Zhong Fa

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Zhong Fa (钟发)
Alias(es)	Master Zhong; Triangle Eyes; “Corpse-Driving Zhong,” the reputation he seeks to restore 14 23 27
Species/Race	Human
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Yin Gate; Zhong Wuyou’s lineage; collaborator of Fushou Funeral Center 14 18 25
Occupation/Role	Owner of Sever Yin and Yang; diviner, spiritual consultant, talisman practitioner, and corpse refiner 16 24 26
Status	Deceased; found with corpse-poisoned claw wounds inflicted by his own Leaping Hopping Corpse 27 32
First Appearance	Introduced by Li Weiguo as “Master Zhong” 14

Power Progression

Zhong Fa’s documented breakthroughs concern corpse refinement, not a stated personal cultivation rank.

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Successful corpse awakening / Black Jiangshi	26 27	Awakens Uncle Dong after prolonged corpse nurturing, yin gathering, and blood feeding. Identifies the result as a Black Jiangshi—his first successful attempt.
Leaping Hopping Corpse refinement	27	Feeds the Black Jiangshi pure-yang boy’s blood, causing it to reabsorb its escaping corpse qi and develop hardened skin, elongated fangs, and blade-like nails. The breakthrough exceeds his ability to control it.

Background / History

Zhong Fa studied under Zhong Wuyou alongside his junior fellow disciple, Zhong Cai. His master withheld the complete corpse-control and corpse-refinement methods because he considered them contrary to the natural order and unsuitable for the modern world. After their master died, the two disciples separated over differing beliefs and remained estranged for more than twenty years 16 30 33.

Denied the complete inheritance, Zhong Fa spent twenty years devising his own refinement method. He secretly memorized material from the clan’s corpse-driving manual and retained a single Corpse-Control Talisman from his master’s belongings. His ambitions included returning to the mountains, confronting the elders who had cast him out, and restoring the name “Corpse-Driving Zhong” 16 25 26 27.

A magical duel three years before the twins’ incident left yin energy lodged in his body. He could no longer safely enter yin-rich locations, preventing him from replenishing his genuine talismans. Lai Feipeng later claimed that he had defeated Zhong Fa during a dispute over a wealthy patron and spared him out of respect for Zhong Wuyou 16 49.

During his three years in Tianmen County, Zhong Fa sought children’s ashes for his practices. Tianmen Funeral Home’s owner refused to sell them, forcing him to obtain supplies elsewhere. After Fushou Funeral Center opened, its owner, Du Rui, became his supplier and eventually hired him to attack the rival funeral home 25 50.

Appearance

• Eyes: Gloomy, triangular eyes—the source of Chen Miao’s nickname “Triangle Eyes” 16 23.
• Voice: Raspy 14.
• Complexion: Corpse-like pallor; after the twins’ incident, his face becomes deathly white, then waxy yellow after smoking 16 20 21.
• Hands: His left palm is covered in scars from repeated blood offerings; his hands tremble while his health deteriorates 21 25.

Personality

Zhong Fa cultivates a reassuring public manner while concealing exploitative intentions. He initially requests only two hundred yuan for the twins’ rites and uses genuine treatment to secure the Li family’s confidence. He supplements that expertise with staged displays and a fake protective talisman 14 15 16.

His devotion to Zhong Wuyou is mixed with resentment. He regularly offers incense to his master’s tablet, yet blames him for withholding the full inheritance and insists that his own genius will surpass the old teachings. Recognition and revenge drive him to continue experimenting despite his failing health 14 21 25 27.

His treatment of Aunt Mei exposes the limits of his apparent kindness. Although he reassures her and refuses her money, he watches without intervening when the awakened Uncle Dong drains her and she collapses. He then declares that he has fulfilled his promise 20 26 27.

Abilities & Skills

Zhong Family Talismans

Zhong Fa possesses genuine talisman-making knowledge inherited from his master, but his stock is scarce and difficult to replace 16.

• Yin-Dispelling Talisman: Uses its ashes in water to expel invading yin energy and restore Li Liang’s consciousness 15.
• Yin-Gathering Talisman: Concentrates surrounding yin energy to nourish resentment or prepare a corpse for refinement 16 26.
• Heart-Linked Talisman: Uses bodily materials to establish a link, allowing gathered yin energy to reach the twin’s corpse at Tianmen Funeral Home 16 20.
• Spirit-Sealing Talisman: Seals his little ghost’s jar and temporarily restrains Uncle Dong after the corpse escapes his control 16 27.
• Corpse-Control Talisman: Uses his sole inherited talisman in Uncle Dong’s refinement; he cannot draw a replacement even when healthy 16 26.
• Limits: Genuine talismans require suitable materials, precise execution, and sufficient yin energy. His old injury prevents him from using yin-rich sites to make more 16.

Corpse Nurturing and Refinement

Zhong Fa combines fragments of inherited knowledge with his own experimental method 16 26 27.

• Preserves Uncle Dong’s body for over a month using medicinal soil and crow’s blood, then transfers it to a cypress coffin for further nurturing 21.
• Uses talismans, a corpse-oil lamp, and animal blood to awaken the corpse 26.
• Accelerates a Black Jiangshi’s advancement with pure-yang boy’s blood, producing a Leaping Hopping Corpse 27.
• Control failure: Uncle Dong resists the Corpse-Control Bell and apparently breaks the Corpse-Control Talisman. A Spirit-Sealing Talisman also begins failing shortly afterward 27.

