Zombie Life Begins in Hongxi Village

"And who are you? What are you doing here?" Lin Yi asked in return.

As soon as Lin Yi finished speaking, Qiu Sheng's face, which had appeared on the tree trunk, suddenly twisted, as if it were being torn apart from the inside by something.

He murmured to himself, "Who am I? Who am I, really?"

His expression grew increasingly pained, as if something was churning within his empty memories, yet he couldn't grasp it no matter what he did.

After a long silence, Qiu Sheng finally spoke blankly: "My surname is Lin... no, I think I really hate people with the surname Lin."

After another long silence, the face slowly lowered, and the voice was low: "I...I don't remember who I am."

Have you lost your memory?

Lin Yi's heart stirred slightly.

Now that He has forgotten, He has saved Him a lot of trouble.

"I, the Black Mountain Demon, have seized this City of the Wrongfully Dead. From now on, everything in the City of the Wrongfully Dead belongs to me."

Lin Yi took a step forward, and the murderous aura on the black armor surged forward like a tide, enveloping the entire Qiu Sheng tree.

"You little demon, you do have some background. I find you pleasing to the eye and wish to take you as my subordinate. Are you willing?"

Qiu Sheng raised his tree-like face, his empty eyes staring at Lin Yi.

During his time in the City of the Wrongfully Dead, he was tormented by the chanting of Master Ikkyu every day, to the point of wishing he were dead.

Although he no longer remembered the past, his instincts told him that he must not be "converted" by that old monk.

Now that this Black Mountain Demon wants to take Him as his subordinate, He will have a powerful backer, so why would He refuse?

Without hesitation, he cried out, "I am willing! I am willing! Lord Black Mountain, from this day forward, my life belongs to you!"

His eager appearance reminded Lin Yi of Dong Tianbao's face when he sought refuge with Eunuch Liu in "Tai Chi Master".

He appears loyal on the surface, but is actually rebellious at heart.

However, Lin Yi didn't care.

It's just a chess piece; what difference does it make whether it has a rebellious streak or not?

"Very good." Lin Yi nodded. "From now on, you will be called Granny Tree Demon. I will send you to the mortal realm, where you can cultivate diligently. When I need you, I will naturally inform you."

The tree demon, Granny Qiu Sheng, nodded repeatedly. Just as she was about to say a few more words to express her loyalty, Lin Yi waved his hand, and everything went black before her eyes. All five senses were sealed off, and the entire tree was taken into the Buddha Kingdom in her palm.

Lin Yi left the City of the Wrongfully Dead, took the elevator straight down to Fengdu Underworld, found Zhong Kui, borrowed the Gate of Hell from Fengdu Underworld, and stepped into the territory of Jinhua County, Zhejiang Province.

North of Jinhua County, adjacent to Jinhua Mountain, lies a small town.

Because it is located in the north of the city, the town got a straightforward name – Guobei Town.

When Lin Yi saw the three mottled characters on the town's entrance archway, a feeling of utter absurdity welled up inside her.

This place is actually called Guobei.

He had just asked Zhong Kui about it, and there had never been any legends of a ghost in the mortal world, nor were there any figures like Ning Caichen or Nie Xiaoqian recorded in unofficial histories or notes.

But Guo Beizhen was truly standing right in front of him.

What's going on?

Is fate or some kind of divine book driving this plot?

Even without his intervention, would a story of a ghost story naturally unfold here in the future?

If that's the case, then hasn't he been taking advantage of the Heavenly Book all along?

Lin Yi looked up at the sky thoughtfully.

The gray-white clouds hung low, like an overturned iron pot.

He suddenly felt that fate wasn't so hateful after all.

After all, if his guess is right, then he has been bullying fate all along...

However, this is just his guess, and whether it is true or not still needs to be verified.

At this time, the Jinhua area was still under Japanese occupation, and the country was in chaos, with people suffering greatly.

The mayor of Guobei Town was a traitor appointed by the local tyrant. He only knew how to exploit the people and didn't care about their livelihoods.

