Chapter 152: Ghost Bride?

Lu Bai and He Liangzhi headed out of the village.

Before they had even left, the faint aroma of food and wine drifted over from the distance.

The two had just been through a major battle and had expended a great deal of energy. The scent instantly made their stomachs rumble with hunger.

"I really am a bit hungry."

He Liangzhi rubbed his growling stomach.

The two took some rations from their bags and began to chew on them.

Lu Bai prepared some food and water for Black Dog and Ah Ming.

Black Dog had clearly used up a lot of energy when it unleashed that Magic Technique in the Bai Clan Ancestral Hall, and it now seemed listless.

Lu Bai stroked Black Dog’s forehead, gently comforting it.

"Who could be cooking? The food smells so good."

He Liangzhi shook his head and sighed. "Our rations can’t compare to that. So bland and tasteless."

Having just escaped death, his heart was still pounding with fear, so he spoke without much thought.

But Lu Bai’s expression changed upon hearing this. He frowned to himself and suddenly asked, "Who would be lighting a fire to cook at this hour?"

He Liangzhi, who was in the middle of a large mouthful of rations, suddenly froze.

It was the middle of the night.

Besides Bai Family Village, the surrounding area was completely desolate.

Even if travelers were passing through, they would either be like them, making do with a bite of rations...

...or they would light a fire to roast some wild game.

Why would there be the aroma of a proper cooked meal?

The two scanned the horizon.

The night was as black as ink, blanketing the vast, untamed mountains.

Faint moonlight, mixed with the dim light of the stars, vaguely revealed the swaying silhouettes of trees in the distant forest, giving off a strange aura.

WHOOSH!

A sinister wind blew through the woods. It didn’t make a wailing sound, but rather a halting, rustling noise, like someone whispering.

Lu Bai activated his Eye of Illusion and peered into the distance, but he couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary.

"We shouldn’t stay here. Let’s go!"

He Liangzhi said in a low voice, "It’ll be trouble if others from the Corpse Refining Sect show up!"

With that, he swung himself onto his horse.

Lu Bai quickly scooped up Black Dog and Ah Ming and mounted his own horse.

He could handle one Foundation Establishment Great Cultivator from the Corpse Refining Sect, but if several arrived, or if there were other powerful experts from the sect, he definitely wouldn’t be able to hold them off.

The two rode off in the opposite direction of the food’s aroma.

However, the mountain path was rugged and the terrain complex. In the dark of night, it was impossible to gallop.

They hadn’t gone far before they realized the scent of food wasn’t fading. Instead, it was growing stronger, clearer!

The surroundings grew even more sinister.

Visibility was dropping rapidly.

"Something’s not right!"

He Liangzhi’s expression was grave.

The moonlight and starlight that had been overhead had vanished, as if obscured by some invisible force.

The air grew heavy with moisture, and a grayish-white fog, cold and viscous, began to permeate the area.

Enveloped by the fog, He Liangzhi couldn’t help but shiver.

This chill was not the cold of autumn or winter.

It was a sinister cold that pierced through clothing and seeped into the very marrow of his bones!

Lu Bai cultivated the Dragon Elephant Blood Qi. Although he felt waves of cold, he could withstand it by circulating his Blood Qi.

"It doesn’t seem to be the Corpse Refining Sect."

He Liangzhi muttered, but he didn’t let his guard down. He quickly took out his Yin Soul Compass, but its needle was spinning wildly, unable to lock onto a direction!

However, the Soul Condensing Jade of the Compass itself was gradually changing color.

As the color deepened, He Liangzhi’s face grew uglier.

Lu Bai glanced over out of the corner of his eye.

He saw that the jade of the Yin Soul Compass had turned as black as ink, with not a trace of its original color visible!

"What level of evil spirit is this?"

Lu Bai asked.

"A Fierce Ghost!"

He Liangzhi’s heart sank as he spoke, his voice heavy.

The power of a Fierce Ghost was comparable to that of a True Master Golden Core!

Against a Fierce Ghost, their chances of survival were slim.

Lu Bai’s expression remained calm, but inwardly, he was delighted.

’Another job has come knocking.’

