Looking at my blood - red hands, I was terrified.
Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. Covered in blood, I looked like a freshly minted murderer.
I let out a terrified scream, yanked open the bathroom door, and rushed out. Like a headless fly, I crashed straight into Gu Yuan's arms.
Gu Yuan's handsome eyebrows knitted together, and he asked coldly, "So noisy."
However, he didn't push me away. He just let the red on my hands stain his spotless shirt.
"Am I haunted by something? Wuwuwu..."
"With me around, who dares to haunt you?"
That's right. He was so powerful. No one in their right mind would dare to provoke him.
"No! It must be Jin Yue who did something to me when you weren't around. Look at my back. There's so much blood. Is the skin gone? Wuwuwu..."
The more I cried, the sadder I became. I was utterly convinced of my own speculation. The more I thought about it, the more my back actually started to hurt.
Gu Yuan was helpless upon hearing this. He lifted his hands and pulled me out of his embrace.
Then he heaved a heavy sigh and said, "That's not blood. It's cinnabar."
"Don't comfort me. I've never even seen what cinnabar looks like. How could it be cinnabar?" I was so scared at this moment that I didn't understand what he was saying.
Gu Yuan was in a good mood today. Seeing that I still didn't understand, he explained, "You fool. If your skin was gone, would you still be standing here in one piece?"
What he said seemed to make a lot of sense. If I was injured, how did I manage to get back from the dilapidated temple? Besides, if such a large piece of skin was gone, I would probably have died on the spot.
Just as my thoughts were in a mess, Gu Yuan took a step forward, his tone teasing, "Are you playing the game of dark temptation?"
It was only at this moment that I realized I had run out of the bathroom naked and thrown myself into Gu Yuan's arms. I blushed instantly.
Without saying a word, I hugged my shoulders and rushed back into the bathroom. The moment I entered, my heart was pounding, my face was burning hot. I wished I could find a hole to crawl into.
Holding a bath towel in my hand, I checked my back in the mirror.
There were still faint traces of something like runes.
Suddenly, it dawned on me.
Last night, in the coffin, when Jin Yue climbed onto my neck, a silver light flashed, and Jin Yue suddenly let go. I thought it was Gu Yuan at that time. Now I understood that it was this cinnabar rune that saved me.
This rune was drawn by Gu Yuan when I was unconscious, because when I woke up, I saw a cinnabar brush in his hand.
Thinking of the scene where Gu Yuan drew the rune on me when I was unconscious, I felt both shy and embarrassed. I hugged the bath towel and covered my face, yet there was still a smile on my lips.
"Stop smiling. The soul - sending ceremony has started."
Gu Yuan's cold voice came from outside the house, pulling me back to reality. Was this guy peeping at me again?
I quickly changed my clothes and followed Gu Yuan out.
The so - called soul - sending is to send the soul to the Yellow Spring Road. The old beggar had done a lot of good deeds in his lifetime. He was going to the Heavenly Palace. As long as he explained Gu Yuan's involvement and told them my birth date.
After the ceremony of taking on the role was over, I could officially establish my altar and appoint Gu Yuan as the grand master of my altar.
The soul - sending and burial ceremonies for the old beggar went smoothly. Today was the day for me to officially establish my altar.
He Bi was now a small spirit - medium. His family already had spiritual beings, but to repay our kindness for saving the old beggar, he specially vacated a main room facing south for us.
Moreover, he would teach me some simple spells, such as the spell for the spirit - medium's disciples to summon the soldiers of the altar, which was the incantation to call the spiritual beings to possess the body.
After He Bi and I tidied up the room, we took some yellow paper and a writing brush. We wrote the names of Lord Hu San and Lady Hu San on the left and right sides of the yellow paper respectively. In the middle, we enshrined the Golden Flower Goddess, who was the chief spiritual being and must be enshrined. After that was the name of Lord Liu San. After writing, I pasted the yellow paper on a wooden plaque and placed the plaque on the incense table.
I took the three incense sticks lit by He Bi, bowed to the gods in all directions, then lit the seven - star incense to welcome the seven - star spiritual beings to take their seats. Then I turned all the cups in front of me upside down. The spiritual beings would then step on the cups and ride on the colorful auspicious clouds. Once the spiritual beings were welcomed, the ceremony of taking on the role officially began...
