"Open it. Of course I'm opening it."
Bai Jue answered without hesitation.
Although he had already become a Festival Adept, having a cheat was undeniably better.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations on opening the Beginner Gift Pack!]
[You have obtained: Underworld Wardens ×10, Soul-Reaping Scythe!]
In an instant—
Within the pitch-black space, ten figures appeared before Bai Jue.
They wore official underworld robes, carried swords at their waists, and held soul-binding chains in their hands. Each of them dropped to one knee, clasped their fists, and spoke in unison with absolute reverence:
"Greetings, Master!"
At the same time, a sinister weapon manifested before Bai Jue.
It was a scythe steeped in deathly yin energy, its blade mottled with dark crimson stains like dried blood, radiating an overwhelming killing intent that surged skyward.
The moment Bai Jue grasped it, information about the weapon surfaced in his mind.
[Soul-Reaping Scythe: A weapon designed specifically to deal with evil entities. It has slain countless specters, is stained with yin-blood, and was forged from special materials. Before it, all wicked spirits will feel instinctive fear.]
[Underworld Warden: First-rank emissaries of the underworld, tasked with capturing and executing evil spirits. They possess innate suppression against such entities.]
"First-rank… not bad."
In this world, power levels were clearly defined. Newly awakened Festival Adepts were considered Apprentice-tier. Above that was First Rank, and the highest known level was Ninth Rank.
Bai Jue nodded in satisfaction.
Just after awakening, he had already obtained a powerful weapon and absolutely loyal subordinates. It felt… comfortable.
With a thought—
The weapon in his hand vanished.
Immediately after, his vision blurred.
When Bai Jue opened his eyes again, clarity returned—and he found himself back in the classroom.
But the moment he took in the scene before him, he couldn't help but freeze.
Inside the classroom, both students and the homeroom teacher looked pale, drenched in cold sweat.
Black mist still filled the entire room, though it was now rapidly flowing back into Bai Jue's body and dissipating. Outside the classroom, however, countless vengeful spirits continued to wander.
Among them, one figure stood out starkly.
She wore a vivid red wedding dress, complete with phoenix crown and embroidered robes. A red bridal veil covered her face, while long black hair flowed down her back.
Her aura was incomparably cold.
The moment Bai Jue opened his eyes, the vengeful spirits passed through the walls and gathered before him, hovering in midair as though paying homage to a king.
"Return."
Bai Jue's expression sharpened. Without hesitation, he raised his right hand and spoke.
Black mist surged from his palm, swirling into a vortex.
One by one, the vengeful spirits drifted forward with vacant eyes, plunging into the vortex and disappearing—returning to the dark space Bai Jue had previously been in.
If necessary, he could release them again at any time and make them fight for him.
This was the terrifying power of the Zhongyuan Festival—
absolute dominion over evil spirits.
More than a hundred vengeful spirits were absorbed in moments.
Only the woman in red remained.
She stepped forward slowly.
The entire classroom fell into absolute silence.
The pressure emanating from her body was overwhelming, like a mountain bearing down on everyone present, making it unmistakably clear—
She was a powerful existence.
A Ghost King.
Everyone in the classroom was an ordinary student. Even the girl who had awakened earlier stood pale-faced, fear filling her eyes, unable to move a single muscle.
Ghost Kings were nightmares for low-tier Festival Adepts.
Finally—
She stopped in front of Bai Jue.
There was less than ten centimeters between them.
The ghostly bride did not speak. Though the red veil obscured her face, Bai Jue could clearly feel her gaze resting upon him from beneath it.
"Student Bai Jue! She's trying to follow you!"
The homeroom teacher suddenly shouted from behind.
Though his face was tense, excitement burned in his eyes.
He had already confirmed Bai Jue's awakened ability—
Zhongyuan Festival.
One of the most powerful festivals known to humanity. Upon awakening it, one could command ten thousand ghosts, force evil spirits to fight on their behalf, and even form an underworld court within their body to house countless specters.
Simply put, the higher the Zhongyuan Festival Adept's realm and the deeper their festival power, the closer they came to being an army unto themselves.
Correspondingly, Zhongyuan Festival Adepts could contract evil spirits, which was an enormous boon to those spirits. When the Adept broke through realms, the overflow of festival power could nourish the contracted entity, allowing it to grow stronger.
Because of this, throughout history, awakenings of the Zhongyuan Festival often attracted evil spirits.
But the appearance of a Ghost King…
This was the first time.
At least, it was the first time the homeroom teacher had ever heard of such a thing.
Hearing this, Bai Jue looked at the ghostly bride and paused.
He hadn't expected her purpose to be… following him.
After understanding this, Bai Jue's lips curved into a smile.
"You want to follow me?"
No response.
The icy aura remained.
The ghost bride simply nodded slightly.
Bai Jue nodded in return.
"That's fine. But… may I lift your veil?"
He had no objection to her following him—it would only make him stronger and safer. He was simply curious about the face hidden beneath the red veil.
Nothing more.
In fact, he had already prepared himself to be refused.
Yet, to his surprise—
The ghost bride suddenly reached out with her slender, jade-like hand and grabbed Bai Jue's right hand, lifting it toward her veil.
Under Bai Jue's stunned gaze—
The red veil was lifted.
At that instant—
Countless mournful roars and shrill howls echoed around her.
Yin energy surged violently, engulfing her form.
The entire classroom's vision was swallowed by darkness.
Everyone's sight was obscured—
Everyone except Bai Jue.
Only he could see clearly.
Beneath the veil was a face of breathtaking beauty—delicate, flawless, and utterly devastating.
Yin energy swirled around Bai Jue as he stared at her, momentarily dazed.
After a long while, he finally came back to his senses and exclaimed softly,
"You… you're beautiful."
The ghost bride's gaze remained calm, without the slightest ripple.
She simply looked at him.
Bai Jue grinned, no longer hesitating.
He raised his right hand, palm open, as black mist slowly surged forth toward her.
At the sight of it, the ghost bride's eyes lit up.
She took a deep breath and absorbed the mist into her body. Then her form dissolved into black fog as well, shooting straight into Bai Jue's body.
From the moment the mist was absorbed—
The Zhongyuan Festival contract was complete.
Advance Chapters available on Patreon
https://patreon.com/RogerTL