Gu Qingqiu felt that Qi Huaijin was sulking with her because she hadn't been woken up by Qi Huaijin's gentle kiss in the morning. When she opened her eyes, the blankets next to her were no longer warm from Qi Huaijin's body.
Normally, Gu Qingqiu might have acted coquettishly or clung to Qi Huaijin, repeatedly apologizing. Although Qi Huaijin was a bit cold, he was still easily swayed and quite easy to coax. But now, she couldn't tell the truth.
After sitting there in a daze for a while, the male protagonist system appeared.
Male Protagonist System: [Host, I understand your mission is nearing completion, so you're feeling a bit burnt out, but now's not the time to slack off!]
Gu Qingqiu: [Sigh, I know, but even if I stay with Qi Huaijin now, my experience bar won't keep up.]
Male Protagonist System: [This marriage cannot proceed. Host, do not let your momentary weakness lead you astray. If you forcibly break free from the world's causal constraints, it could cause the world to collapse. In that case, deducting your life points would be the least of your worries. If the Main God System were to directly cast you into a punishment world, then even I would be powerless to help you.]
Gu Qingqiu: [Punish the world? What's that?]
The male protagonist system is divided into two types: one is an abandoned world deemed unusable by the main god system, and the other is a world with high difficulty and low survival ability. However, both types of worlds will block the system, so the host cannot know the progress of the experience bar, nor can he use the system's crisis warnings and pain to shield himself. In fact, the pain will be amplified, and he cannot use items. Therefore, they are collectively referred to as punishment worlds.
Gu Qingqiu: [It doesn't sound like such a big deal, does it? If you really can't stand it, can't you just commit suicide to escape this world?]
Male Protagonist System: [Host, you're overthinking it. The punishment world cannot break free on its own.]
Gu Qingqiu: [Um... Do you guys have any precedents of hosts being thrown into punishment worlds? Tell me about them so I can refer to them?]
Male Lead System: [For example, a host who defies the will of heaven and wreaks havoc on the entire world; a host who plays the villainous female supporting character and tries to compete with the female lead for the male lead but falls in love with the female lead herself; and a host whose persona collapses entirely during a live stream by swearing.]
Gu Qingqiu: [That sounds really exciting.]
Male Protagonist System: [What I mean is, host, please don't imitate this! You already received a yellow card warning from the Main God System for that self-destruction incident! Fortunately, you made amends in the last world by successfully completing the mission and withdrawing in time, otherwise I would have been punished by having to write a self-criticism.]
Gu Qingqiu: [Okay, okay, I got it.]
While saying this, Gu Qingqiu had some other thoughts in mind, because even if she couldn't complete the mission, going to the Punishment World didn't seem so terrible, after all, so many people had been there.
Qi Huaijin has already given up enough for her, and because of her momentary impulse, she turned Qi Huaijin into a living dead. In the end, she owes him. If she can't complete the mission, she'll go and punish the world for a while.
...
Gu Qingqiu suddenly became cooperative, and her attitude changed a lot. Qi Huaijin thought about it and attributed it to the possibility that Gu Qingqiu might have pre-wedding anxiety.
And so everything began to fall into place. Qi Huaijin formally proposed marriage to King Chujiang and was scrutinized by Gu Qingqiu's elder brother and second sister.
The older brother suppressed the urge to beat up Qi Huaijin. He held Qi Huaijin's hand and earnestly explained things to him for three hours while crying. Qi Huaijin sat upright and serious throughout the whole process, and finally gained the older brother's approval.
The second sister glanced at him and commented, "Not bad, quite handsome," and then said nothing more.
Even Gu Qingqiu couldn't help but ask, "Isn't there anything else?"
The second sister shrugged. "There are countless men out there. If one doesn't work out, we'll just find another."
Gu Qingqiu recalled how decisive her second sister was in her divorce, nodded silently, and successfully earned a glare from her second sister's husband.
Qi Huaijin put his arm around Gu Qingqiu's shoulder and promised, "Second sister, don't worry, I won't let Qingqiu have any thoughts of replacing me."
The second sister remained very calm, saying, "All men say that before marriage, you'd better be able to do it."
"I will," Qi Huaijin said earnestly.
The wedding was set for three months later, supposedly an auspicious date chosen by King Chujiang and his advisor. Although Gu Qingqiu didn't understand why a ghost needed to be so superstitious, Qi Huaijin also said that it was a good day, so Gu Qingqiu had no objections.
There are still more than five months left in the countdown. Even if you can only max out your experience bar after marriage, it will only mean you have less health points at the end of the year.
With this mindset, Gu Qingqiu returned to her cheerful little ghost persona, spending her days accompanying Qi Huaijin to work, chatting and entertaining the ghosts in the incense shop, and sleeping with Qi Huaijin's cool body at night. She lived a very comfortable life.
Just when Gu Qingqiu thought this kind of life would continue until her wedding day, an unexpected event occurred.
The special team visited Qi Huaijin again, and after a conversation, a serious expression appeared on Qi Huaijin's face.
"Qingqiu, I have to go on a long trip." Qi Huaijin asked while packing his luggage, "Do you want to go back to the Underworld to wait for me? I will definitely be back before the wedding."
"Huh? Why?" Gu Qingqiu asked curiously, "Didn't you always take me with you before?"
“This is a special case.” Qi Huaijin folded several shirts. “We’re going to a remote mountain area with poor signal. You’ll probably find it very boring.”
"How could I be bored with you by my side?" Knowing that her time in this world was running out, Gu Qingqiu still wanted to make the most of her time with Qi Huaijin.
Qi Huaijin patiently explained, "It's not suitable for you to go this time. That mountain is already shrouded in evil spirits, and there are several auxiliary magic arrays on the mountain. If you wander into one of the arrays, it will be very difficult to get you out. Moreover, there are other sorcerer masters traveling with you, and they can all see you. In that case... it might cause some trouble."
Indeed... it would be quite a challenge to explain their relationship to each of the other sorcerer masters one by one, and they might even look at Qi Huaijin with strange eyes because of it.
Gu Qingqiu said understandingly, "Alright, then you need to be careful and report to me every day!"
"Of course." Qi Huaijin finished packing his suitcase, stood up and hugged Gu Qingqiu. "Be a good girl and wait for me to come back at home."
As soon as Qi Huaijin left, Gu Qingqiu returned to the underworld, intending to ask her father if there was a solution to that evil ghost. Of course, before leaving, she didn't forget to bring a few clothes that still had Qi Huaijin's scent.
However, that evil spirit seems to be quite troublesome. Two weeks have passed and no solution has been found. King Chujiang also said that the suppression formation was originally completed with the assistance of the underworld, but after decades, the seal of the law has inevitably loosened.
Qi Huaijin and a group of sorcerers are now at odds over whether to reinforce the magic array seal again or change the method of suppression.
As the wedding day drew closer, the evil spirit remained unresolved, causing Gu Qingqiu to feel a growing sense of unease and anxiety. She felt that this evil spirit was not as simple as it seemed.
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