The Bride Under the Ivy

The grand carriage, pulled by four strong horses, sped down the road.

Yet the driver was still unsatisfied, frantically snapping his whip against the horses’ haunches.

Li Huowang rested his arm on the window frame, gazing out at the lush green sea of trees.

“We’re not far from Ox-Heart Village now. I wonder how they’re doing. But with Bai Lingmiao’s Second Spirit and Gao Zhijian there, ordinary bandits shouldn’t be able to hurt them.”

Suddenly, Li Huowang felt a gaze pierce through the forest. He turned his head to look, but saw nothing.

“Ahem~ We’re almost there, so let me lay out the rules of this assignment for you.”

The Chief Recorder’s voice pulled Li Huowang’s thoughts back. He looked toward the old eunuch seated there, who held the rotten-wood Ruyi scepter in his arms like a scrawny cat.

“Ahem. Since I called you all here, I obviously have business. I know some of you have already guessed it. That’s right, this time we’re catching a Heart-Turbid. Dead or alive.”

No one spoke. They all listened as the Chief Recorder continued.

“The Heart-Turbid’s abilities, I don’t know if you’ve heard of them before. Anyway, since we have time, I’ll go over them again.” As he said this, the Chief Recorder deliberately glanced in Li Huowang’s direction.

“A so-called Heart-Turbid—like a Heart-Element or a Heart-Pan—is a living person carrying karmic affliction within their heart. The word ‘Turbid,’ as the name suggests, means the turbid chaos of the human heart.”

“Not only does a Heart-Turbid’s own heart remain impure, but they can also use the karmic affliction within their heart to defile everything around them.”

The Chief Recorder’s words were interrupted mid-sentence. The feeling annoyed Li Huowang, and unsurprisingly, it was that spirit-dancer who spoke.

“Feng Erniu, you don’t need to tell us stuff everyone already knows. Just say how we deal with it once we find it.”

“And I’ll be clear now: no matter what happens after, I’ll consider my debt to you settled after this matter.”

Hearing his full name called out, the Chief Recorder let out an unhappy snort. But he didn’t seem to want to provoke that speaker, so he swallowed his anger and said, “Shentu Gang, give me some face. There’s no rush. We’ve got time to kill anyway, so let me finish talking first. If you don’t want to listen, take a rest.”

Seeing the spirit-dancer slowly cross his arms and close his eyes, the Chief Recorder cleared his throat and continued: “Then I’ll make it short. A Heart-Turbid is the exact opposite of a Heart-Element. If a Heart-Element is like a bright spot in the night—visible from miles away—then a Heart-Turbid is like a black cloth in the night. For an ordinary person to find one is harder than climbing to heaven.”

Hearing this, a bitter taste rose in Li Huowang’s throat. If he had been a Heart-Turbid instead of a Heart-Element, maybe he wouldn’t have had so much trouble.

The Chief Recorder kept talking. “And a Heart-Turbid doesn’t just use their own karmic affliction to hide themselves. They can also use it to hide other things—living or dead.”

“Let me put it this way: when you fight a Heart-Turbid, you might suddenly forget where your weapon went mid-strike. Then, in the middle of fighting, you might find the Heart-Turbid has disappeared without a trace.”

Li Huowang silently committed this to memory. Relating it to his own experiences, a question rose in his mind. “It sounds powerful, but can a Heart-Turbid actually control this ability as they please?”

“Be careful!” The Chief Recorder’s voice suddenly grew heavy.

“Don’t think a Heart-Turbid only has this much ability. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have gathered all of you for such a fuss. Among the major scourges of the Heart-Type, this one and the Heart-Element are the hardest to deal with.”

“Never stare into a Heart-Turbid’s eyes for too long. If their karmic affliction defiles your Three Souls and Seven Spirits, they can hide your entire being away.”

“And remember, when I say ‘hidden,’ I mean hidden where no one can ever find you. The kind you never come back from!”

“Also, many Heart-Turbids that have grown powerful have different variations. You’ll need to adapt to whatever you encounter. But in general, a Heart-Turbid still uses the karmic affliction in their heart, so any changes will stay within that scope.”

Looking at the grim expressions of the others, Li Huowang sighed inwardly. Even normal eye contact is forbidden. This Heart-Turbid must have hidden away quite a few of their own loved ones, right? He couldn’t help but feel a trace of pity for this Heart-Turbid he had never met.

In terms of their situation, a Heart-Turbid and a Heart-Element were probably not much different.

Clop-clop-clop. The urgent hoofbeats outside gradually slowed. The Chief Recorder’s speech quickened.

“When we get there, Little Liu and Danqing will surround the area so the Heart-Turbid can’t escape. Then I’ll go in with Shentu Gang to flush it out. After that, Erjiu, you and your people are responsible for killing it. The Ao-Jing Sect doesn’t need weapons to kill, so the Heart-Turbid’s karmic affliction is useless against you. That’s settled. Get out!”

The carriage curtain was thrown open. Six people quickly stood by the roadside. A very unusual village appeared before them all.

It looked like any other village Li Huowang had seen on the road, except this one had no visible tiles or walls. The tiles, the walls, the ground—everything was covered in a layer of emerald-green ivy.

“Little Liu, go. Remember, this matter concerns my own head. You must not be careless in the slightest.”

Liu Zongyuan, wearing his wooden mask, nodded, pushed off the ground with both feet, and leaped into the underbrush behind him like a monkey.

Soon, a thin mist began to rise, shrouding the entire area. The White Wuchang with its long red tongue appeared and disappeared within the haze.

Before the Chief Recorder could give the order, the spirit-dancer named Shentu Gang strode in first. The Chief Recorder sighed helplessly, picked up his golden abacus, and hurriedly followed.

Walking across the emerald grass, Li Huowang watched everything around him warily.

This place was deathly quiet. There was no sound at all except for the clicking of the golden abacus—not even the chirping of birds or the buzzing of insects.

As they reached the village entrance, a patch of ground appeared before them. It was clearly meticulously manicured, without a single weed.

“Who’s there! Come out!” A sharp shout made Li Huowang’s longsword instantly slide three inches from its scabbard. Heaven-defying killing intent flooded his entire body.

Everyone drew their weapons, all pointing toward a low wall.

When Li Huowang saw a pair of embroidered shoes step out from behind it, he immediately remembered the Chief Recorder’s earlier words. He quickly looked down to avoid meeting anyone’s eyes.

But as those shoes fully revealed themselves before him, a chill ran through Li Huowang’s heart. These feet were strangely familiar.

“No! Those are Miaomiao’s feet!” Li Huowang snapped his head up. Sure enough, he saw a familiar red bridal veil.

And at that very moment, Hong Da’s rust-covered blade flew toward her.