First Test of Skill

What rotten luck?

On the very first night after his rebirth, he had run into a Corpse Transformation?

Without hesitation, Wen Qingkong grabbed a bench beside him and ruthlessly smashed it down on the corpse's head.

Crack!

The bench shattered, but the corpse's head remained unchanged. Only the white fur had grown thick and long.

It was not just the head. White fur was growing wildly all over the corpse's body, while the nails on its ten fingers rapidly lengthened and sharpened into claws.

The Corpse Transformation was happening so fast!

Wen Qingkong swung a broken bench leg and smashed it at the corpse again.

Whoosh!

The corpse raised its right hand and caught the bench leg.

The head that had not yet been sewn back on was now connected to its neck by white fur. It turned around, its pair of green pupils staring at Wen Qingkong with eerie terror.

"Why did you hit me?"

"Because you underwent a Corpse Transformation."

Wen Qingkong looked at it seriously.

The corpse froze.

Then it let out a strange, owl-like cackle.

"Corpse Transformation?"

"What is a Corpse Transformation?"

"I'm going to eat you!"

The corpse lunged at him. Wen Qingkong sidestepped and dodged.

So fast!

But it had no capacity for thought and was merely acting on instinct.

Boom!

Wen Qingkong's pupils contracted slightly as the corpse slammed all ten fingers into the bluestone floor, instantly shattering the slabs into pieces.

Such tough nails, such immense strength.

At the same time, the corpse was still changing. After its fleshy face became covered in white fur, it slowly began to transform. Its limbs pressed against the ground, making it resemble a wild beast.

The more Wen Qingkong looked, the more that face seemed like a cat's.

"Meow~~"

The corpse let out a cat's cry before pouncing through the air again!

"A cat?"

Wen Qingkong gave a soft cry of surprise and dodged aside once more.

Though this corpse had undergone a Corpse Transformation, the strength and speed it had displayed so far were not much of a problem for Wen Qingkong, who had obtained the Shaolin Golden Bell Shield.

He casually grabbed a kitchen knife. The wind howled before him as the corpse pounced again.

Wen Qingkong swung his blade. Flashes of steel filled the air, and the corpse was hacked into pieces that scattered irregularly across the floor.

Wen Qingkong rushed into the side room, brought out a basin of Black Dog Blood, and splashed it all over the corpse.

Splash!

White smoke billowed!

The corpse dissolved into a puddle of green fluid, giving off a powerful stench of blood and rot.

"Phew~~~"

Wen Qingkong let out a long breath. It was finally dealt with.

What bad luck. The original owner had stitched corpses here so many times without ever encountering a Corpse Transformation.

Yet Wen Qingkong had run into one on the first night after his rebirth.

That fight had wasted quite a bit of time.

Wen Qingkong hurriedly moved the remaining five corpses onto the cold platforms. As before, he inserted Three Incense Sticks into the incense burners above their heads, waited for more than ten breaths, and only began stitching after confirming there was no problem.

Fortunately, none of those five corpses underwent another Corpse Transformation.

Likewise, every time he stitched up a corpse, a Life's Flashback unfolded in Wen Qingkong's mind.

He was like a third party wandering through the river of time, following every dead person and watching them be born, grow up, and die.

None of these five corpses had been important people, nor did they know martial arts.

The sixth corpse had belonged to an ordinary peddler. He discovered that his beautiful wife was having an affair with a wealthy merchant. One day, he pretended to go out and sell goods, but after the merchant came to his home, he secretly locked the door.

On the bed where he usually slept, he hacked his wife and the wealthy merchant into mincemeat.

In the past, a murder such as this, with mitigating circumstances, would not have been punished by death.

But Great Xia was now in chaos from top to bottom. The wealthy merchant's family paid money, and so the peddler died.

What Wen Qingkong gained from him was knowledge of the types, prices, and other details of small goods in Yujing City.

The seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth corpses were four brothers. They had all been tenant farmers on an imperial estate outside Yujing City.

Starting five years ago, the estate's rent share had risen continuously, until it had now reached ninety percent.

After working hard for an entire year and harvesting their grain, they could keep only ten percent. The remaining ninety percent had to be handed over.

The four brothers were indignant and came to the Yujing City magistrate to file a complaint. They believed the emperor had never intended to demand such high rent and that the eunuchs managing the imperial estate were deliberately embezzling it.

They wanted to expose the matter, let the emperor know, and have the estate eunuchs properly punished.

But once court was in session, they did not even have time to say a word before the Yujing City magistrate threw them into prison. Their throats were then poisoned mute, and they were beheaded at Caishikou Execution Grounds.

Now, the bodies of all four brothers had ended up in Wen Qingkong's hands.

Wen Qingkong sighed softly. Through the Life's Flashback, he learned that the eldest brother had a wife and a six-year-old daughter.

After stitching up the four brothers' bodies, what he gained from them was the art of farming.

By the time he finished stitching, it was already the seventh quarter of the Tiger Hour. In another quarter hour, it would be the Rabbit Hour.

The Rabbit Hour was dawn, when the sun was about to rise—equivalent to five to seven in the morning in later generations.

Wen Qingkong lined up the corpses and waited for Zhang Quan to come take them away in the morning.

"Caw! Caw! Caw!"

A harsh, mournful bird cry suddenly rang beside Wen Qingkong's ears, shattering the silent dawn.

Wen Qingkong looked toward the source of the cry.

It was the harsh, unpleasant cry of a Harbinger Bird.

It meant that someone among the nine Corpse Seamstresses had died.

Suddenly, a completely black Harbinger Bird landed on Wen Qingkong's eaves, its glossy black eyes fixed on him.

After watching him for quite a while, the Harbinger Bird flapped its wings and flew away.

This Harbinger Bird had clearly come to check whether Wen Qingkong was dead. If he had died, it would have cried out as well to notify the others.

These Harbinger Birds were much like the crows of Wen Qingkong's previous life. He did not know how they were trained, only that this system existed because the death of a Corpse Seamstress usually meant a Corpse Transformation had occurred.

Once a Harbinger Bird announced a death, the officials of the Ministry of Justice could make preparations and invite experts from the Daoist or Buddhist sects to deal with the transformed corpse.

Without a Harbinger Bird, Ministry of Justice officials who rashly entered the place could easily be attacked and killed.

Time passed quickly.

The sky shifted from pitch black to hazy blue, with deep blue daylight faintly shining through the dark clouds.

Wen Qingkong's first night shift since coming here had ended.

At the fifth quarter of the Rabbit Hour, Zhang Quan opened the door with two Yamen Runners behind him.

He stared in surprise at the completely unharmed Wen Qingkong and the neat row of corpses inside.

How was this possible?

Wen Qingkong had actually finished sealing all ten corpses!

Suddenly, Zhang Quan's pupils shrank. A puddle of green fluid on the ground gave off a thick, foul stench.

Had he stopped a Corpse Transformation too?

"The Black Dog Blood is used up."

"Can you give me some more?"

Wen Qingkong had found Black Dog Blood very effective. It was his first time using it, and he had not judged the amount properly, using up every last drop left by the original owner.

It seemed Zhang Quan was seeing Wen Qingkong for the first time. He reassessed him inwardly.

"I'll bring some when I deliver your breakfast."

With that, he directed the Yamen Runners to load the stitched corpses onto a cart, preparing to haul them away.

Before leaving, Zhang Quan patted Wen Qingkong on the shoulder. "Well done. I never realized you had such impressive skills before."

Zhang Quan wore a smile, but Wen Qingkong saw a hidden chill within it.