’With Black Dog and Ah Ming, the Cyan Cloud Sword, the Five Emperors Coins in hand, and the power of the Ancient Mirror, I can even take on a Fierce Ghost!’

’Following the Evil Extermination Bureau was the right call after all.’

Lu Bai activated his Eye of Illusion, peering into the white fog around them.

The Eye of Illusion could see through evil spirits and ghosts, but it couldn’t penetrate the white fog, limiting his range of vision.

Suddenly, an extremely abrupt strain of music pierced through the dense fog, drifting toward them erratically.

The music was utterly bizarre, a tangled mess of two completely different melodies woven together!

On one side was the sharp, piercing, and joyous sound of a suona horn.

It seemed to be playing a wedding procession tune, but the melody was so cheerful it bordered on madness.

The tempo was inhumanly fast, exuding a hysterical, demonic energy.

Lu Bai felt his heart race and his blood churn, finding it difficult to compose himself.

’What the hell is this?’

On the other side was a low, mournful funeral dirge, like a sorrowful lament.

The sound of the xiao flute whimpered, heavy with the air of death. Every note dragged out with a long tail, filled with despair and lifelessness.

Just hearing it was enough to make one’s heart fill with sorrow and grief.

One joyous, one funereal—two types of music that should have been completely incompatible were now blending together in a grotesque fashion.

They formed an indescribable, scalp-numbing, and bizarre symphony that echoed through the dead-silent fog of the desolate mountain night.

"This... this is..."

He Liangzhi seemed to have realized something, and his face changed drastically!

Even back in the Bai Clan Ancestral Hall, Lu Bai had never seen such a look of utter terror on He Liangzhi’s face. He was as pale as a sheet, and his voice trembled.

At his feet, Ah Ming suddenly became agitated and restless. It flapped its wings, its Heavy Pupils flashed, and the long, three-colored tail behind it flickered in and out of sight.

Lu Bai’s heart skipped a beat.

’Just two strains of music are enough to make Ah Ming almost reveal its true form!’

’Could this Fierce Ghost really be that powerful?’

Ah Ming was equivalent to a Tier Three Exotic Beast, possessing power on par with the Golden Core Realm.

It also naturally countered evil spirits and ghosts, so logically, it shouldn’t be this agitated.

Lu Bai glanced at Black Dog.

Black Dog was relatively calm, but it had, after all, expended a great deal of energy using its Magic Technique in the Bai Clan Ancestral Hall. It was currently listless and not in good shape.

Not daring to be careless, Lu Bai slowly drew his Cyan Cloud Sword and clutched a White Emperor Mother Coin in his left hand. Just as he was about to ask He Liangzhi about the origin of the music, his gaze suddenly froze.

In the distance to their left, the white fog churned violently, suddenly stained a bizarre, vivid red!

A wedding procession of several dozen people slowly emerged from the red fog.

At the front of the procession were several young boys and girls with deathly pale faces and ghastly rouge smeared on their cheeks. Dressed in bright red wedding clothes, they hopped about stiffly.

They weren’t scattering flower petals, but white paper money cut into the shape of Copper Coins, which fluttered through the air!

The sedan carriers following behind were all dressed in Red Robes, but they wore wide-brimmed hats that concealed their faces. Their figures were ethereal, their feet barely touching the ground.

They carried an incredibly lavish, bright red bridal sedan, its curtains tightly shut.

But a figure wearing a phoenix crown and wedding veil could be vaguely seen sitting inside, though it was ramrod straight and motionless.

"A Ghost Bride?"

Lu Bai was startled.

The Hundred Ghosts Record described this type of evil spirit.

This kind of Ghost Bride was usually a bride who had died on her wedding day.

Because she died on a day of great celebration and was wearing red at the time of her death, her resentment would be extremely potent, making it easy for her to transform into a Fierce Ghost!

Behind the wedding procession, several more people carried trays laden with steaming hot food and wine.

The aroma that Lu Bai and He Liangzhi had smelled was drifting from this very food and wine!

Aside from the crazed, piercing sound of the suona, every "person" in the entire wedding procession was utterly silent.

Their movements were perfectly synchronized, yet incredibly stiff.

They exuded a thick aura of death, like a troupe of puppets controlled by strings, performing a terrifying and grotesque show.