Pickle Barrel Hideout – Midnight
Luo Feng stared up at the Death Queen's smile—the kind that promised pain in at least seven creative ways.
"So," she purred, tapping her nails against the barrel's edge. "You're the man claiming to be my fiancé?"
Luo Feng's System blared:
[EMERGENCY MISSION: SURVIVE THE DEATH QUEEN'S 'AFFECTION']
Reward: 100 Void Energy (Shadow God) + "Phantom Step" Technique
Failure: You'll be a corpse by dawn.
Luo Feng's mind raced. Think, think—
"It's a misunderstanding!" he blurted. "The Fox Spirit made it up!"
The Death Queen's smile widened. "Oh, I know."
She leaned in, her breath chilling his skin. "But rumors are fun… and I do need a fake fiancé to scare off the Thunder God's marriage proposals."
Luo Feng blinked. "…What?"
[MISSION UPDATED: PRETEND TO BE THE DEATH QUEEN'S FIANCE (NIGHTMARE MODE)]
Ten minutes later, Luo Feng sat in the Death Queen's skull-adorned tea room, sipping what he hoped wasn't poison.
Death Queen (smiling): "Here's the deal. Play along, and I won't peel your skin off."
Luo Feng: "And if I refuse?"
Death Queen (laughs): "Then I'll peel your skin off slowly."
Luo Feng sighed. "…I'll need details."
Turns out:
The Thunder God kept proposing to her (she hated him).
The Fox Spirit's rumor was convenient timing.
Luo Feng's job? Act lovey-dovey in public while not getting vaporized by a jealous god.
[SYSTEM: CONGRATS! YOU'VE UNLOCKED "MOST LIKELY TO DIE BY ROMANTIC MISUNDERSTANDING" ACHIEVEMENT.]
Meanwhile, at the Thunder God's Palace…
Thunder God (crushing a goblet): "SHE'S ENGAGED TO A MORTAL?!"
Lightning split the sky as he roared: "BRING ME HIS HEAD!"
The Ice Queen Cometh
Back at the Verdant Cloud Sect, Li Qing stormed into Elder Zhao's office.
Li Qing: "Call off your assassins. I'm killing Luo Feng."
Elder Zhao (smirking): "Too late. The Death Queen found him first."
Li Qing's sword froze the entire room.
Li Qing: "…What?"
The next morning, Luo Feng—dressed in ridiculous "fiancé robes"—stood beside the Death Queen at the Thunder God's doorstep.
Thunder God (eyes crackling): "YOU DARE—"
Death Queen (kissing Luo Feng's cheek): "We're so in love."
Luo Feng (whispering): "I'm dead. I'm so dead."
[To Be Continued!]