Chapter 62: The King of Hell’s Wedding (42)
Early the next morning, many viewers were already squatting in the livestream room, waiting.
“They’re here, they’re here!”
“Help, I’m honestly a little scared to watch.”
“The blade’s been hanging over our heads all day yesterday— is it finally going to fall today? Scared.jpg”
The atmosphere in the side hall was stagnant. Compared to yesterday, the number of players inside had been cut in half again. Only thirty or forty players remained now, and more than half of them were streamers.
Because his soul contract value had dropped too low, Fatty didn’t even dare to show up.
Yu Xingcao leaned in and said, “I’ve already asked around. No one completed the main quest this time. But the King of Hell’s wedding will still be held tonight. The veteran players said this kind of situation is pretty common—they just treat it like getting together for a meal.”
“I can’t go tonight,” Jian Yuntai said.
He Qingzhou joined the conversation as well. Hearing that, he froze for a moment and asked blankly, “What are you going to do tonight?”
Jian Yuntai lowered his eyes and said, “I’m going to break through the Third Taboo.”
“… ” He Qingzhou sucked in a sharp breath but didn’t say anything else. He simply patted Jian Yuntai on the shoulder and said, “Don’t worry. In this instance, you saved my two roommates. After you leave the instance, I’ll help take care of Chen Sanxian and Yu Xingcao.”
Yu Xingcao immediately objected, “I don’t need you to take care of me.”
He Qingzhou pretended not to hear him, his gaze still fixed on Jian Yuntai. “Have you already decided?”
“Mm.” Jian Yuntai nodded without hesitation.
The livestream viewers had been anxious the entire night. Even in the middle of the night, the public chat had been arguing about whether Jian Yuntai would betray Cui Yu. Now it was practically confirmed.
Quite a few viewers went pale on the spot.
“I knew Jian Dadan would make this choice. He doesn’t want to stay trapped in this instance for the rest of his life.”
“Oh my god… what about Cui Yu?”
“There’s really no solution to this. Even if Jian Dadan didn’t betray Cui Yu this time, so what? The main quest just won’t progress. The only option is the side route. Even if they loop again, they’ll still run into the weak point of the taboo against speaking. What then?”
“It’s the right choice. But actually seeing it still hurts… Sigh. This is why people say don’t develop feelings for NPCs. Once you do, nothing good comes of it. I don’t know whether Jian Dadan caught feelings, but I definitely fell hard for Cui Yu.”
“Same, sob… I can’t even imagine how Cui Yu is going to feel later. It’ll probably be no different from having his heart torn out.”
At noon, work at the Yin Law Division came to an end.
Under the complicated gazes of countless viewers, Cui Yu walked forward from the hall, bathed in brilliant light.
He walked toward the light and stopped in front of Jian Yuntai.
The corners of his lips curved slightly. His eyes were gentle, as if steeped in pure moonlight. “Were you waiting for me?”
“Mm…” Jian Yuntai nodded calmly.
Cui Yu smiled and said softly, “If I had known you were waiting, I would have dismissed the destined officials earlier.”
The ghost officials behind him were all sweating inwardly.
For a thousand years, Cui Yu had been a cold, distant immortal whom neither humans nor gods dared approach. Even after being demoted to the Underworld, he had maintained the temperament of his days as a high immortal. Yet in just these few days, the ghost officials had finally seen their Chief Judge Cui clearly.
This was probably what someone looked like when immersed in happiness.
Under the players’ gazes—like they were seeing off a warrior marching to his death—Jian Yuntai frowned slightly and followed Cui Yu outside.
…
…
Kong Cave was the greatest forbidden land in the Underworld.
It was said that after Cui Yu, once a high immortal, had been demoted, he had also drawn down heavenly punishment. The gods and buddhas, either to punish him or suppress him, had moved the entire Chenyue Ridge from the Heavenly Court down here.
Since it was a forbidden land, outsiders were naturally not allowed to enter.
Hundreds of ghost officials guarded the area. They had long heard that Cui Yu would be coming today and were filled with astonishment.
“In a thousand years, Chief Judge Cui has never once set foot here—let alone brought an outsider!”
“Tsk, don’t talk nonsense. Lord Xiao Jian is Chief Judge Cui’s destined person. He’s not some outsider.”
