A Demon Takes a Bride

On the fifteenth day of the fourth month, the moon was full.

Every household in Listening Willow Village had shut its courtyard gates and blown out its candles early. All was silent, without the faintest sound, as though it were a ghost village.

Although cultivators held sway these days, those with Spirit Roots were still few in number. Far more were ordinary people who either lacked Spirit Roots or had useless five-element Spirit Roots and could not cultivate. They lived together on the outskirts of cities, beyond the control of the sects, and had little contact with the cultivation world.

Listening Willow Village was just such a mortal village. Its people cared nothing for conflicts between cultivators, only for their own little plots of land.

Yet even so, disaster had still come knocking at their door.

Only one household in all of Listening Willow Village had a light burning, and it was a red lantern with a special meaning.

The red lantern, adorned with an exquisite "double happiness" character, had clearly been made with great care. Its material, too, looked extraordinary, utterly out of place in the little mud-brick courtyard.

Inside the main hall stood a chair, and on it sat a bride in red, her back straight. The veil embroidered with gold thread, however, did not cover her head.

The bride's eyes had long since swollen from crying, and beside her, her parents silently shed tears.

The bride's elder brother clenched his fists, not daring to look at his sister. Only the veins bulging at his temples betrayed the indignation in his heart.

Amid the mournful sobbing, the young man suddenly stood up. "You're not marrying him! We won't let you! I'll go find an immortal. I'll go into the city and beg the city lord! I refuse to believe there's no one who can deal with that demon!"

With those words, the young man made to push open the door and leave, only for his parents to hold him fast.

The gray-haired woman had long since cried herself hoarse. Though her heart could scarcely bear to part with her daughter, she could only try to persuade her son. "Ping'an, don't go! Immortals aren't easy to find. Niansheng from the Lin family next door went and never came back, leaving your Auntie Lin without her son and daughter both at once. Your sister's fate is already sealed. If anything happens to you too, how are your father and I supposed to go on living?!"

It was not just the woman. Even the bride sitting in the main hall said through her tears, "Brother, don't go. Why would those immortals care whether we live or die? As long as you look after Father and Mother for me and fulfill my filial duty, I'll have nothing left to worry about."

There was already a resolve to die in the bride's words, and hearing them, the other three broke into another bout of bitter weeping.

The woman in particular no longer cared whether her son was going to leave. She threw her arms around her daughter, and mother and daughter clung to each other and wept.

The sight brought tears to the eyes of both father and son.

As the family wept miserably in their courtyard, a sudden commotion arose next door.

First, a young man called from outside the gate, shouting, "Mother, Mother! I've brought an immortal back! Open the gate, Mother! I've brought an immortal to save my sister!"

The cries of those in the courtyard stopped abruptly. They recognized the voice: it was Niansheng, Auntie Lin's son from next door!

Hadn't Lin Niansheng gone into the city to find an immortal? He had been gone so long that everyone said he had died ages ago. Only Auntie Lin had gritted her teeth and insisted he hadn't, waiting all the while for her son to return.

Could Lin Niansheng really have come back?!

The family was full of startled doubt. The young man wanted to open the door and take a look, but his father stopped him at once.

"Let's wait and see. If some demon has taken Niansheng's form, you'll be in danger if you rush out like that!" By now, demons had frightened the whole family out of their wits, and they truly dared not act rashly.

The young man swallowed, breaking out in a cold sweat at his own recklessness.

The four of them pressed silently against the wall, waiting to hear what happened in the courtyard next door. Even the bride temporarily forgot her own misfortune, a glimmer of hope rising in her heart.

Before long, the courtyard gate next door opened, and Auntie Lin cried out, "Niansheng!"

Then came the soft weeping of mother and son, mingled with Auntie Lin's complaints, half sorrowful and half joyful.

"What took you so long? Your sister's already been taken away, and I thought you were gone too. I nearly followed you both into the grave!" Auntie Lin sobbed.

Hearing this, they knew that whether or not the immortal Lin Niansheng had brought back was real, at least he himself had truly returned.

The four in the courtyard first breathed a sigh of relief, then felt a secret hope stir within them.

"Mother, I came back too late. But I've brought an immortal with me. She can definitely rescue my sister!" Though Lin Niansheng was grieved that something had already happened to his sister, he was not discouraged in the slightest. His tone was firm and earnest.

Hearing him, Auntie Lin began to believe that her daughter might be able to come back.

But when she looked in the direction her son pointed, all she saw was a young and beautiful girl.

Though the girl's appearance and clothing were indeed unlike those of a mortal, her bearing was extraordinary, and she even held a sword, she looked no more than fourteen or fifteen. Could she really be that capable?

Auntie Lin had her doubts, but she did not voice them.

She was a woman who had returned home after separating from her husband and had raised a son and daughter on her own. Not only was she strong-willed, she also knew how to deal with people. So even though her heart was full of doubt, she showed none of it on her face.

She welcomed the visitor into the house and told Lin Niansheng to attend to her, while she hurried off to heat water and make tea.

But the girl declined and instead asked gently, "Brother Lin told me some time ago that this village had run into trouble. I came this time to resolve it. Auntie, do you know where your daughter was ultimately taken, or whether any other family's daughter has been targeted? That will give me a place to begin my investigation."

"That's right, Mother, hurry and tell Fairy Sang. She'll definitely be able to bring my sister back!" Lin Niansheng urged as well.

Auntie Lin glared at Lin Niansheng. The girl was so young and beautiful; what if she proved no match for the demon, and it took a fancy to her too and killed her?

Auntie Lin was deeply torn. Before she could answer, someone knocked on her courtyard gate again.

When she opened it this time, she found the four members of the Su family from next door. They had all come to call, and the Su girl was still wearing her wedding dress!

"What brings you here?" Though Auntie Lin had spent the past few days grieving for her daughter, she knew the girl next door had also been targeted by the demon.

But she had already felt that life held no hope, so even when she heard about it, she had done nothing beyond cursing the demon a few more times.

She had not expected the Su family to come calling tonight.

Auntie Lin was no fool. Naturally, she understood that they had heard her son's words and come to beg the immortal to save a life. It was just that, in her eyes, this immortal was really...

"Sister-in-law, I know our family couldn't do much to help you before. Now that my daughter's in danger too, I finally understand how heartbroken you were. I know it's a little shameless of us to come knocking now, but for my daughter's sake, I still want to take a chance," Mother Su said with a bitter smile.

"I heard Niansheng say he'd found an immortal. No matter what, I wanted to beg for a meeting. I want to save my child's life!"

With a neighbor of many years pleading through tears, Auntie Lin could not bring herself to refuse.

She could only grit her teeth and sigh. "I don't know how to explain this to you either. Just come in and see for yourselves!"

If they saw the girl, perhaps the family would give up hope too.

With that thought, Auntie Lin led them inside. As soon as they entered the house, everyone saw the girl dressed in green, beautiful as an immortal.

So this was the immortal Niansheng had invited? Could this immortal really help them?

For a moment, the same question arose in everyone's heart.