Inside the hall, it was exceptionally quiet.
Su Jinxue stared at Zhang Mingyuan, who was lying stiffly on the ground, then looked at the golden marriage certificate floating in midair, and fell into a long silence.
A look of utter bewilderment appeared on her cold, otherworldly face.
Who am I? Where am I? What just happened?
After a long time, a terrifying pressure belonging to a Red Dust Immortal suddenly surged.
Su Jinxue's eyes turned cold. She pinched her fingers like a sword and mobilized the power of her extreme cold, frost, and samsara Great Dao with which she had attained her Dao, sweeping it fiercely toward that eyesore of a golden scroll! She did not believe there was anything in this world she could not erase.
However, the moment that immortal energy—capable of freezing samsara and locking time and space—made contact with the golden scroll, it was gently deflected by a grander, older, and more supreme power of the Great Dao laws, like spring snow meeting a warm sun.
The golden scroll remained completely undamaged, still shining brilliantly.
“...”
Su Jinxue's movements froze.
“To think it's not just the Heavenly Dao, but also the Great Dao laws...” she murmured to herself, a trace of frustration and panic that she herself hadn't noticed creeping into her voice.
Looking at Zhang Mingyuan, who was lying like a corpse on the ground, she felt, for the first time since ascending to immortality, that things had spiraled completely out of her control. She had only wanted to tease this bastard and scare him a little so he would learn his place.
How did it end up alarming the Heavenly Dao? And how did it even draw the Great Dao laws over?
Right then, Su Jinxue sensed countless auras flying toward the Immortal Lord's Peak at extreme speeds, their expressions undoubtedly filled with wild joy and curiosity. The leading aura belonged to the Grand Elder of the Myriad Snow Palace, who was currently excited beyond measure.
Trouble was coming.
Su Jinxue knit her brows tightly. She had to stabilize the situation before everyone arrived.
With a wave of her sleeve, a gentle stream of immortal energy lifted the unconscious Zhang Mingyuan from the ground, propping him up against a nearby jade chair in a proper sitting posture so he wouldn't look too disheveled.
Just as she finished, Zhang Mingyuan slowly woke up.
He opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was the golden marriage certificate right in front of him, the names “Su Jinxue” and “Zhang Mingyuan” on it making his eyes sting.
“It's a dream. It has to be a dream...” he muttered to himself, then pinched his thigh hard.
“Hiss—!”
The sharp pain cleared his mind completely, plunging him into absolute despair. This was not a dream!
“Su Jinxue!”
Zhang Mingyuan leaped up from his chair, pointing at the marriage certificate as he roared in agitation, “You crazy woman! Tell the Heavenly Dao right now that we were just joking! Tell it to take this thing back!”
He was truly terrified now. This thing was far more terrifying than being slashed a hundred times by Su Jinxue!
As the grand Sacred Lord of Qingyun Heaven, how could he be bound to a crazy woman for no rhyme or reason!
Su Jinxue glanced at him coldly. “This Seat has already tried. The Heavenly Dao does not permit it.”
She paused, adding in an emotionless voice, “Now, shut up. They're here. If you dare to spout nonsense in front of outsiders, don't blame me for executing you first and then applying to the Heavenly Dao to be a widow.”
“...”
Zhang Mingyuan was instantly choked up. Since when did this woman get so humorous?!
Right at that moment, the Grand Elder of the Myriad Snow Palace had already rushed into the hall with a group of high-ranking members.
“Immortal Lord!”
When they saw the Heavenly Dao marriage certificate exuding supreme majesty inside the hall, everyone involuntarily gasped. Immediately afterward, uncontrollable ecstasy erupted on their faces.
“Congratulations, Immortal Lord! Grand congratulations, Immortal Lord!”
The Grand Elder, a white-haired old woman, knelt on the ground in excitement, her voice trembling, “The union between the Immortal Lord and Sacred Lord Zhang is a match made in heaven, blessed by the Heavenly Dao itself! This is the greatest auspicious event our Myriad Snow Palace has seen in ten thousand years!”
“Congratulations, Immortal Lord! Grand congratulations, Immortal Lord!”
The elders and hall masters behind her all knelt in unison, their voices echoing through the hall.
Zhang Mingyuan's face turned green instantly.
