One person: Senior brother Zhang Zhiwei, the Celestial Master begged me to descend the mountain.

The night is like water.

After a day of hustle and bustle, Longhu Mountain finally regained some of its tranquility as a Taoist retreat under the cover of night.

The guest room area on the front of the mountain was still brightly lit, and occasionally one could hear excited debriefings and discussions.

But deep in the dense forest behind the mountain, it was pitch black.

Only the pale moonlight filtered through the dense canopy, casting dappled shadows on the leaf-strewn ground.

creak-

The sound of dead branches breaking underfoot was exceptionally clear in the silent forest.

Zhang Taichu, with a wild grass he'd somehow acquired dangling from his mouth and his hands tucked into the sleeves of his tattered Taoist robe, strolled leisurely along the forest path.

"Young people these days have so much energy."

He yawned and glanced back at the faintly visible lights in the distance:

"They're not sleeping at night, it's giving me a headache."

To avoid those who wanted to curry favor, get close to him, and inquire about his background, he skipped dinner at the cafeteria and slipped away to the back mountain.

I was hoping to find a quiet tree branch to take a nap.

Unexpectedly, the back mountain was even more lively than the front mountain.

I had just lain down when I heard a series of rhythmic thumping sounds coming from behind the bushes not far away.

Calm, powerful, and continuous.

Zhang Taichu sighed and rubbed his temples helplessly.

"I just want to take a nap..."

"Why is it so difficult?"

He straightened up and tiptoed towards the direction from which the sound came.

Pushing aside the dense thicket of thorns, the sight before him made him freeze in mid-air, his movement of preparing to yawn halting.

All that could be seen was an open space under the moonlight.

A girl wearing overalls and with messy hair was wielding a shovel, tirelessly digging a hole.

Her movements were extremely precise, and each shovel swing carried an indescribable sense of rhythm.

Dig, toss, and compact the soil.

On the grass next to her, there was a bulging burlap sack.

The sack was tied tightly shut, and it seemed to contain a large, living person inside, still wriggling slightly and emitting muffled groans.

It was Feng Baobao, the crazy girl who ran around the field with a shovel during the day.

Seeing this scene, Zhang Taichu showed no intention of calling the police or acting as a chivalrous hero. Instead, his sleepy eyes lit up.

He didn't say anything, but quietly walked over and squatted down beside the pit that had been dug more than a meter deep.

He even reached out and grabbed a handful of freshly turned-up wet soil, rubbing it in his hands.

puff--

Feng Baobao planted the shovel in the ground, straightened up, and wiped away her sweat.

She looked at Zhang Taichu, who had suddenly appeared at the edge of the pit, and his expressionless face showed no surprise.

He simply blinked his large, empty eyes and asked:

"You're here to take a dump too?"

"..."

Zhang Taichu's lips twitched slightly.

He threw the soil back into the pit, clapped his hands, pointed to the pit, and shook his head.

"The pit was dug well; it's quite square."

"but……"

Zhang Taichu's tone shifted, becoming somewhat critical, like that of a professional:

"Your shape is wrong."

"what?"

Feng Baobao tilted her head, looking at him with a blank and adorable expression:

"What's wrong with that?"

"It's narrow at the bottom and wide at the top."

Zhang Taichu stretched out his finger and drew a trapezoid in the air:

"This is how you bury a dead person."

"Dead people don't move, so you can bury them however you like."

As he spoke, he pointed to the burlap sack next to him that was writhing wildly:

"But your item, it's still alive, isn't it?"

Feng Baobao nodded:

"Hey, he was just yelling, but I knocked him unconscious. He's probably awake now."

That's it.

Zhang Taichu looked at him with disappointment and sighed.

"Living people can move and struggle."

"If you dig it into an inverted trapezoid shape that is wider at the top and narrower at the bottom, once the soil is filled in, as long as he kicks his leg inside, the top layer of soil will loosen."

"If it rains even a little, the soil will collapse, and your hands or feet will be exposed, won't they?"

"What if it gets exposed and someone finds out?"

"Young people these days just don't pay attention to detail when they're working."

Feng Baobao was stunned.

She looked down at the hole she had dug, then at the burlap sack next to her, as if mentally simulating the situation Zhang Taichu had described.

After a while.

A hint of admiration even appeared in her eyes.

"Oh...you have a point."

Feng Baobao scratched her messy hair and humbly asked for advice:

"So how should we dig?"

"This requires consideration of mechanical structure."

Zhang Taichu became interested and simply sat cross-legged on the edge of the pit, picked up a twig, and started drawing on the ground:

"Look, for something that's still breathing, you have to dig it into a gourd shape."

Small mouth, big belly.

"After you stuff a person in there, no matter how much they struggle inside, their energy is directed outwards and they can't reach the top layer of soil."

"There are also specific guidelines for backfilling."

Zhang Taichu tapped the ground with a twig:

"We can't just dump everything in at once."

"We need to fill in a layer of gravel first to smother the air."

"Add another layer of clay to seal in the smell."

"Finally, cover it with this kind of loose soil with turf, and then sprinkle some fallen leaves around it."

At this point, Zhang Taichu threw away the branch he was holding, clapped his hands, and looked inscrutable:

"In that case, let alone rain."

