Gu Jiu stood on a massive ship.
Surrounding her was the dark Nether River. The waters of the Nether River were still, flickering with the glow of soul flames from the ghosts within, resembling starlight scattered across the night sky. On both banks, countless red spider lilies bloomed. The dark crimson petals spread like the faint embers of a dying flame, stretching endlessly into the horizon.
Other than this lone ship, the Nether River was devoid of other vessels. The atmosphere was desolate and eerie.
With a brief thought, Gu Jiu quickly realized that when she jumped from the arched bridge and landed on this ship, she had been pulled into another dimension.
This was the reason the ghostly general forced them into the Nether River. Understanding this point, she chose to board the ship.
Gu Jiu lifted her gaze toward the cabin.
The cabin’s window was open, its crimson curtains draped down. Golden patterns of red spider lilies adorned the fabric, luxurious and intricate, signaling the high status of the ship’s owner.
Without hesitation, Gu Jiu walked over and lifted the curtain.
The cabin was decorated with an antique charm, exuding an ancient elegance. Sitting by the window was a man sipping tea, perfectly complementing the setting. He looked at her with a gentle smile, exuding a regal and extraordinary presence.
For a moment, it was as if he were an emperor of the underworld.
“Madam, you’ve arrived,” he said, his voice tinged with joy, his gaze brimming with affection.
Gu Jiu stepped inside and naturally sat across from him.
The man smiled faintly and poured her tea, gesturing to the desserts on the table. “These should be your favorites. I personally went to get them.” There was a hint of pride in his tone.
Gu Jiu glanced over and was unsurprised to see familiar snacks—all the ones she had recently tried in the ancient town and found delicious.
Her expression turned slightly complicated. She couldn’t help but say, “I’ve stopped you twice already. This time, I doubt I can. Aren’t you afraid?” She had never seen someone so eager to meet their end.
The joy on the ghost groom’s face faded.
Seeing this, Gu Jiu confirmed her suspicions. Her gaze sharpened. “What exactly are you? Why are you impersonating Ah Ji? Last night, when the zombies attacked us, you intentionally appeared. It was all to attract his attention, wasn’t it?”
Drawing Lu Ji’s attention, then vanishing abruptly, and insisting on this marriage—it was all clearly deliberate.
Yet, his feelings seemed genuine. He truly had affection for her.
The ghost groom stared at her silently, then suddenly chuckled. “Madam, you’re so clever. You must have already guessed.”
Gu Jiu understood. “So, you’re the one who issued the death notices?”
The ghost groom nodded. It seemed he wouldn’t lie to her about anything she asked. His tone softened as he said, “I am the ruler of Youdu City. In mortal terms, I am the Lord of the Underworld—the Ghost Emperor. I can manipulate all the rules of this world, bending them to my will.”
“Then why issue the death notices?”
The Ghost Emperor let out a soft laugh. “You all came to disrupt my domain. Naturally, I must kill you.” His gaze was gentle as he looked at her. “Don’t worry, Madam. When you die, I’ll make sure it won’t hurt much. You’ll quickly become a ghost.”
Gu Jiu gave a faint smile. “So, you’re saying that once I reach Youdu City, you’ll kill me?”
The ghost groom hummed in agreement, shyly smiling. “If you want to hit me, I won’t stop you.” He glanced at her bashfully. “I’ve been waiting for you all along. You’re exactly as I imagined. Even when you hit me, you look stunning.”
Gu Jiu: “…”
She suddenly felt she shouldn’t have hit him the first time they met.
But how was she supposed to know the ghost groom would turn out to have such an identity?
Seeing her at a loss for words, the ghost groom happily introduced the snacks on the table. “This is peach blossom cake—you had it twice. This is cherry cheesecake—you ate it three times. And this…”
Gu Jiu wanted to facepalm. She couldn’t shake the feeling that this ghost groom wouldn’t live long.
For the first time, she sincerely worried about a boss in this game world.
As if sensing her concern, he asked, “Madam, are you worried about me?”
His face lit up with delight, thrilled by her supposed concern. He even reassured her, “You don’t need to worry. He won’t find his way here so quickly.”
“But he’ll come eventually, won’t he?” Gu Jiu summarized as she picked up the tea on the table and took a sip.
