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

Thunder roared and lightning cleaved the night sky.

Lin Chen stood under the eaves, watching the torrential rain outside.

Based on my memories of watching movies in my past life, such extreme weather is often accompanied by major events.

Could it be that the bronze-skinned, iron-boned royal zombie has arrived ahead of schedule? After waiting for half an hour, apart from the sounds of wind and rain, there wasn't even a ghost in sight.

Lin Chen chuckled self-deprecatingly, realizing he had been overreacting.

In chaotic times, there aren't that many major events happening every day; most of the time, it's just ordinary days filled with the mundane details of daily life.

He turned around and went back inside.

A dim kerosene lamp was lit in the lobby.

Jiale was carrying several dishes out of the kitchen.

"Junior brother, stop looking and come eat, the food's getting cold."

Master Four Eyes was already seated in the main seat.

Holding chopsticks in his hand, he looked at the dishes on the table, his eyes twitching.

A plate of boiled cabbage, a plate of fried tofu, and a dish of pickled vegetables.

"Jiale, did you use all the money I earned from transporting corpses to buy paper money for the dead?"

Master Simu poked the hard, fried tofu with his chopsticks.

"Is this all you're going to give me?"

Jiale shrank his neck.

"Master, with such heavy rain, the town market has already closed."

"This cabbage was picked from the vegetable garden in my backyard with great difficulty."

Master Simu glared at him irritably.

"All you do is eat, eat, eat! You can't even see a single piece of meat."

Lin Chen wasn't a picky eater.

He picked up the bowl, filled it to the brim with rice, and began to eat it in large mouthfuls.

Those who cultivate the Tao expend a great deal of physical strength.

Every day, I have to chop wood and carry water. If I don't eat enough, where will I get the strength? The strength attribute calculated by the system also needs sufficient nutrition to support it.

At the dinner table, only the sound of Lin Chen chewing could be heard.

Master Simu nodded inwardly as he watched Lin Chen prepare the meal.

This apprentice is not only highly talented, but also not picky about food; he's far superior to Jia Le.

After dinner.

The rain outside was getting heavier.

Master Four Eyes yawned and stretched.

"Alright, hurry up and clear the table, I'm going back to my room to sleep."

"I have to get up early tomorrow for morning classes."

Master Simu walked back to his room with his hands behind his back and a gait that resembled the character "八" (eight).

Lin Chen helped Jia Le put the dishes and chopsticks away in the kitchen.

I just finished washing the dishes.

Suddenly, a very rhythmic knocking sound came from next door.

"Tap! Tap! Tap!"

That's the sound of striking a wooden fish.

Immediately afterwards, the loud chanting of Master Ikkyu came over.

"Thus have I heard. At one time the Buddha was staying in the country of Shravasti..."

Lin Chen stopped what he was doing and turned to look at Master Simu's room.

as predicted.

In less than three breaths.

A roar came from Master Four Eyes' room.

"You bald-headed monk! Instead of sleeping in the middle of the night, are you tolling a death knell?"

The sound of the wooden fish paused for a moment.

Then, Master Ikkyu's voice drifted over slowly.

"Brother Four Eyes, the air is damp on rainy days. This old monk will recite Buddhist scriptures to dispel your inner demons and help you sleep."

"Tap! Tap! Tap!"

The sound of the wooden fish rang out again, this time even more rapidly than before.

The chanting also rose an octave.

The door to Master Simu's room was pushed open.

He was wearing a white undergarment, his hair was messy, and he had a cotton ball stuffed in each ear.

"I'm so angry! I'm so angry!"

"This old monk is clearly deliberately picking a fight!"

Cotton ball.

Useless.

The sound of the wooden fish was all-pervasive, drilling straight into my head along with the sound of the rain.

Jiale poked his head out from the kitchen.

"Master, should I go over and talk to the master and ask him to keep his voice down?"

"Shut up!"

Master Simu ripped the cotton out of his ear.

"To deal with this shameless bald monk, we have to use ruthless methods!"

"Jiale, go and set up my altar!"

"Lin Chen, go and move that box out from under my bed!"

