A collective shriek of disgust erupted from the spectral guests, quickly morphing into a guttural roar as the corpse beetles, a tide of clicking chitin and grasping legs, surged forward. They poured off the tables, blackening the floor, their mandibles snapping. The air filled with a dry, rustling sound, like a thousand pages turning in a forbidden tome. “Oh, now *this* is an infestation,” Lanshan observed, a tight smile on his face, though his gaze darted from the nearest wave of vermin to the rapidly diminishing space around them. His hand instinctively went to the bulky camera slung across his chest. “Might need a wider lens for this spread.” Tang Mingze, however, was already moving. Gone was the snobby gamer, replaced by a pink-clad whirlwind of frantic defense. He gripped the absurd bouquet of wilting paper peonies and spectral lilies that had been forced into his hand. It wasn’t a fragile prop; it was a bludgeon, heavy and surprisingly solid. With a primal yell, Tang swung it like a battle-axe, a wide, sweeping arc that connected with the first wave of scavengers. The paper petals, imbued with some systemic magic, ripped through the swarm, sending chitinous fragments flying. A shower of iridescent black shrapnel rained down, and the bouquet glowed faintly with a sickly green light. [Matchmaker OS: Maid of Honor Skill Unlocked! ‘Petal Pummel’! Gain temporary immunity to low-tier insectoid swarms!] “A flail? Seriously?!” Tang spluttered, but his movements were fluid now, honed by countless hours in high-tier combat scenarios. He spun, deflecting a lunge from a particularly large beetle that had detached from the main swarm, its head the size of his fist. “This ridiculous thing actually works!” He smashed it again, a surprisingly effective strike that splattered goo across the wall. Lanshan, meanwhile, unhooked his strap. The flash unit, a useless accessory in normal photography, suddenly felt like his only weapon. He aimed it, not at the horde directly, but at a cluster that had started to climb a nearby table leg, a dark, pulsing mass. He pressed the shutter. *FLASH!* A blinding burst of artificial light erupted, momentarily turning the entire cafeteria into a stark, overexposed negative. The beetles recoiled, their segmented bodies freezing, mandibles clacking in confusion. They weren't dead, but they were stunned, their collective rush broken. “Photographer’s bane, eh?” Lanshan quipped, ejecting the flash cartridge and fumbling for another. He’d kept a handful, always believing in being over-prepared for any shot. He fired again, another brilliant burst, then another. The crawling mass halted, twitched, and scattered, their organized advance crumbling into bewildered chaos. Pei Ruoxue, who had been standing, regal and still even as the tide of shells swirled around her feet, watched Lanshan with a spark of something new in her sorrowful gaze. It wasn’t just amusement this time; it was a fierce, protective pride. She moved with impossible grace, stepping to stand back-to-back with Lanshan, her silken sleeve brushing his arm. Her presence alone seemed to deter the beetles, a subtle aura of dread radiating from her that kept the worst of the swarm at bay. “Still smiling, even now,” she murmured, her voice a low, breathy caress. Her hand found the back of his neck, her touch cool but not cold, a stark contrast to the buzzing heat of the swarm around them. Lanshan grinned, a real, unforced grin. “Wouldn’t want to look grumpy in front of my beautiful bride, would I? Might ruin the candid shots.” He fired another flash, momentarily pushing back a surge attempting to flank Tang, who was still furiously pummeling with his bouquet. Suddenly, Ruoxue pulled him closer, her grip firm. Her other hand cupped his cheek, her gaze locking with his. The world narrowed to just them, the cacophony of clicking mandibles and Tang’s grunts fading into a distant thrum. Her lips, soft and surprisingly warm, met his in a searing, charged kiss. It was brief, intense, and utterly consuming, a desperate, defiant act amidst the horror. He tasted dust and ancient sorrow, but also something vibrant, like life itself. Heat, not unpleasant, surged through Lanshan. His vision momentarily flared, and the dull ache from the poisoned drinks earlier receded. His pulse steadied. A small, almost imperceptible icon blinked on the edge of his UI, a faint green glow around his health bar. [Matchmaker OS: Groom Buff Acquired! ‘Spectral Sweetness’! Temporary immunity to minor environmental poisons!] When she pulled back, her eyes, though still filled with an ancient sadness, held a potent fire. “Now you have a taste of my protection, future husband.” Lanshan, momentarily stunned, managed a breathless chuckle. “Well, that’s certainly a unique way to administer an antidote.” He shook his head, a genuine smile playing on his lips. “And I thought *my* flirting was aggressive.” He raised the lens again, taking a wide, sweeping shot of the retreating swarm, a final, brilliant burst illuminating the far wall of the cafeteria. For a split second, before the light faded, something glinted into existence on the otherwise bare, grimy plaster. A series of glowing, ethereal characters, like code written in starlight, appeared and then vanished. “Wait,” Lanshan said, his voice sharp. He raised the camera again, his photographer’s instinct overriding the lingering rush from the kiss. He aimed precisely at where the glint had appeared. *FLASH!* The bright light exploded, and there it was again, clearer this time: a string of characters that looked like an address, a location tag, etched into the wall by the flash’s intensity, then fading back into invisibility as the light died. It was a coordinates string, followed by a single, stark phrase: ‘Beneath the Weeping Ash, forgotten roots of the Jade Garden.’ Ruoxue’s gaze followed his, her expression shifting to one of dawning recognition, then quiet, profound pain. This wasn't just code; this was memory, a map to her past, a key to her freedom. [Matchmaker OS: Objective Updated! 'Unearth the Bridal Relics'! Dig up the forgotten roots of the Weeping Ash in the Jade Garden to retrieve the bride's true essence!] The cheerful, robotic voice rang out, sealing their next, perilous quest.

Bouquets and Flashbulbs