Burial

"Da Niu, grab this! I'll pull you up!"

Just then.

Another young man dressed as a farmer hurried forward and tossed a branch in front of the middle-aged man.

The farmer named Da Niu had already sunk up to his eyes, so he could no longer see what was in front of him. He could only grope blindly. Fortunately, at the last possible moment, he finally found the branch and grabbed it!

Seeing Da Niu grab hold, the young man cried out joyfully, "Da Niu, hold tight! I'll pull you up!"

"Mmph, mmph..."

By then, dirt had already filled Da Niu's mouth. He could not even speak.

Hearing his muffled response, the young man figured Da Niu must have heard him, so he pulled hard, trying to haul him out of the quicksand!

"Riiip!"

But the instant the young man pulled.

A stream of sand and dirt traced an arc through the air, like a fish tank being hauled ashore!

The young man pulled the branch up, and Da Niu, half buried in the dirt, never let go. Even when the branch came free, his hands still clung tightly to it. Only...

Da Niu's body did not come up. Only his two hands did!

And...

What poured from the severed ends of his arms was not blood, but sand and dirt!

"Gasp!"

Seeing the severed ends of Da Niu's arms turn into two piles of dirt, everyone sucked in a breath of cold air.

The young man, meanwhile, fell onto his backside when Da Niu's weight suddenly gave way!

All he could do was...

Watch helplessly as Da Niu, his fellow villager, was buried in the sand and dirt. He still held the branch, and Da Niu's hands still gripped it, but while the front halves were human skin, the back halves looked like sand and dirt!

"Da Niu!!!"

The young man shouted, then rushed to the mound, trying to dig Da Niu out.

But no matter how he dug, there was no one underneath. Nothing but dirt upon dirt!

In the end...

All he dug out was a bluish-gray robe and a pair of tattered cloth shoes with holes at the toes.

The young man clutched those clothes and sobbed!

"This... there's really something wrong with this Cinerary Urn!"

At that moment...

Many of those who had entered the temple alone were terrified by what they had just witnessed.

Looking at the Cinerary Urns in their hands, they dared neither put them down nor keep holding them. Everyone feared they would be the next to be swallowed by the sand and mud!

"What do we do now?"

"What are we supposed to do with this Cinerary Urn? Are we meant to hold it for the rest of our lives?"

Everyone who had brought a Cinerary Urn out of the temple was scared out of their wits.

Those who had entered in small groups, however, were delighted—especially the Martial Artist holding the golden platter. "I told you those Cinerary Urns were cursed, but some people just wouldn't believe it! They insisted there was something wrong with my golden platter. Hahaha! What do you say now?"

"Brother Ye, I told you... I told you not to gamble." As he spoke, the Rich Merchant reached toward the Martial Artist's platter to retrieve Ye Qianfan's Bagua Mirror. "These Cinerary Urns are far too dangerous. I..."

"Too late!"

The Martial Artist was now absolutely certain that the Rich Merchant simply did not dare enter alone.

He pressed down on the Rich Merchant's plump pig's trotter of a hand. "Haven't you heard? Once your bet is placed, hands off! You've put up your stake, and now you want it back?"

"But I haven't even agreed yet!"

The Rich Merchant hurriedly explained.

The Martial Artist sneered. "I'm not betting with you. I'm betting with him!"

With that, apparently convinced he had already won, the Martial Artist briskly placed an exquisite dagger on the Offering Plate. "This is the Evil-Slaying Sword, made from the fang of a high-ranking great demon. It's more than enough to match your Bagua Mirror!"

"Deal!" Ye Qianfan grinned and winked at the Rich Merchant. "Boss Qian, go!"

"Sure thing!"

Only then did the Rich Merchant laugh heartily, push open the temple doors, and walk inside.

In fact, while waiting for the others to enter the temple, Ye Qianfan had explained the clues to his two companions again. The Cinerary Urn was indeed an important item for the final stage, so they absolutely had to obtain one!

Moreover...

Since the final clue was "Escort the god back to the Yin Residence," not just any place could qualify as the Yin Residence!

That man had buried his Cinerary Urn at random, which was no different from courting death. Thus, his death would not deter the Rich Merchant at all. The Martial Artist who intended to bet with them, however, would be affected!

And so...

The Rich Merchant had turned the scheme against its maker, digging a pit and waiting for the Martial Artist to jump in himself!

"You crooked merchant! How dare you trick me!!"

Furious, the Martial Artist reached out to snatch back his short sword.

Shen Lang, who had been watching the show from the sidelines, immediately acted. He lightly tapped the Martial Artist's hand with his bone flute. Somehow, the Martial Artist instantly lost his grip on the short sword, and it fell back onto the golden platter.

"If you gamble, accept your loss!"

"You!"

The Martial Artist eyed Shen Lang with uncertainty and alarm. After weighing his chances, he decided he could not beat him.

He simply flung his sleeve in anger. "I hope you live long enough to use it! If you die, I'll burn a few paper swords for you later, so you can use them to your hearts' content!"

"Heh, we aren't necessarily the ones who'll die. It could be you! An offering!"

Smiling, Ye Qianfan put away both treasures!

My luck's good today. I ran into an idiot and got a treasure for free!

Soon...

The Rich Merchant came out as well, carrying a Cinerary Urn just like the other two.

The farmer's death had shaken the remaining people so badly that, apart from the Rich Merchant, none of them dared enter alone. Almost all of them went in as groups!

As a result, everyone brought out Offering Plates!

"Clack, clack—clang!"

Just then...

A night watchman's chant rang out through the Ghost Village.

"Midnight, third watch! Mind your lamps and flames!"

"Hm?"

Everyone turned to look toward the Ghost Village!

They saw the wandering ghosts that had been endlessly circling outside the little temple, too afraid to approach, begin heading back.

One by one, they drifted toward the homes they had lived in before death, passed through the doors, and vanished!

Only...

In the entire Ghost Village, a single trembling old man remained.

He looked human, but black energy billowed skyward from his whole body. Holding a lantern and a watchman's clapper, he struck the watch as he walked. "Nighttime curfew! One person per house!"

"Clack, clack—clang!"

At first, there seemed to be nothing unusual about what the old man called out.

But the longer he continued, the stranger his words became...

"Today is inauspicious for burials and ancestral rites!"

"Clack, clack—clang!"

"Tomorrow, consult the almanac again for auspicious and inauspicious activities!"

"Clack, clack—clang!"

"Midnight, third watch..."

Then...

His chant began another cycle.

After hearing this, Ye Qianfan and Shen Lang exchanged a glance!

Both seemed to have some understanding...

Of why the man who buried the Cinerary Urn had been eaten by the mound of dirt!

Because today was inauspicious for burial!