Married to the Grim Reaper Against My Will

Lord Xuanyang is back

When Ji Mian arrived at Zhengyang Palace, she was startled by the devastation before her and stood at the threshold, hesitant to step inside.

The magnificent and solemn hall now resembled a war zone.

The main gate plaza, once paved with jade, was now riddled with craters, and fine dust swirled in the air. One of the stone lions flanking the main gate was missing a paw, the other was headless, its round stone head lying at Ji Mian's feet.

Ji Mian stood at the entrance, her heart filled with dread, staring wide-eyed inside. With a crash, the eaves of the right-hand roof collapsed, raising a cloud of dust.

"Madam!" Xiao Zhi's voice rang out, and then she ran out of the main hall, "The Divine Lord has returned."

Ji Mian's mind went blank, as if she had been punched. She could barely think, her only instinct being to escape. She took off running towards the exit of Zhengyang Palace.

The floor-length hem of her dress was caught on the stone lion's head, and with a ripping sound, the light gauze was torn.

Ji Mian also came to her senses and stopped in her tracks. If Lord Xuanyang really wanted to capture her, where could she escape to?

Xiao Zhi was already in front of her. "Madam, your dress."

"N-no, it's alright." Ji Mian's face was deathly pale, and she stammered, "Where is the Divine Lord?"

"He left, a quarter of an hour ago."

Ji Mian breathed a heavy sigh of relief, cold sweat soaking her back. She felt a sense of relief, as if she had survived a disaster, and almost collapsed to the ground. Xiao Zhi helped her inside, explaining, "The Divine Lord has returned. He said he had something to discuss with the Ancestors, but I don't know what they said. Anyway, they started fighting in the Shouyang Palace, and then the Divine Lord came back and threw a tantrum..." She paused, glancing at Ji Mian's expression, and cautiously added, "It seems to be about Madam..."

Ji Mian was completely relieved. It seemed Lord Xuanyang hadn't given in yet, but his temper was truly terrible, causing chaos in the Heavenly Palace.

The next day, Ji Mian went to the Shouyang Palace to pay her respects and learned what Lord Xuanyang had been up to the previous day.

After paying her respects, the three Ancestors asked her to stay, saying they had something to discuss. But after waiting a while, the three elders looked at each other, unsure how to begin. Shouxiangjun, somewhat impatient, glared at Shouanjun. "Speak up! You're usually so talkative!"

"How can I say anything? I'm not as shameless as Jiang Xuanyang."

"You're saying my great-grandson is shameless?"

"I'm saying my own great-grandson!"

The two white-bearded old men looked like they were about to start arguing again.

"Fine, fine, I'll speak. You two shut up."

Jiang Shouya looked at Ji Mian with some difficulty and beckoned, "Good girl, come to Grandma."

Ji Mian walked over and stood beside her with her head bowed.

"Xuanyang came back yesterday. He's been unhappy about this marriage. We've all been trying to persuade him. You should know the reasons behind this..."

Jiang Shouya, adhering to the habits of the ancients, spoke tactfully and indirectly, pulling Ji Mian aside for a long time before finally explaining the situation. Jiang Xuanyang vehemently opposed the marriage. Originally, he was going to confront the three elders head-on, but this time, he somehow came up with another plan. The witch's resurrection relied on the power of the Grim Reaper; her soul was unstable and needed constant nurturing.

Jiang Xuanyang was willing to provide the power to nurture her soul, but that was all. He absolutely refused to acknowledge the marriage, but he could help the witch fully resurrect, and then the Grim Reaper lineage would owe the witch clan nothing. From then on, they would go their separate ways, with clear boundaries.

Then the three elders asked, what if they had to consummate the marriage to break the curse?

Jiang Xuanyang scoffed, "Am I some kind of stud pig? Give me a woman and I'll sleep with her?"

And unsurprisingly, he was promptly beaten up by the three elders.

Jiang Shouya, recounting Jiang Xuanyang's despicable deeds, felt increasingly guilty towards Ji Mian. She stroked Ji Mian's hand comfortingly, "Mianmian, don't worry, I'll definitely get justice for you. I won't let Xuanyang bully you."

Ji Mian pursed her lips, mustering her courage to say, "Maybe, maybe..."

She hesitated for a long time before finally uttering the shameful term, "Maybe my husband is right."

