Chapter 268: A Man and a Woman Alone

"Husband."

When Bai Chuchu saw Lu Bai, a faint smile appeared on her pale, beautiful face as she walked toward him.

Chen Shihu hadn’t quite dared to believe it at first.

How could this bizarrely powerful expert’s husband be Lu Bai, an Innate Martial Artist? It wasn’t until he heard Bai Chuchu call out that he was finally certain.

Even so, the situation still felt surreal.

’That kid Lu Bai has some unique tastes! Then again, his eye for quality isn’t bad. I wonder what tricks he used to marry such a powerful expert, and to have swindled the girl to this extent? She’s even willing to risk her life to snatch treasures for him.’

"Brother Chen, I... she is..."

Just as Lu Bai was trying to figure out how to explain, Chen Shihu waved his hand dismissively. "You two lovebirds can catch up. A short reunion is sweeter than a honeymoon, so I won’t get in your way. I’ll leave this place to you."

Lu Bai was so startled he nearly leaped up to cover Chen Shihu’s mouth.

He had been wondering how to get out of consummating the marriage, but he never expected Chen Shihu to suddenly say something like that.

Lu Bai didn’t dare look at Bai Chuchu, afraid she would pick up on Chen Shihu’s words and run with it.

Chen Shihu was quite direct. With that, he turned, lifted the tent flap, and left.

In the blink of an eye, only Lu Bai and Bai Chuchu remained in the tent.

A man and a woman, alone.

There was no retreat.

And then there was the promise he had made before...

Feeling a little guilty, Lu Bai coughed lightly and said, "This is a military camp. There are too many people and prying eyes. It might not be... convenient..."

"Husband, I’m fading," Bai Chuchu said softly.

Lu Bai’s heart skipped a beat. Forgetting everything else, he quickly looked at Bai Chuchu with a nervous expression and asked, "You’re injured? Is it serious?"

Bai Chuchu nodded, handing the Storage Pouch in her hand to Lu Bai. "I’ve already erased the Restriction on this Storage Pouch. You can claim ownership of it now."

Lu Bai took it instinctively.

As Lu Bai was already at the First-Layer Qi Refining, he subconsciously released a wisp of Spiritual Qi. He instantly established a connection with the Storage Pouch and could feel the vast space within.

However, there was nothing else in this space, only an ancient book.

The two words written on it were—Talisman Manual!

It was that peerless, long-lost Cultivation Technique!

’This is good stuff!’

"Husband, you should take this helmet too."

Bai Chuchu handed over the Black Helmet. "Unfortunately, that corpse got away, so I couldn’t snatch the Armor from its body. It’s all that man’s fault for slicing this Battle Armor in two with a single strike."

Lu Bai took the menacing-looking Black Helmet.

Back in the great tomb, Lu Bai had seen it with his own eyes: a Combat Corpse clad in black Armor, wearing a helmet that obscured most of its face, looking like a Demon God descended upon the world!

This Black Helmet was the very one from that Combat Corpse’s head.

The moment he touched it, viscous black tentacles emerged from the Black Helmet’s surface and stuck to Lu Bai’s palm.

Lu Bai clearly felt his blood essence stir restlessly, surging uncontrollably toward the Black Helmet!

"What is this thing?"

Having been drained of a large amount of blood essence by the Immortal Vine before, Lu Bai was now paranoid. With a flicker of his Divine Thought, he immediately tossed the Black Helmet into his Storage Pouch.

The blood essence in his body slowly calmed down again.

"What’s going on with your injury?"

Lu Bai’s heart tightened as he saw Bai Chuchu’s form grow increasingly illusory and indistinct.

In Bai Chuchu’s current state, consummating the marriage was clearly out of the question.

For him, this should have been a great relief.

But seeing how Bai Chuchu had ended up like this for his sake, his conscience wouldn’t let him rest, even if they weren’t truly husband and wife. He said worriedly, "How about I go get Brother Chen? Maybe he has a way to save you."

Bai Chuchu shook her head. "Only you can save me, Husband."

"Me?"

Lu Bai was taken aback. "I’m only in the Innate Realm. Do I have the ability to save you? What do you need me to do?"

Bai Chuchu said, "All you have to do is consummate our marriage."

Lu Bai: "..."

’We’ve come full circle, right back to this again.’

