Zombie Life Begins in Hongxi Village

Upon seeing the moon, Zhao Tuo could no longer contain himself. He pushed off with both feet, and his entire body soared into the air.

He opened his arms wide, like a traveler who had been parched for a long time and was now receiving rain, and devoured the moonlight power that had descended from the sky.

A silvery-white radiance surged toward him like swallows returning to their nests, seeping into his body, which had been dried up for thousands of years, through his open mouth.

He let out a sigh of satisfaction that was almost a groan, tilted his head back, as if drinking fine wine.

He was really unlucky.

If he hadn't met Lin Yi, according to his original fate, he would have barely managed to emerge from the underground palace before the moon was obscured by dark clouds, even before he could absorb a few breaths of moonlight.

He would then be accidentally fed a corpse-suppressing copper coin by Shi Chun.

The copper coin went down his throat, sealing off his corpse energy. Not only could he not fly, but he couldn't even use the corpse energy of a zombie. In the end, he could only fight to the death with a few ordinary people.

But tonight is different.

The moon was bright, the night sky was quiet, and no one came to disturb us.

He greedily absorbed the moonlight, and the corpse energy within his body, like a dried-up streambed meeting spring rain, gradually became abundant.

A quarter of an hour, half an hour, an hour...

He felt his power rising steadily, like a ball that had been compressed for thousands of years finally being inflated again.

He only reluctantly stopped when his body began to feel unwell from absorbing too much moonlight.

At this point, his strength had recovered to 30% of his peak.

Don't underestimate him just because he only has 30% of his power. With his foundation as a flying zombie, 30% of his strength is enough to cause a disaster in the mortal world.

If he has a few more days to absorb more moonlight, he will be able to fully recover to his peak condition.

Having recovered most of his strength, Zhao Tuo slowly landed.

Even though he now possessed enough power to dominate the area, he still obediently walked up to Lin Yi, not daring to overstep his bounds in the slightest.

The seemingly gentle young man in front of him simply waved his hand and transported him to a strange world without any resistance.

Although the place was covered in gold nuggets, it was also desolate and lifeless, devoid of sun, moon, wind, and any sign of life.

He was certain that it was not the world he knew.

Such a power to change the world with a wave of the hand is something that even legendary gods and Buddhas would probably be unable to achieve.

"Immortal," Zhao Tuo lowered his head, then asked expectantly, "what is the second option you mentioned earlier?"

Lin Yi chuckled and said, "Of course you'll work for me."

Zhao Tuo was overjoyed upon hearing this.

He knelt on the ground, devoid of any imperial dignity, and said, "Zhao Tuo greets Your Majesty! I am willing to die for Your Majesty!"

Get up.

Lin Yi reached out and lifted him up with a gentle force.

Lin Yi didn't say much, and pointed a finger at Zhao Tuo's brow.

A point of dark red light transformed into countless tiny runes, as fine as mosquito legs, that spread down Zhao Tuo's forehead, cheeks, and neck, wrapping around his limbs and bones like vines.

……

Meanwhile, the atmosphere in the reception room of the North District Police Station was somewhat oppressive. Wang Xiaoming and Lao Yutou were still recovering from Lin You's bizarre death.

Wang Xiaoming sat in a corner of the bench, half-heartedly responding to Teacher Wang's words.

Seeing his absent-minded appearance, Teacher Wang couldn't help but frown.

Old Taro was squatting in the corner smoking.

The door opened, and a young policewoman walked in.

The policewoman had a mixed-race appearance, with deep-set eyes, a high nose, and a capable air mixed with a touch of academic naiveté.

Her name is Bai Hongbo, and she is a police chief who was just sent here by the city today.

She nodded to Teacher Wang first, then said, "Teacher Wang, why don't you go back to your dormitory and rest? We have some things to discuss."

Teacher Wang glanced at Wang Xiaoming, saw that he was still absent-minded, sighed almost imperceptibly, and then got up to say goodbye.

After she left, Bai Hongbo placed a stack of files on the table, glanced between Wang Xiaoming and Lao Yutou, and asked:

"Wang Xiaoming, before Inspector Lin went crazy, did that tourist do anything unusual? Like spraying something, or touching Inspector Lin?"

Wang Xiaoming shook his head:

"No. When Sergeant Lin went to question them, the man completely ignored him. Then Sergeant Lin suddenly ran after thin air, getting farther and farther away, and rushed straight into the sea. We couldn't stop him."

Bai Hongbo frowned, his tone displeased: "Then why didn't you bring that tourist back for questioning?"

Wang Xiaoming opened his mouth, but was speechless for a moment.

Old Taro quickly stubbed out his cigarette on the sole of his shoe and said with a forced smile:

"Madam, you can't say that. Chief Inspector Lin suddenly went crazy and rushed into the sea to drown. Wang Xiaoming and I both saw it."

Those tourists didn't touch him at all. Even if we brought them back, we wouldn't get anything out of them.

He dared not cause trouble for Lin Yi and the others; the other party was clearly not an ordinary person.