Master Four Eyes' eyes were blazing with fury; he was clearly enraged.

Lin Chen responded and went into Master Simu's room. There was indeed a dusty box under the bed.

Lin Chen lifted the box out with one hand.

I wonder what's inside this box.

Lobby.

Jiale had already quickly placed an eight-immortal table in the center.

A yellow cloth was laid out, along with an incense burner, candlesticks, and a peach wood sword.

Master Simu opened the box.

It was filled with all sorts of strange and unusual magical artifacts and materials.

He pulled out a very finely crafted scarecrow from inside, then found a piece of yellow paper and quickly wrote down a line of his birth date and time.

Lin Chen stood to the side, watching the actions of Master Simu.

This birth date and time are obviously from Master Ikkyu.

These two old rivals know each other inside and out.

Master Simu pasted a piece of yellow paper with the characters "eight" written on it onto the scarecrow's back.

Then take a red thread and tie it around the scarecrow.

Lin Chen immediately focused intently on the Four-Eyed Taoist's every move.

Master Simu picked up two talismans between his fingertips and lit them over a candle flame.

He formed a mudra with his hands and chanted incantations.

"Heavenly spirits, earthly spirits, the patriarch of Maoshan has manifested his divine power!"

"Hear my command, my three souls and seven spirits! The straw man shall reveal his true form!"

Master Simu threw the burning talisman into a copper bowl filled with clean water.

"laugh!"

A plume of white smoke rose from the water.

He picked up the bronze bowl and took a mouthful of talisman water.

"puff!"

A mouthful of water was sprayed onto the scarecrow.

The originally lifeless scarecrow twitched slightly on the table.

Jiale watched in stunned silence.

"Master, what are you doing?"

Master Four Eyes sneered and gripped the peach wood sword in his other hand.

"What for? I'm going to show this bald monk why flowers are so red!"

The sound of the wooden fish drum from next door continued.

"Tap! Tap! Tap!"

Master Simu used his peach wood sword to lift the scarecrow, and gently tapped the scarecrow's left cheek with the tip of the sword.

"Snapped!"

The sound of the wooden fish drum from next door immediately stopped.

Immediately afterwards, a gasp of surprise came from Master Ikkyu.

"Ouch!"

Master Simu laughed smugly.

"Old man, you know how tough this is now, don't you?"

With a flick of his wrist, he slapped the scarecrow's right cheek with the peach wood sword.

"Snapped!"

Another crisp slapping sound came from next door.

"Four Eyes! You old Taoist priest, how dare you plot against this old monk!"

Master Ikkyu's furious voice came over.

Master Simu laughed so hard he almost fell over.

"Jiale, Lin Chen, did you hear that? The old monk is getting anxious!"

Lin Chen looked at the scarecrow on the table. Although this kind of magic was insidious, it was indeed effective.

It can have a surprising effect at crucial moments.

Lin Chen decided to study it properly.

Master Simu's playful nature was aroused.

He put down the peach wood sword, stretched out two fingers, and pinched the scarecrow's nose.

Pull it up forcefully.

Immediately, Ikkyu's voice came from next door.

"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Let go!"

Master Simu ignored him and pinched the scarecrow's ear with his fingers, twisting it hard.

Jiale watched from the side and couldn't stop laughing.

"Master, your move is amazing! Please teach me!"

Master Si Mu rolled his eyes at him.

"Teach you? You can't even draw the most basic talisman properly, and you want to learn this?"

"Just stay put and watch quietly from the sidelines!"

Just as Master Four Eyes was having a great time...

The next room suddenly became quiet.

There were no shouts, nor the sound of a wooden fish.

Master Simu stopped what he was doing and listened carefully.

"Strange, why is that old man so quiet?"

"Could he have fainted?"

Lin Chen looked at the candlelight on the altar.

The flame, which had been burning straight, suddenly began to shake violently.

The firelight turned a ghostly green, and a surge of magical energy emanated from next door.

"Master, be careful, Master Ikkyu is about to retaliate."

Lin Chen spoke up to remind him.

Master Four Eyes snorted coldly.

"Fight back? I even have his birth date and time. What are you going to use to fight back?"