“After guarding this place for so many years, I’ve actually gotten curious. Isn’t this just an ordinary palace? Why is it considered the greatest forbidden land in the Underworld?”
“I heard the restrictions from Chenyue Ridge Palace are still intact. Only Chief Judge Cui can enter. We’re basically guarding it for nothing. Without him leading the way, no one else can get in.”
“Not even the King of Hell?”
“Of course not. You’d die! Back when the gods and buddhas pulled Chenyue Ridge Palace down into the Underworld, they specifically said this forbidden land was set up for Chief Judge Cui to undergo his love tribulation. Anyone else who forced their way in with secret treasures would suffer the agony of ten thousand ants devouring their soul.”
Hearing this, the ghost officials were even more shocked.
“Chief Judge Cui hasn’t passed his love tribulation yet?”
“Whether he has or not doesn’t matter anymore. Those tribulations were meant for ascending to higher immortal ranks. Chief Judge Cui isn’t an immortal anymore.”
As they were talking, a roaring sound came from the distance. From afar, ghostlyfires could be seen baring their fangs and claws. A ghost carriage sped over and stopped abruptly before the gathered ghost officials.
With a sharp screech, the officials stopped talking at once. They bowed deeply in greeting, lowering their heads as far as they could.
Still, quite a few curious little imps secretly peeked up from within the crowd.
Tap. Tap.
A black boot stepped out of the ghost carriage. Then cascades of magnificent white hair flowed down like a waterfall, shimmering in the light. Many of the ghost officials were seeing Cui Yu’s face clearly for the first time and were stunned on the spot.
In the past, when they saw him from afar, their attention had always gone to that head of white hair—said to be the inheritance of the Moon Goddess. But now that they were close enough to see clearly, they realized that the famed Chief Judge Cui of the Underworld possessed the bearing of a true immortal.
It was impossible to describe in words—
With just one glance, you would feel that he was someone you could never approach, no matter how hard you tried in your entire lifetime.
And such a Chief Judge Cui… had actually fallen in love?
Recalling the many rumors circulating in the Underworld recently, the ghost officials exchanged looks, disbelief in their eyes.
What kind of person could make someone like this—an immortal as pure and distant as the bright moon—descend into the mortal world and be moved?
More and more ghost officials quietly raised their heads, their gazes burning with curiosity and anticipation as they looked toward the ghost carriage.
Cui Yu stood upright beside the carriage shaft. He lifted his hand, and soon a pale, slender hand rested upon it.
That hand was luminously fair. Beneath the cool white skin, faint blue veins were visible, glittering under the sunlight like cold diamonds. The youth lifted the front of his robe and leapt down.
Dust scattered into the air.
At such close range, one could see the smiling eyes beneath his sharp brows. Though he looked young, those eyes seemed to hold all the years and the galaxy within them—so stunning that people could not help but stare for a long time.
If Cui Yu was the type of person you would feel you could never approach in a lifetime, then Jian Yuntai was the kind of person who made you feel that perhaps, after enduring countless hardships and being wounded all over, you might be able to approach him—
But you would never be able to keep him.
It was as if one were destined to become only a fleeting passerby in his life, and in the endless years to come, could only remember that dazzling stretch of time.
“I can get down by myself,” Jian Yuntai said helplessly, automatically ignoring the various looks from the surrounding ghost officials. “No need to help me.”
Cui Yu smiled faintly. “Let’s go.”
“…”
After letting out a sigh, Jian Yuntai could only follow after him.
Cui Yu was good in every way—except that when it came to small matters like this, he was almost excessively attentive. Getting off the carriage, eating, getting back on… in all these little things, he took too much care of him.
It was as if he were afraid Jian Yuntai might trip or go hungry.
On one hand, Jian Yuntai had grown up rough and independent; he simply wasn’t used to being constantly looked after. On the other hand, if it was something he could handle himself, he absolutely didn’t want to rely on anyone else.
Yet no matter how many times he had told Cui Yu, the man would always smile gently and agree—only to unconsciously start taking care of him again the next moment.
It was precisely these small things, piling up one by one, that gradually lowered Jian Yuntai’s psychological defenses. By now, he would only offer a verbal reminder, knowing full well there was nothing he could do about Cui Yu.