He only makes a few dozen yuan a month, why is he risking his life?

Bai Hongbo was about to speak again when Lao Yutou added, "Madam, since the higher-ups have already decided that he committed suicide, let's focus our attention on Wang Zhaodi's case."

That was a proper, officially filed murder case.

Bai Hongbo was so angry at what he said that he slammed his hand on the table: "What kind of talk is that! Wang Zhaodi's case must be investigated, and Chief Lin's death cannot be left unresolved!"

I checked his file. There was no history of mental illness in his family. The autopsy report said he did not use any illegal drugs. How could he suddenly go crazy?

"Inspector Lin is our colleague. Are we just going to let him die without knowing why?"

Wang Xiaoming then raised his head, his tone turning cold: "Madam, you just said that Chief Lin is our buddy, but do you know that he almost shot me and Lao Yutou today?"

Yes, he's the sheriff, but we're police officers too. You're blaming us for not checking those tourists because of a madman who tried to kill us.

"Wang Xiaoming, what kind of attitude is this!"

Bai Hongbo slammed his hand on the table again, his face turning pale with anger.

Seeing this, Old Taro quickly stepped in to smooth things over: "Madam, calm down. Wang Xiaoming didn't mean it that way."

"No one touched Chief Lin before he died, I swear on my life. He might have really gone mad, or he might have been possessed..."

Old Taro froze as soon as he got to the word "ghost".

There's an old saying on this island: Don't mention ghosts at night, or they'll come.

How did I break this taboo?

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps and cries for help came from the doorway.

Two young men in swimming trunks tumbled in, leaving a trail of wet water.

The thin boy with glasses in the lead was Li Zicai from Sanyu Middle School; the tall boy behind him was his classmate Lego.

Li Zicai's face turned deathly pale, his lips even turning blue. He collapsed to the floor as soon as he entered the room, crying out, "Help! There's a water ghost! The water ghost is killing people!"

Bai Hongbo and the others stood up abruptly. "What happened?" Bai Hongbo asked.

"Water ghost...it's a water ghost..." Li Zicai stammered, his words incoherent. "We, all five of us classmates, were dragged away! Only Lego and I managed to escape!"

"What?"

Bai Hongbo and the others were shocked.

"Where is it? Take us there!" Bai Hongbo said urgently.

"Old Taro, hurry up and drive the car, and take the kayak with you."

She didn't believe at all that water ghosts could kill people; she thought they were just having leg cramps and was going over to see if she could save one or two of them.

However, what they didn't notice was that the tall, thin boy named Lego kept his head down, and a large patch of water was already soaking wet at his feet.

Although Li Zicai was somewhat frightened, he still nodded.

Just as Old Taro was about to leave, the door slammed shut by itself.

The sound was extremely loud, like someone had slammed it down from the outside.

Everyone was startled and turned to look at the doorway.

Immediately afterwards, the lights in the reception room flickered on and off, as if something was rubbing against the wires, making a buzzing sound.

A cold, damp air slowly spread across the concrete floor.

"Why is the ground so wet?" Li Zicai suddenly exclaimed.

He was barefoot and was the first to notice something was wrong.

When everyone looked down, they saw that the thin layer of water had already soaked through the soles of their shoes.

But this is a police station, where did all this water come from?

It also has a fishy smell!

Before they could figure it out, the Lego who had been keeping his head down suddenly stiffened, rolled his eyes upward, made a strange "hoho" sound from his throat, and then lunged at Bai Hongbo, grabbing her neck tightly with both hands.

"Let her go! What are you doing!"

Wang Xiaoming rushed forward to try and pull the Lego apart, but found that the other person's hands were as cold as ice, and their ten fingers were as hard as iron clamps, and he couldn't pry them open no matter what he did.

Bai Hongbo's face turned purple from being choked, and he made a hissing sound from his throat.

Old Taro's expression changed drastically upon seeing this. He hurriedly pulled out a handful of cinnabar from his pocket and threw it all over Lego's body.

The moment the cinnabar touched the Lego, it made a "sizzling" sound, like a branding iron being pressed into snow.

A cloud of black smoke sprang out from the Lego.

The Lego set collapsed limply to the ground as if all its strength had been drained.

Bai Hongbo also clutched his neck, panting heavily, unable to speak for a moment.

"Don't panic, everyone! That water ghost has followed us to the station!" Old Taro shouted. "Quick, get on the table! This thing can harm people with water, so whatever you do, don't touch the water on the ground!"

After he finished speaking, he jumped onto a desk.

Wang Xiaoming also jumped up in a hurry.

Li Zicai had already climbed onto the bench, trembling like a leaf.

Bai Hongbo also endured the discomfort and climbed onto the table.

"Come on, everyone, put some cinnabar on."

Old Taro grabbed another handful of cinnabar and smeared it on Wang Xiaoming and Li Zicai's faces.

He then swiped at Bai Hongbo.

Just then, Bai Hongbo's eyes suddenly rolled back, leaving only a deathly white.