Mountain bandits and thieves swaggered around the streets, these fierce-looking men carrying wanted posters and searching for so-called "guerrilla teams behind enemy lines" and "Eighth Route Army" members.

They would grab anyone who bore even a slight resemblance to the portrait without a word.

Street fights and murders are frequent occurrences; almost everyone carries a knife, and some even openly display guns at their waists.

The restaurants and teahouses along the street are hiding unbearable darkness.

Lin Yi's gaze swept over a tavern on the street, and he caught a whiff of grease mixed with the smell of blood. He realized that the tavern was secretly selling rice and meat.

What is rice meat?

It's the kind of food that Dr. Hannibal Lecter often ate!

These utterly depraved individuals have completely lost their humanity and have become evil spirits walking among humans.

Strangely, this town, so rife with evil, was spotless, devoid of any malevolent spirits or ghosts.

Lin Yi observed carefully and found that every household had three yellow talismans pasted on their wooden doors: one for exorcising evil spirits, one for suppressing ghosts, and one for ensuring peace.

The talismans, shimmering with spiritual light, are not counterfeit goods concocted by charlatans; they are talismans blessed with genuine Taoist magic.

There are also street vendors selling talismans. Although the talismans they sell are crude and far inferior to those of masters like Uncle Nine and Maoshan Jian, they are genuine and can indeed ward off ordinary evil spirits.

It seems the people here are terrified of ghosts.

It was precisely because of these genuine talismans that not a single ghost could be found in the entire town.

Even in the restaurants that sell rice and meat, there is only cannibalism, not ghosts eating people.

This Guobei Town, apart from the difference in era, is practically a replica of Guobei County in the movie "A Chinese Ghost Story".

Lin Yi had no intention of forcibly interfering.

Most of the people here have committed heinous crimes; they are more like living ghosts than human beings.

Even the children on the street were savage brats, chasing stray dogs in groups of three or five and throwing stones at passing beggars.

Good people can't survive here.

People here go to the underworld after they die, where they are destined for hell and fire. It's probably difficult for them to be reborn as humans in the next life.

Since everyone here is a villain, any trouble that happens in Lanruo Temple in the future will not harm the innocent.

He walked down the street, and everyone's senses were distorted, so they couldn't see him at all.

As you travel north from Guobei Town, the ancient trees grow ever taller.

The old forests on Jinhua Mountain are so dense that they block out the sun, and even during the day, there is a chilling atmosphere in the forest.

Every now and then you can see one or two new graves by the roadside. Some graves still have yellow paper on them, while others have been dug up by wild dogs, revealing half a tattered mat and a few pale white bones.

Lin Yi ignored these things, activated his clairvoyance and scanned the surroundings, quickly discovering an ancient temple three miles to the south.

He flashed and instantly appeared in front of the ancient temple gate.

A worn plaque hangs above the temple gate, bearing the three large characters "Jinhua Temple".

Lin Yi stood in front of the door, staring blankly for a while, then sighed softly, "What am I expecting?"

He had expected to see the words "Lanruo Temple" here, but it turned out to be just Jinhua Temple.

It seems his previous guess may not have been accurate, and Guo Beizhen may just be a coincidence.

Jinhua Temple is indeed a desolate and dilapidated ancient temple, somewhat similar to the legendary Lanruo Temple.

Moreover, this place is located in a yin and evil position, and the yin and evil energy in the vicinity will automatically gather here.

The temple gate was half-closed, and the vermilion lacquer on the door panels had peeled off almost completely, revealing the grayish-white wood underneath.

Lin Yi pushed open the temple door, and the rusty copper rings made a grating creaking sound.

The temple has been without incense offerings for a long time. The main hall houses several Buddha statues, all covered in dust and in a state of disrepair. Only a faint glimmer of spiritual light remains, teetering on the brink of collapse in the gloomy atmosphere.

It was this spark of inspiration that prevented this gloomy place from being occupied by wandering ghosts.

To Lin Yi's disappointment, there was no trace of demonic energy here, and there was obviously no so-called Tree Demon Granny.