Chapter 230: Bridal Chamber Night
The red candles burned high, and the candle wax slowly piled up like small mountains.
Chen Chang'an stood by the bed, gripping the ceremonial steelyard. He felt even more nervous than he had ten years ago when battling the Immortal Venerable.
"I... I'm going in."
He took a deep breath and gently lifted the red veil embroidered with a golden phoenix—
The candlelight suddenly flowed down.
Ah'Li raised her eyes to meet his gaze. Her eyebrows were like distant mountains painted in ink, and the small mole at the corner of her eye was made even more vivid by the candlelight.
The pearl curtain hanging from the phoenix coronet gently swayed by her cheek, shattering the already faint moonlight, yet unable to conceal the usual coolness in her eyes.
Her lips were dotted with rouge, three shades more vibrant than usual. Yet, the corners of her lips were pressed into a straight line, making her look like a bride who had been forced to marry.
Chen Chang'an stared blankly for a moment.
"Seen enough?" Ah'Li suddenly spoke, her voice still calm, as if she were not sitting on a wedding bed in the bridal chamber, but rather standing in front of a general store stall asking him "Do you want a character divination or a fortune reading?"
He snapped back to reality, his earlobes burning, but he couldn't help but ask the question that had been bothering him the entire way: "What exactly is going on here?"
"Getting married, of course." Ah'Li gave him a strange look, raised her hand to remove the phoenix coronet that was making her neck ache, and casually placed it by the pillow. "Ten years ago, you said you wanted to marry me, so naturally, I had to prepare properly."
Seeing Chen Chang'an's eyes widen, she explained with rare patience: "I specifically researched the process of human marriage. The Six Rites—proposal, inquiring the name, confirmation of good fortune, conveying the betrothal gifts, request for the wedding date, and personal welcoming—not a single one was missed.
Aunt Zhang said the wedding clothes had to be embroidered with mandarin ducks, Uncle Wang insisted on an eight-bearer sedan chair, and even the wine cup for the nuptial wine was made by splitting a gourd as recorded in the Book of Rites..."
She pointed to the gourd ladle placed on the table, her tone carrying a hint of academic discussion: "However, I think using an ordinary wine cup would be the same, since we're going to drink it anyway."
Chen Chang'an listened, dumbfounded. It took him a long moment to regain his voice: "So... you actually didn't understand the meaning of marriage at first?"
But then he thought, this was the cultivation world after all. If Ah'Li had been cultivating since childhood, she might indeed not understand these mortal customs.
On the other side, Ah'Li folded her arms across her chest. The red sleeve slid down, revealing a section of her fair wrist: "Why should I understand human customs?"
She paused, then added, "But don't worry, I understand the general idea. The Demon Clan also has the matter of forming Dao companions, just in a different manner."
"For example?" He suddenly had an ominous premonition.
And why was she suddenly talking about the Demon Clan?
He felt his head buzzing, as if his brain wasn't processing fast enough.
Yet Ah'Li continued to talk eloquently—
"For example, when a powerful demon looks favorably upon a weaker one, they usually engage in a great battle." Her fingertip condensed a thread of spiritual energy, drawing sharp arcs in the air. "If they win, they simply knock the other unconscious and carry them back to their cave dwelling. I originally planned to follow the Demon Clan's custom..."
A chill ran down Chen Chang'an's spine.
Ah'Li scrutinized him thoughtfully: "But given our cultivation levels, if we truly fought, I'm afraid all living things in the vicinity would suffer. Therefore—" She pointed to the red candles and silk ribbons filling the room. "I chose the human method."
A candle flame burst with a pop.
The candlelight cast fragmented shadows across Ah'Li's cool, sharp features.
She sat properly on the wedding bed, her bridal makeup vibrant, yet still maintaining a calm and self-possessed demeanor, as if she were debating the Dao with someone rather than celebrating her wedding night.
Chen Chang'an looked at her, and all the rosy fantasies in his mind—the timid, blushing bride whispering "Husband," her fingertips trembling when he held her hand—all shattered into pieces with a crash, as if smashed by a heavy hammer.
He couldn't help but rub his forehead, his knuckles pressing against his temples, letting out a deep sigh.
Why did it feel like this marriage was actually a "humanitarian solution" reluctantly agreed to by a major figure of the Demon Clan to avoid widespread disaster?
Hmm? Demon Clan!!?
Even with his typically unconcerned nature, he began to feel the core of the problem.
The red candle suddenly popped a second time, and the candle flame flickered in Chen Chang'an's suddenly constricted pupils.
"Wait—" He abruptly straightened up, his voice changing pitch, "Why are you constantly talking about the Demon Clan? Why should we follow the Demon Clan's customs?"
Truthfully... he realized he had never actually learned anything about Ji Hongli's background.
A thought he'd never entertained before slithered up his spine like a venomous snake.
His fingertips unconsciously dug into his palm: "Ah'Li... were you raised in the Demon Clan?"
The bride sitting on the edge of the bed tilted her head. The pearl tassels of her hair ornament brushed the red mark on the side of her neck: "If you insist on an answer, I was actually raised in the human world."
The candlelight suddenly dimmed for a moment.
"Then..." Chen Chang'an gritted his teeth and directly asked the most terrifying question: "So, you are actually from the Demon Clan?"
Ah'Li suddenly smiled.
She scrutinized Chen Chang'an with some curiosity: "Didn't you know this from the beginning? Right when you knew that I was Ji Hongli."
Her fingertip traced the pattern of the twin lotus flowers on the pillow. Her voice held a hint of apology: "We even fought once back then. But after meeting again, we already agreed to let that matter go—after all, I had just broken the seal then, and my mind wasn't entirely clear."
"When did we fight?! When did we talk about this? Why do I have absolutely no memory of what you are saying, yet it... feels like it really happened." Chen Chang'an's voice turned a bit sharp.
Then, the next moment, he froze.
Countless clues suddenly exploded in his mind: —No wonder that black snake that attacked him never appeared again... —No wonder she always wore white, yet Xingcai called her "Little Black Teacher"... —No wonder she clearly hadn't noticed him in the cave that time, yet later said, "We have met"...
The red silk canopy suddenly became dazzling. Chen Chang'an stumbled back half a step, hitting the table and causing the nuptial wine gourd to roll halfway across the surface.
"So your true form is..."
"A snake?" Ah'Li finished lightly, curling her lips. Her red lips parted: "So... do you want to see it? Husband?"
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