"Even if police dogs come, they won't be able to smell it."

"What's this called?"

"That's called professionalism."

under the moonlight.

Feng Baobao held a shovel in her hand, listening intently.

He even nodded from time to time, muttering to himself as if reciting these golden words of wisdom.

"Gourd-shaped... gravel... clay..."

Now, Feng Baobao's gaze towards Zhang Taichu completely changed.

It was the look in your eyes when you've met a kindred spirit, or even a mentor.

"Didn't you notice?"

Feng Baobao sincerely exclaimed:

"You know so much."

"You seem to be an expert; have you been doing this often before?"

Zhang Taichu waved his hand, looking humble:

A true hero doesn't dwell on past glories.

"I only studied it a little bit when I was young."

"After all, the world was in chaos back then, and I often had to help people with... cleanup work."

The two of them, in the dark and windy scene of a murder and body disposal, were having an academic exchange about the art of burying people.

The atmosphere was eerily harmonious.

And just then...

Suddenly, a series of hurried footsteps came from the distant woods, accompanied by the crackling sound of branches breaking.

"Bao'er! Bao'er, where are you?!"

"My dear sister! Please don't act impulsively!"

Zhang Chulan's panting voice came through, carrying a sense of collapse that seemed about to bring him to tears.

He was genuinely terrified today.

In the blink of an eye, Bao'er disappeared.

Upon further inquiry, it was discovered that Shan Shitong, who had competed against him, had also disappeared.

Anyone with a brain knows what happened!

If they really buried the contestants on Longhu Mountain, then Zhang Chulan shouldn't even think about the Heavenly Master's Ordination; he could just wash his neck clean and wait to be hunted down by the Quanxing!

"Sister Bao'er!"

Zhang Chulan stumbled and rushed out of the bushes.

then.

He then witnessed a scene that made him question the meaning of life.

under the moonlight.

The mysterious Taoist priest Zhang Chu, who had been terrifying him for the past few days, was sitting cross-legged on the edge of a pit.

Meanwhile, his sister Bao'er was squatting obediently opposite him like a primary school student, holding a shovel in her hand, listening attentively to the Taoist priest's lecture.

And next to the two of them.

The sack containing Shan Shitong lay alone on the grass, still twitching helplessly.

"this……"

Zhang Chulan suddenly stopped in his tracks, almost tripping and falling flat on his face.

His mouth was agape, and his eyes nearly popped out.

What's going on?

What the hell is going on?!

Isn't this kidnapping?

Isn't this supposed to be silencing them?

Are these two... having a late-night chat?

"Oh, you're here?"

Hearing the noise, Zhang Taichu lazily turned his head and glanced at Zhang Chulan, who was covered in sweat.

"Since your accomplices are here, I won't say any more."

Zhang Taichu patted the dirt off his backside and stood up.

He yawned again, seemingly tired from talking.

"Alright, I've taught you the methods. Figure out the rest yourself."

Zhang Taichu stretched and, ignoring Zhang Chulan who was frozen in place, started walking slowly into the depths of the forest.

As he passed by Zhang Chulan, he stopped and patted Zhang Chulan on the shoulder.

"Young man."

Zhang Taichu said earnestly:

"Be more efficient in your work from now on."

"Finding such a clumsy partner is a blessing in disguise, because I'm the one."

"If it were anyone else, you would have been inside operating sewing machines by now."

After saying that, he shook his head, put his hands behind his back, hummed an unknown tune, and disappeared into the night.

Zhang Chulan was left alone, standing stiffly in place, bewildered in the wind.

A long time passed.

Zhang Chulan finally snapped out of his daze, overwhelmed by the sheer absurdity of the situation.

Looking at Feng Baobao, who was still gesturing in the shape of a gourd at the edge of the pit, he asked in a trembling voice:

"Bao... Sister Bao'er..."

"What...what did that pervert...say to you?"

"He didn't do anything to you, did he?"

Feng Baobao raised her head, her eyes sparkling in the moonlight.

"It's nothing."

Feng Baobao said with a serious expression:

"That Taoist priest is a good person."

"A good person?!"

Zhang Chulan almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

You call someone who teaches you how to bury a corpse in the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere a good person?!

"That's right."

Feng Baobao nodded, picked up the shovel again, looked at the hole in the ground, and was eager to try:

He taught me a lot of things I didn't know before.

"Zhang Chulan, step back a little."

"I'm going to repair this pit again according to the master's instructions."

"He's right. I buried it too carelessly before, and it was easy to be exposed."

As she spoke, Feng Baobao ignored Zhang Chulan's devastated expression, brandished her shovel, and began to enthusiastically upgrade the pit.

Zhang Chulan felt a wave of dizziness as he watched this scene.

He covered his forehead and leaned weakly against the tree trunk.

It’s over.

It's completely over.

Bao'er, who was already a bit abnormal, has now encountered an even more abnormal Taoist priest.

After that...

Is there any peace left in the world of supernatural beings?

"Um... Sister Bao'er..."

Zhang Chulan spoke weakly:

"Can we stop fixing the crater for now...?"

"How about letting the person out of that sack?"

"If we don't release it soon... he'll really have to use this trap."