Uncle Nine: You were supposed to drive corpses, so you summoned the Monkey King!

That crying is specifically designed to entice people.

Upon hearing the crying, Qiu Sheng's eyes became glazed over, and he walked forward with a silly grin.

Master Si Mu took out a calming talisman and stuck it on Qiu Sheng's forehead, freezing him in place. The sound waves of the illusion directly enveloped Lin Chen.

The scene before Lin Chen's eyes began to distort, the mass grave transformed into a magnificent palace, and countless scantily clad beauties pounced on him.

"A mere trifle." Lin Chen looked at them.

His current mental attribute is as high as 25 points, which is three times higher than that of an ordinary person. This kind of low-level bewitching illusion is simply child's play.

The passive skill [Divine Might Awe] was automatically triggered, and a mental pressure emanated from Lin Chen, causing the illusion in front of him to shatter and disappear.

Dong Xiaoyu screamed as the illusion was broken. She suffered a backlash; her ghostly form became slightly transparent, and she fell from mid-air to the ground.

Lin Chen leaned in and pressed forward.

The tip of the lightning-struck wooden sword was pressed against Dong Xiaoyu's throat; pushing it forward even half an inch would send her utterly annihilated.

"Don't kill me!"

Dong Xiaoyu knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly.

"Master, spare my life! I'll never do it again!"

Qiu Sheng also came to his senses at this time.

Seeing that Xiaoyu was on the verge of death, he rushed over and hugged Uncle Jiu's leg.

"Master! Please spare her!"

"She's a pitiful person too, she really didn't mean to hurt me!"

Uncle Jiu looked at Qiu Sheng, after all, he was the apprentice he had raised since childhood, and his heart softened.

"Lin Chen, put your sword away."

Lin Chen put away the lightning-struck wooden sword and looked at Dong Xiaoyu.

"I'll spare your life today because of my senior master."

"If you dare to harass my senior brother again, I will kill you without mercy!"

Dong Xiaoyu felt as if she had been granted a pardon and quickly kowtowed.

She glanced deeply at Qiu Sheng on the ground, then vanished into the depths of the mass grave as a gust of wind.

Qiu Sheng sat on the ground without saying a word.

Uncle Nine walked over, grabbed Qiu Sheng by the collar, and lifted him up.

"I'll deal with you when we get back!"

The farce thus came to an end.

The group left the mass grave and headed towards the mortuary.

The sound of the night watchman's drum at midnight echoed from the town.

The system notification sounded in Lin Chen's mind.

[Ding! It's midnight. Begin today's cultivation settlement.]

[Today's arduous journey to locate auspicious burial sites has resulted in a +1 increase in Constitution.]

[Breaked the female ghost's illusion today, improved combat experience, gained +1 Spirit.]

[No trump cards were used in today's battle against a higher-level opponent; Dao Heart remains stable; Power +1.]

A warm current spread through Lin Chen's body, sweeping away his fatigue and sharpening his senses.

Lin Chen clenched his fist, quite satisfied with his current state.

After returning to the mortuary.

Uncle Nine locked Qiu Sheng in the woodshed to reflect on his mistakes, while Master Four Eyes yawned and went back to his room to sleep.

Lin Chen stood alone in the courtyard.

I looked up at the moon, which was obscured by dark clouds.

The ghost issue has been resolved, but the real trouble is just beginning.

That lame evil cultivator, and that half-step iron-armored corpse that was taken away and reforged, they could jump out and bite people at any time.

Lin Chen gripped the lightning-struck wooden sword, not caring what kind of demons or monsters came; as long as they dared to show their faces, he would cut them all down with a single sword strike.

He turned and went into the guest room, sat cross-legged on the bed and closed his eyes.

The Shangqing Great Cave True Scripture began to circulate within his body, preparing him for the tough battle to come.

Early morning, in the backyard of the mortuary.

The sound of stomachs rumbling came from the woodshed.

Qiu Sheng peered through the crack in the door.

Wencai was holding a bowl of white porridge, squatting outside the woodshed door and slurping it down.

"Senior brother, this porridge smells really good." Wen Cai deliberately held the bowl up to the crack in the door and shook it.

Qiu Sheng swallowed.

Last night, a female ghost drained my yang energy for half the night, and I also got beaten up by Uncle Nine. Now I'm so hungry that my stomach is practically sticking to my back.

"Wencai, do you have any conscience?" Qiusheng whispered, "You secretly saved me a steamed bun. I'll treat you next time we go to the brothel."

Wencai licked the rice grains clean from the bottom of the bowl, his face beaming with pride.

"Master said he'll starve you for three days to get rid of the evil fire in your body."

Wencai stood up and patted his bottom.

"You can stay inside and reflect on your actions. I need to go deliver breakfast to my cousin Tingting."

Qiu was so angry that she stomped her feet inside.

Front courtyard lobby.

Uncle Nine was counting the yellow paper and cinnabar at the table.

