Old Daoist's Magic Tool

After a while, once the natural force had quelled his nausea, only disgust remained in Ling Qing's heart for this species that disrupted the natural balance.

To prevent them from thinking he wanted a share of the spoils, Ling Qing did not intend to step forward to help, choosing instead to examine the surrounding vegetation.

He had not forgotten the purpose of his arrival, which was to earn as much experience as possible.

Checking his panel, he saw he had killed four Purple Zombies in total, gaining 20 points of combat experience, which could also be used as general experience.

However, Ling Qing did not care much about this; for him, the method to obtain a massive amount of experience would never be the laborious task of killing zombies with a fixed population.

It was the hills and forests that stretched far into the distance.

Especially the trees polluted by the yin-turbid qi of the zombies; if he could purify them, the gains would surely be no less than killing zombies one by one.

"Evil creature, cease your arrogance!"

Just as Ling Qing was calculating how much experience he could gain, a roar echoed in his ears.

He turned his head to look and saw an old Daoist priest forming a seal with his left hand and flicking his horsetail whisk with his right. A bolt of clear-sky lightning shot like a spark toward Zhang Zhe and Li Jun, who were currently digging the grave.

"BOOM!"

It was not until the lightning struck that a thunderclap, which made Ling Qing's mind tremble, reached his ears.

"Zhang Zhe!!"

"Little Jun!!"

Seeing this, Tian Yong and Li Dezhang were so furious their eyes seemed to split; one lunged out with sword drawn, while the other pulled his bow to a full moon, sending a long arrow instantly before the old Daoist, aiming straight for his chest.

Swish!

The old Daoist flicked his whisk, coiling it around the incoming arrow and dissipating its force with a shake of his hand.

He then flicked the whisk again, sending the arrow spinning back to collide with the long sword in Tian Yong's hand.

With a crisp clink, Tian Yong's body jolted violently, forcing him to take two steps back, while the sword in his hand hummed and vibrated incessantly.

"The two of you, stay calm!"

Just as everyone was stunned by the lightning-fast turn of events and the old Daoist's power, not knowing what to do.

"Cough, cough!"

"Cough, cough!"

Two coughs rang out, and Zhang Zhe and Li Jun crawled out from under the loose soil, covered in dust and dirt.

"The two young friends are unharmed."

The old Daoist flicked his whisk and performed a Daoist salute.

"Little Jun, are you alright?"

Li Dezhang ran to Li Jun's side, worriedly patting the dirt off his body.

"I'm fine, Dad, cough, cough." Li Jun coughed while brushing himself clean.

"Daoist, what is the meaning of this? Is it because we were digging up the grave?"

Tian Yong sheathed his sword, cupped his hands, and was about to explain to the old Daoist.

"Young friend, wait. A moment ago, a fierce ghost was hiding in the grave, intending to ambush the two young friends. I had no time to warn you and had to act first."

The Daoist raised a hand to stop him. "However, both of them are carrying a Ghost-Repelling Pill, so it likely could not have harmed them. It was indeed my rashness."

"So that's how it is. Not at all, not at all; we must thank you for saving our lives, Daoist."

Seeing that Li Jun was truly unharmed, Li Dezhang breathed a sigh of relief. Hearing the Daoist's words, he quickly pulled Li Jun over to thank him.

"Thank you, Daoist!" Zhang Zhe and Li Jun, having just finished cleaning the dirt off themselves, also thanked the old Daoist.

Although Li Jun was a bit confused, both the experienced Uncle Li and the sharp-witted Zhang Zhe understood.

Someone with such immense power, capable of wielding thunder, had no reason to lie to them.

"May I ask how to address you, Daoist?"

"I am Wenxi, practicing at the nearby Qingyuan Temple."

After some conversation, everyone learned that Daoist Wenxi had been cultivating in his temple when he suddenly felt a surge of evil qi in the mountains.

After searching, he found a mountain spirit polluted by the evil qi, and only after subduing it did he follow the trail of the evil qi to this graveyard.

He had just arrived when he discovered the evil ghost hiding in the grave, and he happened to save the two who were digging for treasure.

Hearing this, Zhang Zhe and Li Jun couldn't help but feel embarrassed, lowering their heads in shame.

"By the way, Daoist, do you know why such a large-scale zombie transformation occurred in this graveyard, and how that Hairy Zombie managed to possess a sliver of intelligence?"

Tian Yong asked Daoist Wenxi, partly to change the subject and avoid the embarrassment of the two, and partly out of genuine curiosity.

"That is because of this Corpse-Suppressing Ring." Daoist Wenxi flicked his whisk, and a copper ring covered in mottled rust broke through the soil, floating before everyone.

"This Corpse-Suppressing Ring can suppress and control zombies, and it can also reduce the erosion of the zombie's mind by turbid qi during the refining process."

Everyone's eyes lit up upon hearing this, but they had no intention of asking for it; it was more a sense of novelty at seeing a magical artifact.

Seeing their expressions, Daoist Wenxi nodded inwardly and waved his sleeve to put it away.

"For now, these magical artifacts are somewhat inconvenient to bestow upon you all. Wait until I have refined them, and then I shall grant them to you."

"No need, no need! We were just fretting over having nothing to repay you for saving our lives, Daoist."

Hearing this, Li Dezhang reached out to pull the visibly surprised Li Jun behind him, waving his hands in a hurried refusal.

"We shall discuss this later. For now, I must trouble you all to assist me in dealing with this place."

Daoist Wenxi shifted the topic without committing to an answer.

Everyone had originally assumed that "dealing with this" simply meant putting in some effort to rebury the corpses and calling it a day.

To their surprise, Daoist Wenxi insisted that they notify the townspeople to handle it together.

Although they were puzzled, they followed his instructions nonetheless.

After Tian Yong and Zhang Zhe, who were quick on their feet, made the trip, the group joined the townspeople—who were stunned by the sight of the graveyard—to piece the dismembered corpses of the zombies back together.

Fortunately, the stiffened remains could still be vaguely identified, and each family claimed the bones of their own kin.

Then, under the Daoist's persuasion, even the graves that had not undergone corpse transformation were dug up, and the bodies were removed.

Afterward, under the witness of the entire town, the Daoist performed a ritual to cremate them all, and the collected ashes were temporarily placed within the ancestral hall.

They would be buried again once a new gravesite was selected; in any case, the current graveyard could no longer be used.

They were busy until late into the night before all the bodies were cremated. Originally, some people had adamantly refused to cremate the remains of their loved ones.

But when they saw with their own eyes the corpses twitching incessantly as night fell, they all changed their minds.

Ling Qing and the others prepared to spend the night in the ancestral hall alongside Daoist Wenxi.

Daoist Wenxi remained because he knew that without him guarding the place, the villagers would not feel at ease.

As for Ling Qing and the others, they had no choice; no one was willing to take them in.

Although they had slain the zombies and spared the townspeople from disaster, those zombies were, after all, the transformed remains of the townspeople's deceased kin.

Ling Qing and his companions had mutilated the bodies of their loved ones, leaving them dismembered, which left the villagers—who held strong ancestral ties—feeling deeply conflicted and unsure of how to react.

Even in modern times, some would find this difficult to accept, let alone these townspeople who had been raised with such values since childhood.

Fortunately, the group did not mind. Besides, with a big shot like Daoist Wenxi right there, why wait? They had to seize the time to see if they could gain some benefits.