Chapter Sixty-Four: The Daoist Marquis? The Corpse Daoist

“Yes, it was forged with Yin wood.”

Zhou Bai did not tell Yu Jun that this little tree had only been a seed not long ago; after all, he himself hadn’t expected it to grow so quickly.

Yu Jun’s expression was complicated. Zhou Bai’s choice for his life-bound ghost artifact was truly beyond her expectations, but from what she could see now, its potential was certainly extraordinary.

She also realized that since she hadn’t seen Zhou Bai carrying his life-bound ghost artifact, he must have already mastered the second layer of the technique, enabling him to store it within his body.

That meant he had already overcome the final drawback.

Zhou Bai patted the ghost tree’s branch, signaling it to return to his dantian. “Be good, back you go.”

The ghost tree shook its trunk in protest, appearing rather reluctant, rubbing its branches against Zhou Bai repeatedly.

But after he repeated his command a few more times, the ghost tree finally withdrew its aura and was absorbed back into his dantian, taking root there once more.

Of course, Zhou Bai could have forcibly recalled the ghost tree, but to him, it was like a five- or six-year-old child: a bit mischievous, but generally obedient.

Yu Jun didn’t waste any more time. Having just used her true form, most of her demonic energy had been depleted. She immediately sat down cross-legged and took a restorative pill.

“Zhou Bai, you should also take the chance to recover your strength and Yin energy. There’s something odd about what happened in Hangdu; nothing seems a coincidence. If there truly is a hidden hand behind all this, our enemy won’t give us long to catch our breath.”

Zhou Bai felt the same. The outbreak of corpses in Hangdu had coincided almost exactly with the arrival of support from the Underworld Bureau.

Moreover, the sudden appearance of zombies all over the city at the start didn’t seem to be caused merely by silver coins—it was impossible to explain.

He prepared to get up at once. “My strength isn’t a problem, and I haven’t used much Yin energy. Let me first find a safe place to settle Wang Sheng and Daoist Hou.”

“All right,” Yu Jun replied crisply, nodding before closing her eyes tightly, racing against time to recover her demonic power.

Zhou Bai hoisted Wang Sheng from the ground and slung him over his shoulder. The movement was rough, and Wang Sheng couldn’t help but groan in pain.

It was only then Zhou Bai realized Wang Sheng’s condition wasn’t as optimistic as Yu Jun had described.

Blood loss was one thing, but more critically, his body had been invaded by too much stray Yin energy, causing his own life force to stagnate. If this went on, his life would be in danger.

Just as Zhou Bai was about to take Daoist Hou with them, the old Daoist stood up by himself, wearing a long face as he walked over.

Daoist Hou was still holding his black donkey’s hoof, digging at his throat with his fingers as if trying to vomit something out.

“Zhou Bai, you’ve really done me in this time. I’m afraid I’m going to turn into a zombie.”

Zhou Bai focused his gaze. Daoist Hou’s body did indeed show some strange changes.

His skin had turned slightly purplish, though not so much as to be obvious—he still looked mostly like a normal person.

But his eyes were tinged with red, and from his mouth protruded canine teeth, reminding Zhou Bai of the zombies he had slain.

He immediately activated his Yin-Yang Eyes, seeing faint Yin energy emanating from Daoist Hou’s body. His heart now beat only once every dozen breaths, and his body temperature had dropped below twenty degrees.

“Old Hou, what’s happened to you? I have to say, this look isn’t half bad.”

Daoist Hou looked utterly miserable. Just thinking about it made his stomach churn. “It was those maggots—they flowed into my mouth with the water. I’m finished. If I become a zombie, put me out of my misery.”

Zhou Bai examined him closely, then said with a half-smile, “I don’t know if you’ll really turn into a zombie, but your condition does seem familiar…”

“That’s true,” Yu Jun interjected, opening her eyes. She had already calmed her demonic energy considerably in the short interval, even making some progress.

She glanced at Daoist Hou, stroking her chin. “It’s a bit like you’ve awakened some ghostly power by chance. Whether it’s a blessing or a curse, who can say?”

Zhou Bai nodded, stepping up to pat Daoist Hou on the shoulder. “It shouldn’t be too serious. That maggot died under my blade; perhaps after you swallowed it, it changed your body.”

Daoist Hou was filled with mixed emotions. Now that he calmed himself, he felt a surge of inexhaustible strength, but at the same time, much of his physical sensation had faded.

“Rather than ghostly power, I’d say it’s more like a corpse-arts power. Either way, Daoist Hou, you’ve come out ahead.”

In Zhou Bai’s view, this power had transformed Daoist Hou into something half-human, half-corpse. The benefits were great, but so were the drawbacks—things that restrained zombies would now affect him to some degree.

“Good heavens, so now the only path left for me is joining the Underworld Bureau,” Daoist Hou groaned, his face twisted with despair. He had spent his life hunting zombies, only to become one himself. In the end, it turned out the fool was him all along.

Yu Jun laughed. “There are other options. The Corpse-Driving Sect would be very interested in someone half-human, half-corpse like you.”

At those words, Daoist Hou shuddered. He knew the name of that sect—they specialized in dealing with corpses. If he didn’t join the Underworld Bureau, perhaps they really would come after him.

“Then I’d better join you folks. The pay isn’t bad, and it’s definitely quicker than picking up odd rituals and exorcisms.”

Zhou Bai had long disliked the black donkey’s hoof in Daoist Hou’s hand. “Since you look like this now, why are you still holding onto that thing?”

Daoist Hou quickly threw it aside and let out a long sigh. “No wonder I felt this pressure on my chest—it was the donkey’s hoof causing trouble.”

“This ghost-corpse power of yours is quite interesting. Once you join the Bureau, we should investigate it thoroughly—you might be the first of your kind,” Yu Jun said with great interest. She had never seen a power that made someone half-human, half-corpse. As Zhou Bai had said, calling it corpse-arts power was more fitting.

Daoist Hou’s mouth twitched. A chance occurrence had landed him here—what started as a vague intention to join the Underworld Bureau had become his only option.

“Let’s head to the county office and settle Wang Sheng first,” Zhou Bai said, seeing that Daoist Hou had quickly composed himself. He didn’t want to delay any longer, so he carried Wang Sheng and set off toward the county office.

Yu Jun and Daoist Hou immediately followed.

Though the source of the disaster had been dealt with, Zhou Bai still felt a heavy stone pressing on his heart. Hangdu felt like a chessboard—no one could tell when the next move would be played.

With their speed, it took only a dozen minutes to cross half the city and reach the county office.

Along the way, they saw devastation everywhere, but fortunately the constables had acted swiftly and, together with the Underworld Bureau, managed to stabilize the situation in Hangdu and keep the casualty count from rising above a hundred.