Long after the two of them had entered the hall, the ghost officials standing outside finally snapped back to their senses.
“I think I understand now why the Chief Judge fell in love…”
“As expected of the destined person personally selected by the Record of Soul Contracts! Chief Judge Cui and Lord Xiao Jian are truly well matched!”
“Wasn’t it said in the Underworld that the Chief Judge Cui was cold and emotionless? The way he helped Lord Xiao Jian down just now—there was nothing cold about that. Seems like rumors really are just rumors.”
“Why don’t you take a look at how he treats us?”
“…You’re right. Lord Xiao Jian even scolded Chief Judge Cui when he got off the carriage just now. Truly, the favored ones have nothing to fear!”
The last time Jian Yuntai had come to Chenyue Palace had been in a dream.
Back then, stepping on floating clouds, everything had felt unreal. This time, with his feet firmly on the ground, it somehow still felt like he was walking through a dream.
He followed Cui Yu inside.
The furnishings of the palace were exactly as they had been a thousand years ago—unchanged in the slightest. Even the wine cup that had once been knocked over remained where it had fallen. Looking up, he saw overturned tables, gauzy curtains torn down, and in the corners, spiderwebs twisting silently in the shadows.
“So many years have passed—no one’s cleaned this place?” Jian Yuntai glanced sideways and asked in confusion.
Cui Yu replied flatly, “No one lives here anymore.”
Jian Yuntai disagreed. “But this used to be your home. Even if no one lives here now, it’s still a home.”
“You care a lot about the word ‘home,’ don’t you?” Cui Yu was as perceptive as ever; in just a few words, he had struck straight to the point.
Jian Yuntai raised his brows sharply and coughed lightly before answering, “I suppose so. I’m a pretty home-loving person.”
Cui Yu said, “If you miss home, in a few days I can take you back for a visit. If you truly long for it, I can even relocate the palace to Shandu.”
“… ”
Where on earth was Shandu???
It took Jian Yuntai a few seconds to realize that Shandu must have been part of his character background in this instance.
His first home had been the orphanage in the slum district. His second home had been in Shandu—no, wait! It had been the dormitory building of the Livestream Team. Even if he wanted to lie down and do nothing at home, he definitely wouldn’t be doing it in Shandu.
He immediately said, “That won’t be necessary. I’m used to drifting. Wherever I sleep becomes my home.”
Cui Yu smiled, then spoke with solemn sincerity, “In the future, you won’t need to drift anymore. I can be your shelter from the storm. Wherever you want to settle, I will build a palace there for you from the ground up.”
“……”
If those words had been spoken in the real world, Jian Yuntai would have nodded like mad and retired from the Livestream Team on the spot. But this was the world of an instance. So he merely smiled and deliberately changed the subject. “How many people have you said that to before?”
Cui Yu froze for a moment, then let out a helpless laugh.
After taking a few steps, he looked at Jian Yuntai with an expression of grievance. “This is the greatest injustice I’ve ever suffered. Even when I went to the Southern Heavenly Gate to plead for the Record of Soul Contracts, I didn’t feel such bitterness and sorrow.”
Jian Yuntai burst out laughing at that.
Meanwhile, the livestream viewers felt as though a giant blade hung over their heads, yet they were still stretching their necks to lick sugar from the edge of it:
“Waaah, don’t go any further inside! Just chat at the doorway! I’d watch you talk there for the rest of your lives!”
“I’m so scared this is going to become a self-fulfilling prophecy… This was where the darkest event since Cui Yu could remember happened— Moon Goddess’s suicide. I feel like something even darker is about to happen.”
“??? Sis, why are you stabbing us like this!”
“What on earth is Jian Dadan thinking? I want to pry open his head and look inside. He can still joke and laugh like nothing’s wrong. If it were me, I’d be crying as I walked.”
“Fun fact: In the first instance, when Jian Dadan blocked the enemy inside a tide of zombies, he was joking and laughing too.”
“Damn it. As expected of someone from the Xiang’an Team—they’re all ruthless. Even if Jian Dadan transferred to the Zhao’an Team now, he was once part of Xiang’an. Smiling while killing? Child’s play.”
At first, the two of them had still been chatting casually. But the deeper they went into Chenyue Palace, the heavier the atmosphere became.
