaodao could understand the man in golden clothes.

I cried out, "What... he wants to marry you? What kind of joke is that? Never mind that you belong to different realms of yin and yang—you're not even the same sex!"

Xiaodao shook his head in agony, his eyes full of pain. He bit down hard on his lip until it split, and blood trickled down.

I looked at Xiaodao again. He had his head wrapped in a scarf, and though his face was smudged with dirt, under the moonlight I could still see that his skin was finer and more lustrous than a boy's.

Damn it, no wonder Uncle Ma had me buy stuffed toys. No wonder she seemed so unreasonable sometimes. No wonder she liked to cry. She was a girl.

The more I thought about it, the more something felt wrong. The man in golden clothes had pointed his black umbrella at me, then at Xiaodao. He was clearly using me to threaten her. As long as Xiaodao agreed to marry him, he would not harm me.

I looked at the fat man in golden clothes, then at the tiny Xiaodao. "No. Absolutely not. You fat bastard, you filthy pervert."

Xiaodao lowered her head, then suddenly shouted, "Golden Silkworm Deity, I agree. I'm twelve now. When I turn fifteen, I'll marry you. For the next three years, you cannot touch a single hair on Xiao Kunlun's head. Now, please leave."

I froze and shouted, "Xiaodao, you don't need to fear him. I have a way to deal with him..." But the more I spoke, the less conviction I had. With a casual gesture, the man in golden clothes had wiped out the three Gu insects Xiaodao brought. With a wave of his hand, he could take my life.

I was simply too weak. The Golden Silkworm Deity could crush me as easily as an ant.

The man in golden clothes cackled, but his cries had become much gentler. He strode forward, stopped before Xiaodao, and touched her forehead with the black umbrella.

A golden pattern appeared between Xiaodao's brows, shaped like a silkworm.

Xiaodao wrapped both arms tightly around me, preventing me from moving.

The man in golden clothes looked down at me as though I were already dead, without the slightest trace of emotion.

After finishing all this, the man in golden clothes turned and left. One moment he was still two meters away; the next, he was already ten meters away.

Xiaodao and I sat on the ground without speaking.

Shame overwhelmed me. I was alive only because a girl had sacrificed the happiness of the rest of her life, agreeing to marry the Gu Spirit of the Golden Silkworm Gu to save my worthless life.

Xiaodao spoke first. "Xiao Kunlun, I'm only making up for the mistake I made in my impulsiveness. You don't need to blame yourself. Camellia Village has had the tradition of Golden Silkworm Marriage since ancient times. Being chosen by the Golden Silkworm Deity is an honor."

Yet her words carried more than a hint of reluctance.

I looked at Xiaodao. Countless words filled my heart, but none could come out. At first, I had disliked her somewhat. When I learned she had no mother, I felt some sympathy. Now, all I felt was guilt.

Filled with shame, I said, "Xiaodao, don't worry. I, Xiao Kunlun, am not someone who shirks responsibility. I may be weak now, but in three years, I'll definitely be able to beat that dead fat bastard to death. Then you won't have to marry that damned Golden Silkworm Deity."

Xiaodao looked up at me. A glimmer appeared in her eyes, only to fade at once. With a bitter smile, she said, "Xiao Kunlun, you have no idea how terrifying Golden Silkworm Marriage is. Once you agree to the Golden Silkworm Deity, there is no escape. In Golden Silkworm Marriage, your soul belongs to the Golden Silkworm Deity, and your body belongs to the Golden Silkworm Gu. Both soul and body lose their freedom, and you will never be reincarnated for all eternity. This is my fate." Tears already shimmered in her eyes.

My heart felt as if it were being pierced by needles, but this pain was completely different from the torment inflicted by the Innate Insect.

I could endure the Innate Insect's torment, but I could not endure this heart-piercing pain.

I, Xiao Kunlun, had actually caused a girl to fall into eternal damnation.

No. I would never allow such a thing to happen.

"I swear upon my life and soul that I will never let you fall into eternal damnation." Facing the Shiwan Mountains, I made the first solemn promise of my life.