No need, no need for intimacy.

She didn't dare say the rest of the sentence, only calling him "husband," her ears turning bright red. But in front of her elders, she dared not disobey the rules.

Jiang Shouya looked up at her; the girl's face was flushed, her eyes glistening with shyness, giving her a somewhat aggrieved look. Jiang Shouya's eyes were full of pity. "That's true, but you and Xuanyang are already married. Everyone in the Three Realms knows you're Xuanyang's wife. If we do as he says, nurturing your soul for three years and then severing ties, you'll become a discarded woman."

Although the elders accepted some modern things, having lived for thousands of years, their feudal and conservative ideas were deeply ingrained, and they took the matter of being a "discarded woman" very seriously.

Ji Mian didn't care. In this era, divorce was as common as eating. It was just that she had never even been in a relationship, and suddenly facing the topic of becoming a "discarded woman" was still quite a shock.

"I'm okay," Ji Mian whispered, comforting Jiang Shouya.

Jiang Shouya sighed. "For now, this is all we can do. Xuanyang is stubborn; we can't persuade him in a short time. There's plenty of time; I'll try to persuade him slowly."

As they were talking, Jiang Shouan brought over a palm-sized bronze cauldron. “Mianmian, we need to take one of your souls and one of your spirits and place them into the Soul-Nurturing Cauldron. From now on, Xuanyang will directly inject his power into it to nourish your soul.”

Ji Mian stared at the bronze cauldron with some fear.

“It’s alright, you won’t feel anything. But your yang energy might be a little weak, like you humans say, a low flame, making you more susceptible to ghosts.” Sensing Ji Mian’s stiffness, Jiang Shouya quickly reassured her, “Just don’t go out at midnight. I’ll give you a pill in a bit; taking it will calm your soul, and you’ll be back to normal.”

Ji Mian nervously swallowed, but still obediently nodded.

Jiang Shouan held the bronze cauldron, watching her. Jiang Shouxiang made a few hand gestures, and Ji Mian felt a warm, gentle force flow into her body. Then, she saw two flame-like lights, one red and one blue, float out from between her eyebrows and her shoulder, respectively, and then enter the bronze cauldron.

Back in the Zhengyang Palace, Ji Mian could see Xuanyang Jun’s true form everywhere she looked. Portraits, statues, screens—they were everywhere. At first glance, seeing them still sent a shiver down her spine, an overwhelming sense of fear. But upon closer inspection, they didn't seem so terrifying anymore.

Having just experienced the soul-taking incident, Ji Mian looked at the portrait of Xuanyang Jun in the hall, her feelings a complex mix. In a sense, Xuanyang Jun was now supporting her; her body, her livelihood, even her soul—all depended on him.

Looking at the still-horrifying portrait with its blue face and fangs, she couldn't resist taking a step forward and gently touching it with her finger.

Xiao Luo appeared out of nowhere. Seeing her action, she exclaimed joyfully, "Madam!"

Ji Mian recoiled in fright, looking helplessly at the beaming Xiao Luo.

Xiao Luo, her face beaming with pride, almost overflowing with smugness, said, "Madam, don't you also think our God-King is exceptionally majestic and powerful?"

"..."

Ji Mian trembled slightly. "It's...it's alright."

Xiao Luo's eyes widened in disbelief. "The God-King is so strong, isn't he handsome? This level is just 'alright'?"

"Handsome." Ji Mian's smile was almost uncontrollable.

Their aesthetic sense was probably different from humans'; she tried to respect the different aesthetics of different groups.

"Right? Especially handsome!" Xiao Luo's eyes crinkled with laughter, beaming. "Next time I'll tell the God-King that Madam thinks he's especially handsome."

Ji Mian was shocked. There was really no need!

"No need."

"Why?"

Ji Mian felt guilty and whispered, "I'll tell him myself."

Because of the lie, her face turned bright red, and her voice became extremely soft. To Xiao Luo, it seemed only that his wife was shy, and that she had fallen for the God-King.

He was overjoyed. From the beginning, he had felt that the God-King, so majestic and awe-inspiring, could easily captivate any female. And indeed, he was absolutely right! It seemed that the God-King and his wife's eternal union was just around the corner!

Xiao Luo secretly resolved that next time the God-King returned, he would definitely tell him about this. His wife was so wonderful; he would urge him to cherish her.