Eventually, Cui Yu could no longer speak at all. His face turned pale, and faint beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. Thud. Thud. Thud.—each step felt as though it were crushing down on the tip of his heart, tearing open old scars bit by bit until they bled anew.
They passed through the long corridor.
The candle stands from years ago were still embedded in the walls. The flames had long since gone out, and the melted wax had hardened into grotesque shapes. Sunlight streamed in through the windows, casting the shadows of the wax onto the walls. With every step, it felt as though they were being swallowed by new monsters.
Though the place was bright and grand, magnificently illuminated, it still gave the unsettling sensation of walking inside a tomb.
Finally, they stopped in front of Moon Goddess’s door.
The door was tightly shut.
Cui Yu pressed his lips together and stared at it—the carved beams and painted rafters, the dust gathered on the wooden frame. In an instant, unpleasant memories surged back.
Before any sorrow could show on his face, Jian Yuntai stepped half a pace forward and pushed the door open with a loud bang. Then he turned back in confusion and said, “The door opens. I saw you standing there so long—I thought it was locked.”
Cui Yu looked at Jian Yuntai blankly. After a long moment, he shook his head with a smile. “Do you want to see my weakness?”
“Yes.” Jian Yuntai nodded.
Cui Yu lifted his foot and stepped forward.
The moment he crossed into the room—
Suddenly! Wild winds howled outside the doors and windows. From the end of the corridor came a roaring gale. Dust swirled violently inside the room, and towering flames shot several meters into the air.
Jian Yuntai was startled. Instinctively, he turned and bolted toward the doorway. He had already rushed several steps outside before realizing Cui Yu hadn’t followed. Startled, he turned back—
Cui Yu stood inside the doorway. Jian Yuntai stood outside.
Between them lay a thin, clearly defined barrier of light—just like the barrier Moon Goddess had set when she took her own life.
“Ahhh! That’s why this barrier looked so familiar! I just remembered—when Cui Yu first tried to send word, he didn’t make it in time. Moon Goddess set up a barrier before killing herself. Cui Yu stood outside it, watching her vomit blood and die, but no matter what he did, he couldn’t break through.”
“Now that you say that, I remember too. His hands were covered in blood back then. That scene really stuck with me.”
“…I understand now what his weakness is. Moon Goddess set up the barrier to trap herself, but unintentionally trapped Cui Yu in it for thousands of years. I thought after using the Time Artifact to change fate, he had already forgotten about it. I never imagined he would…”
“Changing fate can’t erase trauma. The first time he tried to send word, Moon Goddess never even listened to his explanation. She died full of resentment. That sense of despair and helplessness Cui Yu must have felt then—just thinking about it is terrifying.”
Anything the viewers could understand, Jian Yuntai naturally grasped as well.
Within the barrier, radiant light surged and shimmered. The clinking of wine cups intertwined with the chaotic strains of stringed instruments. The blazing flames that burned high carried no warmth, yet they looked terrifying all the same. Before long, the faded image of a woman appeared beside the table. With a blank expression, she tore apart the chronicle booklet in her hands.
She raised her hand and tossed the shredded paper into the fire.
That woman was Moon Goddess.
The viewers were shocked one after another. Jian Yuntai was somewhat surprised too, but after watching for a few seconds, he quickly calmed down.
It was the Moon Goddess—and yet it was not.
Though lifelike, the hem of her skirt was slightly transparent. It was clear that this was only an old residual image.
Cui Yu pressed his lips together and stared fixedly at the apparition, his face growing even paler. Only after a long while did the image finally fade. Cui Yu slowly turned around and, without saying a word, looked at Jian Yuntai.
“…?” Jian Yuntai was baffled. “The old image has disappeared. Why aren’t you coming out?”
Cui Yu replied calmly, “I can’t get out.”
“???” The residual image had vanished, yet the barrier had not. Jian Yuntai was stunned. He immediately stepped into the barrier, grabbed Cui Yu’s hand, and pulled him outward with force.
This was the first time Jian Yuntai had ever taken the initiative to hold Cui Yu’s hand, yet it happened under circumstances like these. He himself stepped out of the barrier smoothly, but Cui Yu was unable to pass through it.