Seeing Lu Bai’s reaction, a flicker of disappointment crossed Bai Chuchu’s eyes, but she quickly followed it with a smile, pursing her lips. "Husband, I’m just teasing you."

"You..."

Lu Bai was a little speechless.

’This ghost girl is acting more and more human.’

"Husband, I have to sleep now."

Bai Chuchu’s voice grew fainter and fainter, and her entire form became hazy. "If you can collect more Ghost Souls, Husband, perhaps I can recover."

As her voice faded, Bai Chuchu’s form dissipated, transforming into a spectral gleam that shot into the Ancient Mirror on Lu Bai’s chest.

"Husband, the power of that True Dragon Heart is too strong. Your physical body can’t handle it. Be careful..."

And just like that, Bai Chuchu vanished before his eyes, leaving only a lingering voice.

Lu Bai stood stunned for a moment, then focused his Heart and Spirit on the Ancient Mirror to inspect it.

The mirror’s surface showed no change.

But deep within the Ancient Mirror, besides the few faintly glowing clusters of Soul Light, the Immortal Vine, and the True Dragon Heart, there was now an old Brass Candlestick with a dull, lightless surface.

Lu Bai was lost in thought.

’This Brass Candlestick wasn’t here before. Could it be something that manifested inside the mirror after Bai Chuchu entered?’

Moreover, Lu Bai discovered a strange phenomenon.

The True Dragon Heart pulsed with terrifying Blood Qi, yet deep within the Ancient Mirror, the Immortal Vine firmly occupied the very center, while the True Dragon Heart was pushed to the side.

The Brass Candlestick’s position was even more central than the True Dragon Heart’s.

Meanwhile, the Soul Lights that were originally in the Ancient Mirror were now squeezed into the farthest corner, separated by the Immortal Vine and as far away from the Brass Candlestick as possible.

It was as if they were hiding from the Brass Candlestick.

Lu Bai recalled what Bai Chuchu had said before she left and tried to guide a wisp of Soul Light to merge with the Brass Candlestick.

A faint glimmer flashed across the brass surface, and the faint image of a slender figure in a phoenix crown and wedding veil appeared—it was Bai Chuchu!

’Just as I thought! After entering the Ancient Mirror, Bai Chuchu had manifested as this Brass Candlestick. She must need to devour Soul Light to reawaken.’

Lu Bai gazed at the remaining clusters of Soul Light in the Ancient Mirror, his eyes flickering.

His Cultivation Realm was too low to rush into practicing the Talisman Manual. After a brief hesitation, Lu Bai’s Divine Thought moved, and he merged all the Soul Lights into the Brass Candlestick.

The candlestick flickered with a few faint glimmers, but there wasn’t much change.

"It seems there’s too little Soul Light, and the Soul Light Level is too low."

Lu Bai could only give up for now.

A moment later, Lu Bai suddenly thought of the Black Helmet and used the Ancient Mirror to inspect it.

Ripples spread across the mirror’s surface, and a line of text appeared.

Ancient Exotic Treasure, Taisui Battle Armor (Damaged)!

Lu Bai’s eyes lit up.

’It’s actually the Taisui Battle Armor!’

The first time he had heard of this Exotic Treasure was from the Old Gambling Ghost.

The stall had been filled with all sorts of rare and exotic treasures—all of them fakes, but the name of every treasure was real.

After the Taisui Helmet appeared, it once again sprouted viscous, black, fleshy tendrils, as if it were alive, trying to stick to Lu Bai’s hand.

"This helmet is so damn creepy."

After a moment’s thought, Lu Bai tried to send the Taisui Helmet into the Ancient Mirror.

The Ancient Mirror couldn’t store most items.

In all his time cultivating, only the Immortal Vine and the True Dragon Heart had been able to enter it.

Now, as Lu Bai activated the Ancient Mirror, a vortex appeared on its surface. With a flash of light, the Taisui Helmet vanished, having entered the Ancient Mirror.

’It seems that if it isn’t a treasure, it can’t be stored in the Ancient Mirror.’

The layout inside the Ancient Mirror changed once again.

Once inside the Ancient Mirror, the Taisui Helmet immediately fell quiet, ceasing all movement.

At this moment, the Immortal Vine lay across the very center of the Ancient Mirror, with the three treasures—the Brass Candlestick, the True Dragon Heart, and the Taisui Helmet—surrounding it like stars orbiting a moon.