Young master, why not become a corpse immortal?

Chapter 356 Parents
Lin Rushi suddenly stood up, knocking the book in his hand to the ground, but he clearly didn't care.

He walked straight through the courtyard and came out with hurried steps, and in the blink of an eye he was in front of Lin Jiang.

"Jiang'er! What are you doing here?"

"……Father."

Lin Jiang stared at Lin Rushi. For a moment, he did not feel the excitement he had expected, but it was by no means the feeling of facing a stranger.

It felt more like meeting an old friend after many years, yet there was an indescribable awkwardness between them.

It was as if someone was gently tapping the air around the two of them with an invisible hammer, building an unseen barrier between them.

Lin Rushi was clearly restless because he hadn't seen his son for a long time, and for a moment he didn't know what to say, so he could only turn his head and call out into the house:
"Madam! Madam!"

Before he finished speaking, footsteps could be heard from inside the room.

A woman of average appearance walked out of the room, sighing as she went:

"Why did you call me all of a sudden? I was cooking..."

At this point, she spotted Lin Jiang and immediately beamed with joy, rushing towards him in a few quick steps.

He immediately opened his arms and pulled Lin Jiang into his embrace.

Lin Jiang could clearly feel the slight warmth emanating from her body, as if she were a living person.

The woman embracing him was his original mother, Di Wenrui.

After holding her son for a while, Di Wenrui pushed him back in front of her and looked Lin Jiang up and down carefully.

"Hey, child, you must not have eaten well outside. Look how thin you've become. Who picked out this outfit for you? It's not very nice. Wait for Mom to take you to the market and buy you two new outfits. Are you hungry? Mom made something delicious... no, Mom will take you out to eat. Mom remembers that you loved eating fish when you were little, so let's eat fish today."

Lin Jiang's body shape will not change even if he is brought back to life.

His clothes were given to him by the Imperial Advisor; although they weren't particularly beautiful, they were sturdy enough.

The original owner of this body did indeed love to eat fish.

he……

I actually quite like eating fish.

For a moment, the unremarkable woman in front of them seemed to overlap with the figure of another unremarkable woman.

Lin Jiang's nose felt slightly sore.

At that moment, Lin Rushi coughed lightly, and Di Wenrui then noticed that there were other people standing behind Lin Jiang.

She then came to her senses and let go of Lin Jiang's hand that she had been holding.

She tidied her hair before looking at Yu Wenyun and Jiang Jinyue with some curiosity.

"Are you two friends of my Jiang'er? Please come in, please come in." Di Wenrui hurriedly straightened her clothes, then showed a slightly embarrassed expression: "This place is a bit shabby. If we were in Baishan County, we would definitely be able to entertain you properly."

"Madam, you flatter me. I have long heard that you two are renowned for your kindness in the area, having cured and saved countless lives. I have long admired you and am deeply honored to meet you today."

Yu Wenyun's flattery was so blatant that even Lin Jiang couldn't help but glance at him a couple more times.

During his previous casual conversation with Yu Wenyun, he felt that in addition to his formidable skills, General Yu was also quite eloquent.

I heard that many people who joined the General's Mansion before were persuaded by him personally.

It certainly seems possible now.

Yu Wenyun's words immediately made Lin Jiang's parents smile so broadly their eyes crinkled, and Di Wenrui also asked directly:
"This young man is really nice. You must be Lin Jiang's friend. What's your name?"

"My surname is Yu, you can just call me Xiao Yu."

Yu Wenyun still wore that slightly stiff smile.

Yu Wenyun is already at the eighth level of the Heavenly Realm, and is probably older than his own grandfather. Fortunately, he looks like a young man, so he can pretend to be young.

Just as Di Wenrui was about to pull the group out to a restaurant, Lin Jiang stopped her.

He took a deep breath to calm himself before asking:

"Mother, what's going on here? Why are you all here?"

When Di Wenrui saw that her son had pulled her back, she turned to Lin Rushi beside her.

They exchanged a glance, sighed helplessly, and finally Lin Rushi spoke:

"We came to this town for treatment that day, and everything was going smoothly. Many patients in the town had recovered one by one. Just as we were about to leave, darkness suddenly enveloped the area outside the town, cutting us off from the outside world."

"So we can't get out now?"

“Yes,” Lin Rushi nodded slightly, “Many people have tried to break out along the edge of the town, but they got lost after entering that darkness and ended up back in town. I also tried to escape using the secret technique I learned from your grandfather, but I failed in the end.”

Lin Jiang remained silent upon hearing this.

Their narratives were logically sound and flawless.

But Lin Jiang clearly remembered that his parents fell ill after returning home, rather than disappearing quietly while trapped in the town.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jinyue, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but frown slightly:
"If we can't get in or out for a while, what will we do about food?"

“The food and clothing in the town are always brand new by dawn, and there is never a shortage. Even personal belongings and injuries can be restored the next day.”