He wanted to object, to shout, “We're not! We didn't!” but Su Jinxue's ice-cold, knife-like glare instantly pinned him down, forcing him to swallow all his words.
He could only force a stiff smile that looked worse than crying, nodding to the crowd. He looked as aggrieved as could be.
Su Jinxue maintained her usual cold, composed demeanor. Nodding slightly with an expressionless face, she calmly 'acknowledged' the matter, “Since it is the will of the Heavenly Dao, Mingyuan and I shall naturally obey. Announce this to the world.”
Mingyuan?
Hearing this name, goosebumps erupted all over Zhang Mingyuan's body, and his stomach churned violently. This crazy woman got into character way too fast!
With the Immortal Lord's personal confirmation, the entire hall completely erupted.
“Yes! We shall respectfully obey the Immortal Lord's decree!”
The Grand Elder immediately accepted the command, excitedly organizing personnel to prepare the grandest and most solemn Heavenly Marriage Ceremony in the history of the Xuanling Realm.
Soon, the news of the Heavenly Dao granting a marriage between the Immortal Lord and the Sacred Lord of Qingyun Heaven swept through the entire cultivation world like a category-twelve storm, centering around the Myriad Snow Palace.
...
Once the ecstatic crowd withdrew, silence returned to the hall.
Only the two of them were left in speechless confrontation, along with the still-glittering golden marriage certificate.
Zhang Mingyuan completely gave up struggling. Slumped in his chair like a puddle of mud, his eyes were lifeless, and he looked entirely drained of the will to live.
“Speak. What exactly do you want?” he asked weakly. “Since things have already come to this, do whatever you want with me.”
Looking at his resigned, broken-pot attitude, Su Jinxue actually found him slightly more tolerable.
She walked over and looked down at him, her cold voice devoid of any ripples, “From this day forth, you shall reside in This Seat's bedchamber.”
“What?!” Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, Zhang Mingyuan bristled again and leaped from his chair. “I'm not staying! I'm going back to my Qingyun Heaven!”
As he spoke, he turned and rushed toward the exit of the hall.
However, before he could even take two steps out the door, an irresistible invisible force yanked him backward!
Thud!
Zhang Mingyuan was thrown heavily back into the hall, left utterly dazed and disoriented. Both of them looked at the marriage certificate at the same time, only to see the golden light on it flicker slightly.
A sudden realization dawned in both of their minds simultaneously:
The Heavenly Dao marriage certificate was not just a proof; it was a mandatory contract. Before the marriage covenant was fully completed, the two of them could not be separated by a distance of more than a hundred yards!
Zhang Mingyuan was completely dumbfounded. Refusing to accept this, he scrambled up and ran in another direction.
The result was exactly the same. The moment he was about to cross the hundred-yard threshold, a tyrannical force yanked him back, causing him to crash even harder.
Lying on the ground in despair, he lifted his head, staring fixedly at Su Jinxue with an accusing, grief-stricken, and murderous gaze.
Seeing his pathetic state, the frozen corners of Su Jinxue's mouth actually curved up in an imperceptible arc.
This seemed to be the only thing that brought her a shred of satisfaction amidst all the ridiculous events that had transpired today.
“It seems the Heavenly Dao also wishes for us to cultivate our feelings early on,” Su Jinxue calmly stated this fact, which made him want to die.
Then, she commanded, “Men.”
Two female disciples, who had already been waiting outside the hall, entered upon hearing the call.
“Take Sacred Lord Zhang to This Seat's bedchamber to 'rest'.”
“Yes.”
The two female disciples walked up to Zhang Mingyuan and respectfully made a gesturing motion, 'inviting' the deathly pale Sacred Lord toward the direction of the Immortal Lord's bedchamber.
Su Jinxue followed behind. She had to, and she also wanted to take the opportunity to properly study what other tricks this unfortunate marriage certificate had up its sleeve.
However, just as Zhang Mingyuan was being 'escorted' to the entrance of the bedchamber, the golden scroll that had been following them suddenly shone with blinding light!
Below their names, a brand-new line of the divine script of the Great Dao slowly emerged.
【First Trial of the Heavenly Marriage: Concentric Lock.】
【Within three days, the two must achieve a connection of minds to trigger the resonance of the marriage certificate.】
【Failure will result in a joint punishment of their souls, both suffering heart-devouring pain.】
Rate on N.U.