Little Ghost Keeping

Zhong Fa binds Lin Ziyang’s spirit to a jar and forces him to frighten people and perform other tasks. He manipulates the child through punishment and promises to fulfill his unfinished wish 38.

• Feeds the jar with blood cut from his own palm and sends its occupant out with a verbal command 14 25.
• Plans to imprison the twins in the same jar rather than genuinely release them 16.
• Keeps the child’s desiccated corpse in his hidden chamber 33.
• Cost: Zhong Cai warns that keeping the ghost is worsening Zhong Fa’s health. Chen Miao’s incense attack injures both practitioner and ghost 25.

Ritual Showmanship and Treatment

• Uses a homemade ignition powder to make a talisman appear to ignite spontaneously and continue burning in water. The display is fraudulent, although the Yin-Dispelling Talisman itself is real 15.
• Prescribes glutinous rice porridge and sunlight to help Li Liang recover depleted yang energy 15.
• Applies glutinous rice to his own corpse-inflicted chest wounds, but ultimately dies with corpse poison still present 27 32.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Corpse-Control Bell — Long-handled bronze ritual bell used to command Uncle Dong. Zhong Cai later identifies it as an object that should have been buried with their master, revealing Zhong Fa’s grave robbery 27 33.
• Lotus Lantern / Lotus Oil Lamp — Used during corpse refinement; Zhong Fa carries it while fleeing and smashes it at Tianmen Funeral Home, starting a fire 25 26 31.
• Hand-rolled cigarettes — Contain tobacco mixed with finely ground children’s ashes. His consumption rises more than tenfold after the twins’ incident aggravates his injuries 14 25.
• Spirit jar — Sealed with talismans and housed in a secret underground chamber beneath his shop’s mechanically concealed bed 14 33.
• Zhong Wuyou’s spirit tablet — Receives regular incense offerings and serves as the audience for Zhong Fa’s reproaches and boasts 14 21.
• Copper-coin mask — Covers Uncle Dong’s face during corpse nurturing and is removed before awakening him 21 26.

Relationships

• Zhong Wuyou — Deceased master. Zhong Fa resents his withheld teachings and robs his grave to obtain the Corpse-Control Bell 16 21 33.
• Zhong Cai — Junior fellow disciple. Their ideological estrangement lasts over twenty years; Zhong Fa rejects his health warnings and invitation to Xiao Bai’s initiation ceremony 25 30.
• Chen Miao — Opponent whose Jiangzhen rites disrupt the twins’ manipulation. Chen later helps destroy Uncle Dong and investigates Zhong Fa’s shop 18 29 32.
• Du Rui — Supplier and employer. Provides children’s ashes and boy’s blood while hiring Zhong Fa against Tianmen Funeral Home 25 50.
• Aunt Mei — Trusting elder who remembers him riding on Uncle Dong’s shoulders as a child. Her hope of recovering her husband enables his corpse-refinement project 21 26 27.
• Uncle Dong / Wang Dong — Corpse-refinement subject. Lin Ziyang’s memories confirm that Zhong Fa killed him and turned him into a zombie; the resulting creature wounds Zhong Fa fatally 27 32 38.
• Lin Ziyang — Captive little ghost, exploited through his wish to keep his parents together 33 38.
• Li Weiguo and Li Liang — Clients deceived by his promise to release the drowned twins. Li Weiguo eventually leaves him twenty thousand yuan 14 15 21.
• Li Shirui and Li Shilei — Intended spirit captives whose bodies become instruments in his attack on Tianmen Funeral Home 15 16 20.
• Lai Feipeng — Rival practitioner who claims to have defeated him over patronage and dismisses his abilities as incomplete 49.

Story Role / Major Arcs

The Twins’ Incident

Zhong Fa gains the Li family’s cooperation after treating Li Liang’s supernatural affliction. Under the pretext of separate release rites, he removes Li Shirui’s body and secretly collects bodily materials from Li Shilei. His talismans then channel yin energy toward the corpse remaining at Tianmen Funeral Home, threatening everyone there 15 16 20.

Chen Miao’s grievance-resolving and evil-subduing incantations destroy the talisman arrangement. Incense smoke burns Zhong Fa’s fingers, disperses the gathered yin energy, and leaves him coughing blood. He subsequently declares the rites complete and returns Li Shirui without collecting the second twin 18 21.

Uncle Dong’s Refinement and Escape

Zhong Fa completes his experimental refinement at Aunt Mei’s apartment, producing a Leaping Hopping Corpse. His triumph ends when Uncle Dong attacks him and escapes control. Fleeing with the Lotus Lantern, Zhong Fa leads the creature to Tianmen Funeral Home and starts a fire near its cold storage 26 27 28 31.

Chen Miao and Zhong Cai destroy the creature with peach-wood swords, talismans, and Jiangzhen Incense 29.

Death and Exposure

Chen Miao reaches Sever Yin and Yang intending to confront Zhong Fa, only to find that Zhong Cai has already discovered his body beneath an overturned altar. The corpse-poisoned chest wounds point to his own creation as the cause of death 32.

The hidden chamber exposes the child’s corpse, cremation ashes, and stolen Corpse-Control Bell. Later revelations establish his abuse of Lin Ziyang, his killing of Wang Dong, and Du Rui’s employment of him against Tianmen Funeral Home 33 38 50.

Notable Quotes

“Master, if you'd taught me everything you knew back then, I wouldn't have ended up like this.” 21

“I'll pass this corpse-refining method down. Rest assured, 'Corpse-Driving Zhong' will reach heights you never attained!” 27

“Uncle Dong is awake. Aunt Mei, I've done everything I promised you.” 27