Lin Rushi sighed helplessly and pointed to the dilapidated house behind him:

"We are, after all, outsiders. There is no suitable place to stay in town, so we have to temporarily stay in this abandoned old house. Unfortunately, the daily regeneration force is acting up, and no matter how we try to repair it, the dilapidated house is still difficult to fix. Fortunately, this place is windless and rainless, and the temperature is just right, so it is still habitable."

"But the vendors on the street have no worries about food and clothing, so what do they buy and sell all day long?" Jiang Jinyue's eyes still held a hint of confusion.

Lin Rushi paused briefly, then explained in a slow voice:

"At first, everyone simply followed the old ways. Later, they discovered that everything was renewed during the day, and the town had indeed been in a state of decline for a long time."

"Gradually, everyone realized that people need something to rely on in life. Doing some work is a way to make a living, and working in the old trade day and night is just a way to pass the time."

Although Lin Rushi spoke lightly, a helpless, bitter smile still appeared on his face.

Isn't this a kind of bittersweet pleasure found in prison?

In this eerie town where the end is uncertain, perhaps only this kind of tireless toil day and night can give people a sense of being alive.

The two men keenly noticed the unusual expression on Lin Jiang's face. They exchanged a glance, and finally, Lin Rushi asked Lin Jiang in a low voice:

"Jiang'er, just tell me what it is."

Lin Jiang hesitated for a moment, then finally sighed softly and recounted everything he knew to the two people in front of him in detail.

After finishing his narration, Lin Jiang couldn't help but observe them a few more times.

Among the many magical texts in Daxing, there is indeed a type of bewildered ghost that is unaware that it has already passed away and continues to move forward according to its inertia; however, once the truth is revealed, it will immediately turn into an ethereal soul.

Lin Jiang wasn't actually sure of their exact state, but truly becoming nothingness was far better than being imprisoned here and becoming earthbound spirits.

As long as the soul has not been scattered, there are still many choices: one can cultivate as a ghost like the cook Song, or go on a lost ship to enjoy human pleasures, or end one's worldly ties and be reincarnated directly.

Which is better than being imprisoned in this tiny space?

But after Lin Jiang finished speaking, the two people in front of him showed quite surprised expressions.

But their bodies showed no reaction whatsoever; they remained the same flesh and blood.

It turns out it wasn't a bound spirit.

"We...are dead outside?"

Lin Rushi frowned, but did not refute Lin Jiang's conjecture:
“Our old man is quite skilled and experienced. I’ve heard him talk about all sorts of things in the martial arts world before. I never expected that such strange and bizarre things would happen to us now.”

He then looked at Lin Jiang:

"Xiao Lin, you and your friends have all been through the martial arts world, haven't you?"

"Yes."

"Are they experienced in the ways of the world?" Lin Jiang looked at the two men: "They are... fairly experienced."

"So, according to your two wise opinions, are we now dead or alive?"

After saying this, Lin Rushi immediately realized something was amiss, so he quickly waved his hand and said:

"Please speak freely, both of you. This place is strange, and you are naturally aware that our condition may not be right. There is no need to worry about us."

The two examined it carefully for a moment, but in the end, Jiang Jinyue shook her head:

“I am not skilled enough to see clearly. Perhaps the two of you are just trapped in this strange place, while the two who returned to Baishan Town were just pretending to be dead; or perhaps... the two of you are already souls, which is why this place has been able to exist temporarily.”

Her words were indeed straightforward, and most people would feel confused and flustered upon hearing them, but the expressions of these two people remained unchanged; they simply nodded calmly, as if they had accepted it with equanimity.

Di Wenrui sighed softly:

“My son can’t eat my cooking anymore. The food here might be offered to ghosts. It would be terrible if he ate it and got an upset stomach.”

Seeing their calm demeanor, Lin Jiang couldn't help but feel a little impatient:

"Father, Mother, don't you... have any reaction?"

"You little rascal, what kind of reaction do you expect from us?" Lin Rushi replied with a smile. "We've been here for a year, and you know how strange this place is. Your mother and I discussed this six months ago, and six months has long since allowed us to fully digest it."

For a moment, the group didn't know how to respond.

"Hey, let's not just talk about the two of us. Jiang'er, what are your plans for the future?"

"Take one step first and see one step at a time."

"So... are you going to stay here?" Di Wenrui couldn't help but ask. "Although this house isn't very nice and it's a bit drafty, it's not damp or stuffy, there are no bugs, and the bedding is very clean. If you clean it properly during the day, you can sleep very comfortably."

"...Let me first study whether I can break through this darkness, and perhaps in the future I can lead you away."

Upon hearing this, a clear hint of disappointment flashed in Di Wenrui's eyes, but she still rallied her spirits, nodded, and pretended nothing was wrong.

Lin Jiang bid farewell to the two men and left the residence with his entourage.

He took a deep breath; the air was fresh and clear, enough to calm his mind.

"Young master, what should we do?" Yu Wenyun asked.

Lin Jiang remained silent.

He had actually sensed something was amiss when he was embracing Di Wenrui.

No matter how real and vivid the flesh and blood were, Lin Jiang could still sense that beneath the skin lay a misty and illusory existence.

as well as……

Deep within the core of that mist, there was a faint stench.

Disaster.

(End of this chapter)