I felt my body becoming lighter and lighter. I watched as I separated from my physical body. Soon, my soul was floating in the air, waiting for all the spiritual beings to take their seats.
After the spiritual beings took their seats, I saw the old beggar. He looked much better than when he was alive. His face was rosy and glowing. It must be because he had become a junior celestial official.
As my guide, he took me to pay respects to all the spiritual beings. Then he led me to sit on a red - wooden chair with dragon patterns and tied me up tightly with a red rope. He also hung a huge golden lock on my chest. What was this for? Why was I being tied up?
I panicked and was a little scared. I wanted to say something but couldn't utter a single word.
The old beggar whispered in my ear, "You're lucky. Because of Lord Liu's high prestige, you can skip the Seven - Star Platform. This is the last step. After it's over, the ceremony of taking on the role will be completed."
"Little spirit - medium, your spiritual being has the surname Liu and has a noble status, second only to Lord Hu San. I advise you to do everything in moderation. If you demand too much, you'll only hurt yourself. Be filial in the future, do more good deeds, and don't anger the spiritual beings. If you offend them, you'll be the one who suffers."
After the old beggar finished speaking, he took out a pair of large scissors and cut at my chest.
Then he shouted, "Open wide!"
The huge lock on my chest "clattered" to the ground and shattered into pieces.
Then I heard Gu Yuan's voice, "The golden light shines from the opened eyes. The three souls and seven spirits return to their positions."
I sat on the chair and watched as the seven spiritual beings stepped on the auspicious clouds and lotuses and left.
When I opened my eyes again, the first thing I saw was Gu Yuan's incredibly handsome face.
His face was so close to mine that I could feel his even breathing.
Our eyes met for two seconds, and then I shyly lowered my head. My face immediately burned red.
Gu Yuan just looked at me quietly. Seeing me shy, he gently curled the corner of his mouth. That smile completely captivated me.
"Are you hot?" His voice was so charming that it made my bones go soft. I frowned and tried to move back, but the closer I tried to get away, the closer he got.
He leaned down, his hands on my waist. I let out an involuntary moan without any warning. I didn't even know why I made that sound at this moment.
"Then let me cool you down..."
The next second, his kiss landed on my lips...
...
Early the next morning, I was lying lazily on the soft bed. Gu Yuan beside me was still asleep. His arm was around me, and our faces were extremely close.
A good - looking man was truly irresistible. Even with his messy hair, his handsome sleeping face was still intact. His long eyelashes drooped slightly. The sunlight shone through the window and cast a perfect shadow on his delicate face.
Looking at him so closely, I couldn't even see a single pore on his face. I, a young girl in my twenties, felt ashamed of myself.
Although we were already husband and wife and had done what a husband and wife should do, looking at him so closely still made my heart flutter.
My eyes landed on his slightly cold - looking thin lips. I couldn't resist the urge to kiss him.
Just as I was about to succeed, Gu Yuan opened his eyes lazily. This was so embarrassing. I quickly turned my head away and didn't dare to look at him.
Gu Yuan propped up his strong arm, rolled over, and pinned me under him. It was another long and deep kiss. My eyes gradually closed. Suddenly, the scene of Jin Yue's beheaded body and the old beggar's words echoed in my mind, "Do everything in moderation. Don't demand too much."
I quickly came to my senses.
Humans and snakes were from different worlds. Being with him was a mistake from the start. So I had to stay calm. I mustn't get in too deep.
Maybe one day when he got tired of me, he would abandon me just like other spiritual beings abandoned their spirit - medium disciples. So I mustn't indulge in this relationship. I should just maintain the relationship between a spiritual being and a disciple.
Gu Yuan seemed to notice that something was wrong with me and asked, "What's wrong?"
I took the opportunity to wriggle out from under him. "After all, this isn't our home. It's not appropriate."
"Are you blaming me for not giving you a home?" Gu Yuan also sat up on the bed. His perfect upper body with eight well - defined abdominal muscles was simply a sight to behold. I couldn't look anymore.
"No, no, of course not." I quickly grabbed my clothes and rushed into the bathroom.
After I got dressed, He Bi came to knock on the door.
I opened the door, and He Bi said with a big smile, "Sister, your first job as a spirit - medium has arrived."