She let out a strange laugh and kicked the old taro.

Old Taro was caught off guard by her possession and was kicked squarely, causing him to fall off the table and scatter the cinnabar into the puddles on the ground.

"She's been possessed too!" Wang Xiaoming shouted.

Bai Hongbo suddenly turned his head and stared at Li Zicai, who was closest to him.

She pounced like a mad cat. Li Zicai screamed in fright, and in his panic, he raised the Bodhi bracelet that Shen Cihang had blessed in front of his chest.

The moment Bai Hongbo's hand touched the bracelet, he was flung away by a gentle burst of Buddhist light, staggering several steps.

Before Li Zicai could even feel relieved, Bai Hongbo had already grabbed a wooden chair and hurled it at him.

Li Zicai couldn't dodge in time and was hit squarely on the right hand by the chair.

A sharp pain shot through him, and his wrist went limp. The Bodhi bracelet was knocked out of his hand and flew into the puddle with a splash.

The moment the bracelet entered the water, it suddenly shone with a dazzling golden light, and the water on the ground seemed to shrink rapidly as if it had been boiled, disappearing completely in a moment.

But the bracelet had completely dimmed, the beads scattered all over the ground, and it no longer had any luster.

Bai Hongbo grinned, revealing a strange smile, and lunged at Li Zicai again.

Her speed was astonishing. Li Zicai's right hand had just been smashed and he couldn't lift it, so how could he dodge?

Just as those hands were about to grab his neck, at the critical moment, there was a loud "bang" and the door to the reception room was kicked open.

A dark shadow shot in, a flash of cold light, and an ancient sword pierced through Bai Hongbo's left shoulder, pinning her to the wall behind her.

The ancient sword emanated a malevolent aura that surged like a black tide.

Pinned to the wall, Bai Hongbo let out a final, mournful howl, his body convulsed violently a few times, and then fell completely silent.

Before the water ghost possessing her body could escape, it was torn apart by the murderous aura on the sword, leaving not even a trace of its soul behind.

Zhao Tuo strode in from outside the door.

He was dressed in an old imperial robe, his face was ashen, his eyes were eerily green, and his whole body exuded a chilling aura of death, making him even more terrifying than the water ghost from before.

The crowd was initially delighted, but after seeing the newcomer's face and eerie attire, they all gasped in shock.

Lin Yi then walked in unhurriedly.

He glanced at Bai Hongbo, who was nailed to the wall, and a hint of disappointment flashed in his eyes.

He had originally planned to watch a spectacular show of a wooden flying zombie fighting a water ghost, but it ended in just one encounter.

This water ghost is incredibly ferocious in front of ordinary people, but when it encounters a thousand-year-old flying zombie like Zhao Tuo, it's nothing but a clay chicken or a clay dog, unable to even escape.

As for the policewoman Bai Hongbo, Lin Yi only glanced at her before looking away.

It doesn't matter whether you save someone whose soul has been scattered or not.

But the kid named Lego surprised him a bit.

Generally speaking, even if the ghost is expelled, the soul of someone who has been possessed by such a vengeful spirit has already been scattered.

Even if you miraculously survive, you'll become a living dead!

But this kid is amazing; not only did he not die, his soul was also completely preserved.

Lin Yilu quickly realized that Lego had been struck by divine intervention.

Those of the Divine Path lineage, who invite deities to possess their bodies, possess souls far more resilient than ordinary people, capable of withstanding the yin energy of vengeful ghosts.

When Zhao Tuo saw Lin Yi, he waved to retrieve the demonic sword and stood respectfully behind him like a loyal old servant.

Wang Xiaoming asked, trembling, "Are you... are you a human or a ghost?"

"Of course it was a person. Have you ever heard of the Maoshan Taoists? The one who saved you just now was my corpse-refining technique," Lin Yi casually made up.

Upon hearing Lin Yi say that he was a human being, Wang Xiaoming immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

Old Taro, enduring the excruciating pain, stepped forward to express his gratitude, saying, "Thank you, Taoist priest, for saving us."

He knew a little about the supernatural and knew that Taoist priests of Maoshan could control ghosts and exorcise zombies, so he believed Lin Yi when she said that.

At the same time, he became even more certain that he had killed Lin You, but knowing this did not mean he would meddle in other people's business.

Just then, Li Zicai suddenly rushed up to Lin Yi with red eyes and shouted, "Since you are a Taoist priest from Maoshan, why didn't you get rid of the water ghost sooner? If you had gotten rid of the water ghost earlier, my classmates wouldn't have died."

And this policewoman, you're a Taoist priest, you could have easily exorcised the ghost for her, so why did your zombie kill her with a sword? You're a murderer!

In his mind, slaying demons and monsters was the duty of a Taoist priest, a matter of course, and he should be condemned if he did not do it well.

His best friend died, and he needed to vent his anger!

Lin Yi's face turned cold, and the atmosphere at the scene instantly froze.

"Ha, I didn't expect you, you water ghost, to still be alive and even possess an innocent boy!"