The flavor was excellent, an authentic Da Hong Pao, meant for human consumption.
The ghost groom smiled faintly, as if entirely unbothered.
Following his recommendations, Gu Jiu tried two pieces of cherry cheesecake and some walnut pastries. Just as she was about to reach for something else, he suddenly grabbed her hand.
“What’s wrong?” She looked up at him, noticing how cold his grip was—chilling to the bone. A sinister chill seemed to seep into her very marrow. If she weren’t a B-class player, she might already have frostbite.
As expected, he was a powerful Ghost Emperor who could even manipulate the rules of this world.
Lu Ji’s hands were cold, too, but his chill was a gentle coolness, not one that froze to the core.
The Ghost Emperor softly asked, “Madam, could you give me the chestnut in your pocket?”
Gu Jiu froze for a moment, then joked, “What, you want to eat chestnuts too? There’s only one left, and it’s been in there for a while, so it’s probably lost its flavor. If you really want some, you can go buy them on the street.”
The Ghost Emperor ignored her words. Instead, he held her hand and leaned closer, retrieving the chestnut from her pocket.
The chestnut’s surface was still glossy with oil, but after being stored for so long, it indeed didn’t seem appetizing.
The Ghost Emperor glanced at the chestnut, then closed his hand around it, crushing it into fragments. A black flame flared up, burning the chestnut remains to ash until nothing was left.
After finishing, he gave her an apologetic smile. “Madam, this way, he won’t be able to come.”
Gu Jiu blinked, pulling her hand back. “How did you know?”
That chestnut was something Lu Ji had deliberately slipped into her pocket earlier. If the ghost groom tried separating them again, Lu Ji could use the chestnut as a medium to break through the space and find her.
The Ghost Emperor didn’t reply. Instead, he picked up a bottle of peach blossom wine and poured her a cup.
It seemed he had prepared every delicacy she had tasted in the ancient town.
Gu Jiu sighed, accepting his offerings without resistance. It was turning into an impromptu late-night feast.
At some point, the sound of ethereal music floated in from outside the window. Strings and flutes intertwined in a melody both serene and beautiful. Gu Jiu looked out and saw another boat approaching on the dark river. Onboard were elegant women playing zithers and performing dances.
The desolate Nether River began to come alive.
Looking out, red spider lilies bloomed along the banks, and boat sails crisscrossed the horizon. Graceful figures moved like phantoms, creating a mesmerizing scene.
It was indeed the fabled nightscape of the Nether River.
“Madam, is it beautiful?” the Ghost Emperor asked with a smile.
Gu Jiu nodded. “It’s quite beautiful. Such a spectacle doesn’t exist in the human realm. I’ve never seen anything like it before.”
The Ghost Emperor shyly replied, “As long as Madam is willing to stay, the nightscape of the Nether River will always bloom for you, granting you peace in the mortal world.”
“In your dreams!”
The Ghost Emperor: “…”
Gu Jiu quickly added, “That wasn’t me speaking.”
The smile on the Ghost Emperor’s face faded again, his gaze turning deep and ominous as he lifted his eyes toward the cabin door. A figure lifted the curtain and strode inside.
Gu Jiu turned her head, immediately stood up, and greeted with a smile, “Ah Ji.”
Lu Ji walked briskly to her side. After confirming she was unharmed, he pulled her behind him before finally facing the Ghost Emperor.
The Ghost Emperor also stood.
Two identical faces, the same imposing presence—the only difference was that the Ghost Emperor was a man, while Lu Ji currently appeared in a youthful, feminine guise.
Yet the aura they exuded was unmistakably the same.
Lu Ji glared coldly at the Ghost Emperor. “Whatever you are, you must vanish. I won’t allow you to use this face to deceive Ah Jiu!”
The Ghost Emperor’s gaze darkened. Seeing Gu Jiu shielded behind Lu Ji, a flicker of envious malice flashed in his eyes. His voice was cold as he responded, “I haven’t deceived her. My feelings for her are just like yours. You love her, and so do I.”
Gu Jiu: “.…” A sudden confession. This is… awkward.
Lu Ji exploded, “Shut up!”