Separated by the barrier, Jian Yuntai snapped angrily, “If you knew you couldn’t come out, why did you go in?!”
The anger on Jian Yuntai’s face was vivid and unmistakable. Cui Yu watched him—and unexpectedly, the corners of his lips curved into a faint smile.
He flipped his hand upward. The wind howling through the corridor intensified, lifting Cui Yu’s white hair before letting it fall softly again.
“This is my weakness.”
At the end of the corridor, a light flickered. Cui Yu’s face was illuminated, and Jian Yuntai instinctively turned to look.
A drop of scarlet blood hovered in midair, encircled by golden threads. The drop seemed alive, frantically struggling to break free from the golden prison. Yet the threads bound it tightly, refusing to let it escape.
At that moment, Cui Yu’s voice came again from behind him. “Back then, the gods and Buddhas drew the blood from my heart and forcibly created this weakness. They used the memory I feared most to construct an illusion. They said that one day I would meet someone—only he would be able to untie the golden threads and lead me out of the endless abyss.”
When Jian Yuntai looked back, he saw the faint smile still lingering in Cui Yu’s eyes. “They also said this would be the love tribulation destined for me. My parents failed to overcome theirs. They hoped I would not follow in their footsteps.”
After a pause, Cui Yu said, “That person could only be you.”
The moment his words fell, countless golden threads suddenly surged through the room. Like the threads binding that drop of heart’s blood, they lashed outward and climbed up along Cui Yu’s body.
Bit by bit, they bound him.
Then they tightened abruptly.
Cui Yu let out a muffled groan. A thin sheen of sweat gathered on his forehead. At last, unable to endure it, he dropped heavily to one knee with a thud.
“Go and try,” he said, lifting his face with difficulty, encouraging him.
“…………”
Jian Yuntai did not say a single word. He immediately turned and ran quickly toward the end of the corridor.
The scarlet drop of blood spun before his eyes. A fierce wind swept his bangs back from his forehead. The golden threads were tangled and razor-sharp, making it nearly impossible to find a place to start.
But to Jian Yuntai, this was not a problem at all. He did not fear pain—let alone golden threads.
Even if blades were crisscrossing before him, he would still dare to reach out.
His expression unchanged, Jian Yuntai was just about to tear the golden threads apart by force when his hand suddenly paused, his fingertips curling slightly.
【Player Side Quest Updated】
【Third Taboos of Yin Officials: Do Not Speak of Weakness】
【Cui Yu’s weakness is his love tribulation. The player must tighten the golden threads and trap the heart’s blood. In doing so, Cui Yu will not participate in the next instance round and will be imprisoned within the Chenyue Palace for all eternity.】
【Reward for this quest: 60 Soul Contract Points]
【Reward for this quest: 15 days of survival time]
“!!!”
Jian Yuntai froze completely, his lips parted in shock. He did not even dare to turn around and look at Cui Yu.
※※※
In the main hall of the King of Hell.
Lanterns and colored lights hung everywhere, red silk draped across the ground. All the players had gathered together, sitting stiffly at their tables. Quite a few people—including Sun Bin—had their Soul Contract Points drop below zero. Inside the hall, they displayed all kinds of bizarre behavior, babbling foolishly and unable to form complete sentences.
“Why isn’t the King of Hell here?” Fatty looked around and asked Yu Xingcao curiously.
Yu Xingcao replied, “Are we that close?”
“???” Fatty shot him an enormous eye roll, muttered “stingy bastard” under his breath, then turned to ask He Qingzhou.
He Qingzhou said, “Last round you were part of the dowry, so you didn’t attend the banquet and wouldn’t know. The King of Hell only comes out at night. After saying a few words, the round restarts.”
Fatty asked again, “Where’s Jian Dadan?”
He Qingzhou answered, “He went to clear the Third Taboos of Yin Officials. In a while, Cui Yu is going to be backstabbed.”
Fatty: “…………”
After staring blankly for a long time, Fatty said in shock, “Jian Dadan is leaving this instance? Why didn’t he tell me?!”
He Qingzhou glanced at Fatty and comforted him, “It’s not that he didn’t treat you like a brother. Jian Yuntai probably didn’t want to end up like Lin Fuxue, so he was in such a hurry to leave. He already told me to look after you as much as I could…”
Before he could finish speaking, Fatty slapped his thigh and said, “That’s not it! I was going to ask him to delete the movies on my hard drive—I forgot to tell him.”
