Young master, why not become a corpse immortal?

Chapter 5 Small Mountain Ginseng

It was already past midnight, and Lin Jiang asked Gong Xuan if they wanted to go again tomorrow morning.

Gong Xuan waved his hand:

"The one we're looking for today is a mountain spirit. He needs to absorb moonlight to cultivate, and now is the perfect time. If the sun rises, we won't know where to look for him."

Lin Jiang nodded.

"But Young Master Lin, what do you plan to do with this dead man?"

The man who had been punched to death lay in the corner of the wall, with a shocking bloodstain on the wall, spreading out in all directions.

Lin Jiang gazed at the dark red stain and pondered, "Tomorrow at dawn, we'll go directly to the government office."

"Now that you've come back from the dead, isn't it inappropriate for you to go to the government office?"

“When I crawled out of the grave, Master Shen and his servants saw me. Even if I didn’t go, there was no guarantee that one of them wouldn’t file a complaint first. Since I was going to get into trouble sooner or later, I might as well go to the government office first.”

Someone has their eye on the Lin family, so it's definitely no longer safe for them to stay in Baishan County. They'll have to pack up and move in a while.

Before that, it's better to make a big fuss, so that the parasites won't dare to act under the public eye.

Before leaving the mansion, Lin Jiang locked the gate, fearing that the old man might wake up in the middle of the night and run out on his own.

Gong Xuan saw through Lin Jiang's thoughts, rummaged through his own bag, and quickly found a few ropes and a few talismans.

He ran around the Lin family's house twice, tied the rope to the four corners, spat on the back of the talisman, and pasted it in the middle of the main entrance.

“In this way, the patriarch will help keep watch outside the house.” Gong Xuan took out a bell from his pocket: “If anything happens, the bell will ring.”

"Our ancestor was quite busy."

"It's good for the old man to be busy; it keeps him healthy." Gongxuan handed the bell to Lin Jiang.

After finishing their business, Lin Jiang and Gong Xuan headed up the mountain along the small path in the town.

"When we get to the mountain, we need to keep a low profile. That little guy is very alert. If there's even the slightest disturbance, his little legs will dart around very fast. We won't be able to catch up with him."

As they reached the foot of the mountain under the moonlight, Gongxuan gave Lin Jiang a few more words of advice.

Lin Jiang glanced at the red rope in his hand, recalling some legends about mountain herders he had heard as a child, and felt a little uncertain:

"Wild ginseng?"

"Yes. A small ginseng with a spirit will run away if it's not tied with a red string."

"Are we going to catch it, stew it, and eat it?"

Gong Xuan shook his fingers twice, and said while shaking his head:
"You can't eat it. This kind of spiritual creature has become powerful, but it hasn't committed any crimes or murders. It has a bright and clear spiritual aura. Eating it will damage your virtue and impair your cultivation."

"Then why catch it?"

"Not being able to consume it doesn't mean you can't borrow the medicinal power of the mountain spirit. The spirit's energy can help you enter the gate and officially embark on the path of cultivation."

Following the mountain path often taken by woodcutters, we ascended the mountain. This stone and dirt path was frequently trodden by people and not much grass grew on it. However, as we walked further in, wild grass began to grow one by one along the roadside.

There are roads everywhere in the world, but when fewer people walk on them, grass grows over them.

Supported by an old pine tree growing diagonally on the rock, Gong Xuan climbed up the gravel, and his steps suddenly became lighter.

He gestured for Lin Jiang to stop, then peeked out into the woods.

The moonlight drifted through the gaps in the trees, when suddenly a beam of silvery light pierced the tree canopy and landed right among the piles of dead leaves.

Lin Jiang saw a ginseng sprouting its head, round and plump, with a few green leaves on top of its head, and branches extending outwards, with three red fruit beads hanging down.

It sits on a rock like a person, swaying its two leg-like roots, basking in the moonlight.

The moonlight was bright, and Lin Jiang could see it clearly.

He could even see the front of the small ginseng, which appeared to have several patches of ink-like color.

Upon closer inspection...

It was a face drawn in simple line art!
Two black straight lines are used as eyebrows, two black pimples are used as eyes, and a circle is placed where the mouth is. There is no nose.

This simple face, drawn on so simply, is now making all sorts of vivid expressions, just like a little guy who jumped out of a drawing book!

Was it painted with the magic brush of Ma Liang, or was it naturally shaped like this by the plant's spiritual root?

Lin Jiang's thoughts raced for most of the day, but in the end, only a question mark flashed through his mind.

"This is the little guy."