He raised his hand, a wisp of black flame igniting in his palm—a flame identical to the one the Ghost Emperor had used moments ago.
Gu Jiu noticed the black fire, and as it surged toward the Ghost Emperor, she grabbed Lu Ji’s hand. “Ah Ji, don’t…”
But this time, Lu Ji didn’t listen to her. The black flames had already entwined the Ghost Emperor.
With a roar, the flames engulfed the Ghost Emperor entirely. He stood there, making no effort to resist. His gaze, filled with worry and reluctance, remained fixed on Gu Jiu.
“Ugh!”
Gu Jiu suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.
“Ah Jiu!” Lu Ji was startled by the turn of events. Both furious and alarmed, he quickly supported her, his piercing black eyes snapping to the Ghost Emperor. “What did you do to her?”
The Ghost Emperor’s aura weakened noticeably. Though burning in agony from the black flames, he didn’t utter a sound. In a hoarse voice, he murmured, “If I die, this world will collapse. All living beings will perish… including them…”
The flames gradually died down.
The Ghost Emperor staggered, leaning against the cabin wall, his form growing faintly transparent.
Lu Ji ignored him, focusing entirely on Gu Jiu. He helped her sit down, quickly retrieving a blood elixir and feeding it to her. He worked to stabilize her injuries, only to find her internal organs on the brink of collapse. His rage burned even hotter.
The blood elixir worked wonders. In less than half an hour, Gu Jiu felt the pain recede, her body recovering significantly.
She exhaled deeply and looked at the Ghost Emperor, her gaze filled with confusion. “Why?”
She understood that if a game world was destroyed by abnormal forces, players within it who couldn’t leave in time could be affected—possibly even killed. However, she had never heard of someone whose life was tied to a game world, where their death would lead to the world’s collapse.
The Ghost Emperor glanced at Lu Ji and answered obediently, “Because I am his destructive power—an integral part of his strength.”
Gu Jiu was momentarily stunned.
Seeing her expression, the Ghost Emperor chuckled and said to the main subject of this revelation, Lu Ji, “You didn’t tell her, did you?”
Lu Ji remained silent.
The Ghost Emperor, ever considerate, turned to Gu Jiu and explained, “Madam, he is the last god of all worlds, born from the Sea of Rules, inheriting the destructive power left behind by the fallen gods. He exists to destroy all worlds and, in the end, will perish with them.”
Gu Jiu: “…So, he’s a Destroyer?”
The concept of a Destroyer was something she had stumbled upon while browsing the Free Alliance forums.
It was said that some game worlds contained Destroyers, but they were extremely dangerous and only appeared in S-ranked worlds. Many S-ranked players undertook missions to eliminate these Destroyers. However, Destroyers were so formidable that even S-ranked players couldn’t withstand them. Many veteran S-ranked players had met their end fighting against them.
If all Destroyers were on the same level as Lu Ji, she could understand why even S-ranked players fell to them.
The Ghost Emperor smiled. “You can think of it that way. He is indeed a Destroyer, and I am a part of his discarded destructive power.”
Gu Jiu: “…”
She easily picked up on the Ghost Emperor’s malicious intentions.
Even without looking, she could sense how tense the man beside her had become. This was something he had never explicitly told her—something he had painstakingly concealed. It was a dark side he didn’t want her to know about: that he was born ominous, a figure feared by all worlds, the ultimate Destroyer.
Normal people would naturally shun such an existence.
After a long moment, Gu Jiu slowly responded with a drawn-out “Oh… so that’s how it is. Anything else?”
The Ghost Emperor and Lu Ji both looked at her, their expressions eerily similar. It was as if they were both asking, Aren’t you afraid?
Gu Jiu remained calm. “How did you become the Ghost Emperor of this world?”
This question cut straight to the core—it was the key point.
Since the Ghost Emperor was a fragment of Lu Ji’s discarded power, how had he become the boss of a game world?
“I don’t know,” the Ghost Emperor admitted candidly. “From the moment I became self-aware, I’ve been here, and my existence is tied to the destruction of this world.”
As a force of destruction, he was naturally a Destroyer.
As a Destroyer, it was only natural that his life was intertwined with this world. If players entered and tried to kill him, the world would collapse, taking the players with it.