Dead Things

After breaking through his eighth meridian, Shen Lin's strength rose once more.

What concerned Shen Lin even more, however, was the effect of the Shadow Severing Step.

After mastering it, he felt his whole body grow several degrees lighter. It was as if, with a mere thought, he could cross a distance of a zhang or two and appear in the shadows.

He wanted to give it a try and experience the mysteries of this martial art.

But the situation now...

didn't seem like the time to study any of that.

The sun was sinking in the west, and the sky had grown somewhat dim.

Even in the faint light, Shen Lin could still make out everything around them.

After looking around for a while, Shen Lin asked in confusion, "Where's the corpse you mentioned?"

Only then did the hunter realize what was going on.

The surroundings convinced him that this was the place where he'd found the corpse earlier, but now the area was empty. There was no sign of it anywhere.

"How strange. Did I get the wrong place?"

The hunter awkwardly scratched his head and was just about to move on when Shen Lin stopped him.

Shen Lin shook his head and pointed at the ground not far away.

A moment ago, he'd thought the hunter had led him to the wrong place, too.

But just as he was about to continue forward, he caught the lingering smell of blood in the air.

Following the scent, Shen Lin spotted a patch of earth that was faintly red.

It was the trace left behind where blood had soaked into the soil.

The hunter probably hadn't led him astray. This was where he'd found the corpse.

"How strange. Where's the body?"

The hunter's eyesight wasn't as good as Shen Lin's. He took a few steps closer before he realized something was wrong.

He crouched down and examined the ground carefully, then suddenly turned and called out, "Lord Shen, look over here! There are footprints!"

When it came to tracking, the hunter, who spent all day in the wilderness, was clearly more skilled.

He pointed to a patch of trampled grass nearby.

"The footprints here are jumbled, but I can tell five people passed through. And judging by how deep they are, one of them must've been huge and heavy."

Shen Lin narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "It's also possible that person was carrying something else. For instance..."

"The corpse!!!"

The hunter shrank his neck at that.

Combined with the eerie mountain breeze, Shen Lin's words gave the hunter a bit of a chill.

"Lord Shen, we've found the place now. Could I perhaps..."

Seeing him lose his nerve, Shen Lin smiled but didn't answer. He simply said, "Five sets of footprints. The other four were probably our brothers from the County Office. Looks like they found the missing corpse, too, and went to investigate."

"Don't be afraid. With me here, neither demons nor bandits can hurt you. Just lead the way."

Even with Shen Lin's assurance, the hunter's worries didn't fade much.

He badly wanted to turn around and leave, but he knew that if he offended the County Office—or Lord Shen—his life would become miserable.

With no other choice, he gritted his teeth, followed the tracks, and led Shen Lin deeper into the mountains.

Before long, Shen Lin saw the hunter suddenly stop. "What is it? Have the tracks disappeared?"

"N-no, Lord Shen, l-look up ahead!"

The dense woods thinned out ahead, revealing a clearing.

The low mounds of earth looked like crouching ghosts.

Between the uneven tombstones, one or two ghostly green flames flickered now and then.

It was a graveyard.

"Help!!!"

Just as the two of them were surveying the graveyard, a desperate cry came from deep within it.

A man in ragged clothes, with wild hair and a filthy face, came running toward them in a panic.

He stumbled and fell several times, but each time he scrambled back up and kept running, as if the Grim Reaper himself were chasing him.

"Help! Th-there's a monster!!!"

Then he spotted Shen Lin and the hunter. When he noticed Shen Lin's clothes in particular, delight immediately spread across his face.

"Officer!!! Help! There's a monster over there!!!"

Shen Lin narrowed his eyes and studied the man. His expression didn't change in the slightest as he said sternly, "Don't panic! Tell me clearly. What kind of monster?"

"A monster that eats people! It was terrifying..."

Still shaken, the man panted heavily. He glanced back, then looked at Shen Lin and begged, "Officer, please save my life! I have an eighty-year-old mother at home..."

"With me here, those monsters won't hurt you."

Shen Lin cut him off and asked sternly, "And you? What are you doing in these mountains in the middle of the night?"

"Ah... I... well..."

The newcomer lowered his head and stammered, his little eyes darting around. "I... I came to gather herbs."

Shen Lin glanced at the Luoyang shovel on his back.

That shovel wasn't for gathering herbs.

The hunter beside him had been staring at the Luoyang shovel for a while, too. He looked the man up and down, then hesitated as if he wanted to say something.

Shen Lin seemed to believe the man's explanation and didn't press him further. Instead, he asked, "Tell me, where is this monster you mentioned?"

"Over there, past that little mound... The other four officers already went ahead to fight it..."

"What???"

Shen Lin's eyes widened. He cursed viciously and immediately charged off.

In just two or three breaths, he'd crossed the little rise and reached the depths of the graveyard.

Only then did he hear the clash of metal.

Under the moonlight, he made out the scene ahead.

Two constables were surrounding a gigantic demon tiger, swinging their long sabers again and again.

They'd clearly been fighting for a while. Shen Lin could see that their movements had grown stiff and heavy. They couldn't even use the Blood Battle Saber Technique anymore and were just wildly flailing their sabers.

Not far away, beneath a large tree, two more constables sat with their backs against the trunk and their heads bowed, their fates unknown.

Seeing this, Shen Lin let out a long breath.

Thank goodness.

The demon hadn't been taken down yet.

Judging by the aura emanating from the Tiger Demon, it hadn't cultivated demonic energy and wasn't even as strong as a martial artist.

But when Shen Lin slew demons, what mattered most to him was their lifespan.

Judging by the muscles covering the Tiger Demon's body, it was in its prime. It was bound to yield plenty of demon lifespan.

With that thought, he drew his long sword and charged forward.

The Tiger Demon whipped its tail, sending one constable flying. It turned and was just about to charge at the remaining constable when it noticed another bright spot in the darkness besides the moon above.

That beam of light swept in like a gale, the pressure of its wind making the trees around it tremble.

Wild Wind Sword Technique!

Shen Lin's long sword whirled in his hand, a raging whirlwind slamming straight into the demon tiger.

Boom!

With a muffled thud, the demon tiger was hurled away and crashed heavily to the ground.

Sword wounds covered its body, and a gaping hole had been ripped open where its heart should have been.

Though he'd slain the demon with a single strike, Shen Lin felt little joy. Instead, a trace of confusion crossed his face.

The next moment, his ears twitched, and he shifted slightly to the side.

Whoosh!

A Steel Saber came down, missing his body by a hair's breadth.

The remaining constable had gone mad for some reason. He grabbed his Steel Saber and began striking at Shen Lin again and again.

Clang!

Shen Lin raised his sword to block the man's blow, facing him head-on.

When he saw the man's face clearly, he froze for a moment, then kicked him straight in the abdomen.

The kick sent the man flying back several steps.

"Roar!!!"

The constable suddenly raised his head and let out a nonhuman roar.

Half the flesh on his face had disappeared. One eye socket was empty, and the eyeball was nowhere to be seen.

The only eyeball left rolled upward in a grotesque way. It had no pupil, only a horrifying, deathly white.

Now he stood with his mouth open, his teeth black as ink. Four long fangs were even longer than those of some wild beasts.

A zombie?