He Qingzhou froze. “…?”
Fatty clutched his head in regret, annoyed. “I should’ve told him the day before yesterday. I don’t even know how much longer I’ll be trapped in here—I might even die inside. Those movies—after a streamer dies, the Livestream Team checks and inventories their belongings. I don’t want to hand over the little films I painstakingly collected!”
“…………” For the first time, He Qingzhou had no idea how to respond.
Yu Xingcao, sitting nearby, let out a scoff and said, “I thought you didn’t want people to know how sleazy you were in private. Turns out you just didn’t want to share your resources. Relax. Since you’ve said it now, Jian Yuntai will still see it even after he leaves the instance.”
Fatty immediately relaxed. Then he said to the air, “Dadan’er, my password is six sixes—help me delete it.”
Everyone was both exasperated and amused by him. After waiting for quite a while, Fatty frowned and said, “I still feel like something’s off. Last round there were lots of Ten Halls imps here. Why can’t we see a single one this time?”
He Qingzhou looked around and only then noticed the anomaly. “You’re right. The Ten Halls imps always follow the King of Hell. Why aren’t they here waiting in advance?”
As they looked at one another in confusion, a solemn female voice came from the side. Cha Huafeng said in a low voice, “The King of Hell isn’t in the main hall.”
“???” Hearing this, everyone grew even more puzzled.
If the King of Hell wasn’t in the main hall to receive the bride, then where was he?
※※※
Compared to the relatively calm bullet comments in the other streamers’ rooms inside the hall, Jian Yuntai’s livestream was utter chaos:
“Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit! I finally get why one player corresponds to one NPC. If you clear the level, these NPCs will have their weakness severed and be dealt with in one go!”
“Trapped forever in the place where his mother died—my god… How despairing must Cui Yu have felt? What’s even more despairing is that the one who trapped him was the lover he trusted most.”
“If he tore apart the golden threads, he could help Cui Yu overcome his love tribulation. If he tightened them, he could clear the instance. I’m covering my eyes—I don’t dare to watch.”
“Do you remember when they entered the dream? The Divine Lord saw Jian Dadan and said Cui Yu’s new fate would involve someone cold and emotionless… Ahhh! The entire Underworld called Cui Yu cold and heartless, but only the Divine Lord used those words on Jian Dadan. I have a really bad feeling about this qaq.”
“Is this the classic trope—‘I thought you were the only light in my life, the one who would lead me out of the darkness. But instead, you pushed me into an even deeper abyss’?”
“Damn it, stop analyzing it. The more you analyze, the scarier it gets.”
Under countless anxious and trembling gazes, Jian Yuntai’s jaw tightened. He turned his head back almost inch by inch.
In the distant end of the corridor, Cui Yu was tightly bound by golden threads. In just a minute’s delay, those razor-sharp threads had shredded his outer robe into rags. Some of the threads coiled around his neck, just like the silver chains that had once strangled Moon Goddess.
It was as though the past was replaying itself in the same place.
Drip—
What broke the stalemate was a thin line of blood drawn across Cui Yu’s neck. As he bent forward, that drop of blood fell to the ground.
Perhaps sensing Jian Yuntai’s gaze, Cui Yu endured the pain and lifted his eyes. Blood mixed with a thin sheen of sweat flowed down, soaking into his tattered clothes. His whole body trembled faintly.
Even in such agony, he still did not want Jian Yuntai to worry about him. With effort, he forced out a gentle smile.
But when that smile met Jian Yuntai’s complicated gaze, it stiffened slightly. The unwavering light in Cui Yu’s eyes seemed to shatter from afar, cracks spreading across it in a fractured pattern.
“Wh-what’s wrong?”
“……”
Jian Yuntai did not say a word. He answered Cui Yu with action.
He gritted his teeth and turned back. A surge of violent intensity rose in his eyes.
“Ahhhhhhh!!!” Many viewers were so suffocated with tension that they couldn’t bear to watch, frantically spamming “ahhhh” in the bullet comments to steady their pounding hearts.
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Jian Yuntai suddenly raised his hand—
And reached toward the golden threads.
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