It took three days to prepare for the wedding, and I didn’t step outside during that time.

Everyone was full of joy, except for me, the bride. People kept coming over to offer their congratulations and gifts, like chickens and pigs, but I had no idea how Fu Wan managed to avoid the smiling faces.

On the auspicious day, golden fans, red makeup, brocade bedding, and celebratory fruits were all in place.

Fu Wan easily found the soaked red shoes I had hidden under the bed, then called out to the villagers outside the wedding banner, “Hold up the red umbrella!”

Someone quickly came forward, and under the red veil, I could see scattered millet grains on the ground.

After getting into the sedan chair, landing, stepping over the fire basin, and retreating to the ancestral hall, I heard the clucking of a rooster.

We performed the three bows to the god's shrine.

The rod lifted the bridal veil.

There wasn’t a single woman in the ancestral hall except for me. They all had their eyes closed, kneeling densely in the courtyard, hands clasped and muttering prayers.

When I listened carefully, it was that damn village rule, the part I seemingly didn’t get right. Standing in the courtyard was only the village head holding the rod, looking wooden and dull, and Fu Wan with a smug smile on his face.

“How about it? Do you feel a surge of strength in your body?”

His big round eyes attentively observed my expression. To be honest, I did feel a sense of strength?

“Can I go home now?” I asked in a high-pitched voice, pretending to be joyful as I took a few steps in front of the altar.

“Hmph.” He curled his lips and snorted, “Stop pretending. You think you can escape my grasp now that you’ve come this far? It could have been someone else, but after those hours of torment by the school teacher, did you think I would forget?”

My face turned cold: “And you’re not afraid I have another card up my sleeve?”

“Another card up your sleeve?”

Fu Wan laughed, bending over with laughter, and waved his hand. The red silk by the ancestral hall revealed Xiao Xiao, baring her sharp teeth and growling hungrily in my direction.

I glared at him, but I couldn’t save her now; there was a more important issue to resolve first.

“What? Giving up? Hahaha, you really thought I didn’t see that note? She has saved many people to stop me from acquiring the life force of these men, and you were originally one of them.”

Great, he still didn’t know who I was.

“You acquired? I guess, those men’s life forces were meant to be offered to that parasite through me, right?”

His face stiffened, visibly displeased: “That’s a dark god! As long as I possess you and gain that power from you, he’s nothing!”

“Oh ~ so you couldn’t beat him, huh? Just blocked him off like screening a pawn? I thought the pawn was weaker than you.”

“That female soul may be stronger than me, but so what! Isn’t she still tied up there! Don’t struggle in vain, no one can save you!”

He flew into a rage and lunged at me, but the continuous flow of power hadn’t yet been fully accepted by my body.

I hurriedly took off the wedding shoes soaked by the mother-son lake water and stuffed them into his mouth. While he spat them out, I knocked over the porcelain bowl on the altar and rushed towards the bound Xiao Xiao.

The red rope was tied very tightly, cutting into her skin and causing it to bleed. I didn’t care about the tears, or the fact that the red rope was cutting my hands.

“Xiao Xiao! Xiao Xiao! Wake up!”

I didn’t know what was happening to her, I could only sense her consciousness was muddled, showing interest only in the energy I carried.

But before I could untie her, Fu Wan’s sinister voice approached my back.

I quickly turned around!

“Clever, but the offering space isn’t my true body, even if you drank the mother-son lake water, I wouldn’t be parasitized.”

He smiled, confident of his victory, but the smile on my face and my gaze towards the ancestral hall shattered his confidence.

He stared blankly at his suddenly bloated belly, then finally turned his head to see the porcelain bowl on the altar intact, but the broken porcelain bowl with the offerings was shattered on the ground.

“How… how could you…”

Countless white long worms poured out of his mouth, I continued to untie the red rope binding Xiao Xiao.

The words on that card were fake; Xiao Xiao never could defy me.

I knew she would cooperate with me.

But Fu Wan had been watching me these past few days, giving us no chance to communicate. Xiao Xiao was so powerful, why had she fallen into this state?

There was only one answer, to give me a hint.

“She can also accept this power” hint.

I didn’t care about turning back, about my bleeding hands, nor about this being Fu Wan’s attempt to kill me.

I had run away once before out of cowardice, but this time, I had to save her.

The sound of worms slithering in the sand came from behind, but I had already untied the rope.

Xiao Xiao pounced on me, claws digging into my body, absorbing the energy from me.

I could only think of the past times, always running into her arms, her helplessly patting my head to signal her surrender.

I patted her shiny black hair, and before losing consciousness, I heard a single sentence.

“Congratulations, traveler—the gratitude of a pregnant woman—”