Gong Xuan lowered his voice:

"The two of us will attack from both sides. If the little guy tries to run away, you go out and catch it. Make sure it doesn't get far!"

"I try my best."

Lin Jiang didn't know if he could actually catch the little thing.

Gong Xuan bent over and stealthily weaved through the tall grass, soon disappearing into the gaps between the trees.

Not long after, Lin Jiang saw a dirty-looking Taoist priest's head peek out from behind an old pine tree opposite, staring intently at the small ginseng. With a sudden pounce, he leaped out and charged at the ginseng with a strange cry:

"Give this to the poor Taoist!"

His movement was so frightening, like a dog leaping out from the street, casting a huge shadow in the air.

Little Ginseng was startled; its two beady eyes popped up.

It turned around and tried to run, but it was too slow and was pinned down by Gong Xuan.

"I caught it... Ouch!"

Before Gong Xuan could even finish speaking, he suddenly somersaulted and rolled around in the haystack, looking exactly like someone who hadn't been watching their little toe and had bumped into a rock, gasping in pain.

I don't know what's wrong with Gongxuan.

Seeing that his opponent had failed, Lin Jiang became nervous.

Then he saw Xiaoshan Shenweng running towards him.

Its two root-like legs kicked up leaves that swirled and kicked up dust that rose half an inch high. Its speed was truly astonishing; an ordinary person would probably find it impossible to catch.

Lin Jiang leaped outwards and blocked Xiao Shanshen's path, reaching out to grab it.

"Snapped!"

The small ginseng was held in his hand.

He heard a girl gasp softly.

Then he vigorously pounded it in his palm.

Lin Jiangxin was surprised.

The small ginseng in his palm had extraordinary strength; upon closer inspection, it was almost as strong as the effort of an adult man!
No wonder Gongxuan was knocked over earlier; he was kicked in the bone by Xiaoshanshen!

However, Lin Jiang's grip was clearly much stronger than Gong Xuan's, and despite Xiao Shanshen's struggles, he was unable to escape from Lin Jiang's grasp.

Lin Jiang thought about it and felt that he shouldn't use the red string anymore.

The simple sketch of Xiaoshan Shen's expression had transformed into a disgruntled and indignant one.

Xiao Shanshen curled his arms into a ball and gestured towards Lin Jiang:

"What are you doing? Want to fight? I, Little Ginseng, am no pushover either!"

She was soft-spoken and had a pleasing appearance.

Where is the aggressive or threatening look?

Gong Xuan rubbed his calf and hopped over on one leg, his eyebrows and beard furrowed together.

When he reached for the small ginseng, his calf suddenly throbbed with pain. He initially thought it was from accidentally bumping into a pebble, but now, seeing the noisy little thing in Lin Jiang's hand, he guessed that his calf had probably been kicked.

"Wow, this is amazing! Who came up with this little gadget?"

Gong Xuan originally wanted to tease the little ginseng with his index finger, but unexpectedly, the little ginseng glared at him and opened its mouth to bite his finger.

Gong Xuan was so frightened that he immediately pulled his hand back, leaving only the crisp sound of his teeth clenching.

If I hadn't pulled my finger back in time, I probably would have had a chunk of flesh bitten off.

"This drawn mouth can bite people!" Lin Jiang found it interesting. When he looked down, he found that the ginseng had started biting his fingers desperately.

It has a tingling, slightly numb feeling, which is quite pleasant.

Seeing that it couldn't be bitten or broken free, the little ginseng finally gave up and stopped struggling.

She turned her eyes to the side and stared intently at Lin Jiang:

"I've really lost today. You can make soup or soak it in alcohol, it's up to you!"

Lin Jiang looked at Gong Xuan, who immediately put on a shrewd, mercenary smile.

Just like the smiling face of the traveling merchants who occasionally come to trick children:
“Divine Herb Lord, we have come to the mountains today not to capture you, but to invite you.”

"Invite me? Invite me with your palm?" Little Ginseng glanced at Lin Jiang.

"We have no other choice," Gong Xuan said. "If we don't catch you first, you'll be long gone by the time we get out of here."

Little Ginseng thought about his own leg strength.

It seems so.

She was still not happy about being caught, so she crossed her arms and remained silent.

Gong Xuan chuckled and said, "The young master who is holding you now has a physical deficiency and needs your medicine to replenish it. He won't eat you; all he needs is a small teacup and a hot bath every night."

Lin Jiang's expression immediately turned strange.

So, what Gongxuan called a good idea was actually...

Do I need to drink ginseng bathwater every night?
(End of this chapter)