Master Simu sat cross-legged on a grand chair, a toothpick dangling from his mouth.

Lin Chen practiced his swordplay in the courtyard with his lightning-struck wooden sword. After completing a set of Maoshan Demon-Slaying Sword Techniques, Lin Chen sheathed his sword and stood still.

Lin Chen exhaled a breath of stale air, feeling his power solidify even further.

Uncle Jiu looked at Lin Chen in the courtyard with admiration in his eyes.

"Four Eyes, your disciple is truly a freak," Uncle Nine whispered. "He actually managed to master the Shangqing Great Cave True Scripture."

Master Four Eyes shook his leg smugly.

"That's right, don't you even know whose disciple you are?" Master Four Eyes spat out a toothpick. "Senior brother, who are you planning to take with you to the mass grave today?"

Uncle Nine put the cinnabar into a cloth bag.

"Qiusheng is confined to his residence, while Wencai stays behind to guard the house."

"Let's go, the three of us old men and young men, to find out what's going on with that cripple."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than the gate of the mortuary was pounded on with a deafening roar.

"Open the door! Open the door now!" Awei shouted from outside the door.

Wencai quickly ran over and opened the door.

Awei walked in with several security guards carrying long guns, two boxes of Western pastries in his hands, and hair wax on his head.

"Cousin! Your cousin has come to see you!"

Ren Tingting came out of the guest room and felt a headache coming on when she saw Awei.

"Cousin, what are you doing here?" Ren Tingting asked helplessly.

Awei went over to fawn over him.

"Cousin, this mortuary is so gloomy, I'm afraid you won't be used to living here."

"I brought a few brothers to protect you."

Master Four Eyes let out a cold laugh.

"Protect? I wonder who was so scared last night that they hid under the table and even lost their shoes."

Awei blushed and retorted stubbornly.

"That was tactical evasion! You don't know anything!"

Lin Chen looked at Awei.

"Captain Wei, are the funeral arrangements for Master Ren finished?"

Awei nodded quickly.

"It was burned completely, and I had someone collect the ashes into an urn."

Lin Chen carried the wooden sword on his back.

"That's perfect, we have some important business to attend to today."

"Since Captain Awei brought men with him, let them stay at the mortuary and help guard it."

Upon hearing that there was no need to catch the zombies, Awei immediately patted his chest and assured him.

"Leave it to me! Not even a fly can get in!"

Uncle Nine slung a yellow cloth satchel over his shoulder and took a peach wood sword.

"Let's go, take advantage of the bright daylight and strong yang energy, and go to the mass grave to investigate."

Lin Chen and Master Simu followed.

The three left the mortuary and headed north of the town.

As Awei watched the three walk away, he immediately turned to look at Wencai.

"Go, brew me a pot of good tea, and bring me some melon seeds."

Wen Cai rolled his eyes.

"Pour your own tea if you want some; I still have to go chop wood in the backyard."

Awei was so angry he wanted to lash out, but he had to hold back because Ren Tingting was there.

On the small road in the north of the town.

Uncle Nine walked ahead, holding a brass compass in his hand.

The compass needle moved slightly.

"Uncle-Master, that cripple definitely knows we're looking for him," Lin Chen said.

Uncle Nine nodded.

"These heretical practitioners are masters of hiding."

"However, as long as he remains near the town, he cannot escape Maoshan's tracking methods."

Master Four Eyes touched the bronze sword on his back.

"No matter where he hides, as long as he shows his face, I'll slice him in half with my sword."

Lin Chen was planning his actions for the night.

Yesterday I severely injured a half-step Ironclad Corpse and received a generous attribute reward. If I can also kill that evil cultivator, the system will definitely give me a huge bonus.

As long as I don't fall for any sneak attacks, I have a good chance of winning against that cripple.

The three quickened their pace and hurried toward the mass grave.

The midday sun is very strong, and you sweat profusely when it shines on you.

But the closer you get to the north of the town, the cooler the air becomes, and the roadside weeds turn from emerald green to withered yellow.

Even the birdsong is gone.

Lin Chen took a deep breath; the air smelled of earth and the stench of corpses.

"We've arrived." Uncle Nine stopped.

Ahead lay a vast expanse of barren hills, with countless broken tombstones leaning precariously in the earth.

Three poles in the sun.

The mass grave in northern Zhenbei.

This place is perpetually shrouded in darkness, and the surrounding trees grow in strange shapes.

The ground was covered with weeds that were half a person tall, and there were broken tombstones and piles of rubble everywhere. Occasionally, a few crows would perch on the withered branches and caw.

Uncle Nine walked at the front, holding a Bagua compass, the compass needle spinning wildly.

"The magnetic field here is even more chaotic than a dragonfly skimming the water's surface."

Master Four Eyes looked around.

"This place is so deathly, even in broad daylight you feel a chill running down your spine."

Lin Chen's gaze swept across the grass, and he quickly walked to a broken tombstone, squatting down.

"Master, Uncle-Master, come and see."