Chapter 22: The Village's Deadly Transformation

"Awoo—"
"Crash!"
A series of smashing and clattering sounds erupted from inside.
Seeing this, I thought to myself that things had taken a turn for the worse. Er Pang was in trouble!
I did not hesitate any longer. Gripping my copper coin sword, I dashed through the large red gate.
The moment I stepped inside, I felt an intense chill in the air, though I couldn't tell why.
When I saw the scene in the courtyard, my heart skipped a beat.
There stood a creature that was neither fully human nor fully dog. Its clothes were shredded into rags by some unknown force. The figure was disheveled and wild, looking like a complete maniac. Anyone who didn't know better would have mistaken him for Crazy Zhao.
But this person was much taller than Crazy Zhao, with a sturdy, hulking build. Yet, every two steps he took, he would rake his hands against the ground, looking exactly like a poorly evolved dog.
Meanwhile, Er Pang was darting back and forth, clutching a broom, his mouth running incessantly.
"Do you know who the Third Prince Nezha is!"
"How dare you!"
"Why are you biting my broom!"
The beast-like man seemed completely out of his mind, snapping his jaws at whatever he could grab, indifferent to the green blood already trickling from his lips.
Seeing this, I realized immediately.
Like the family of Old Granny Er, this man had turned into a walking corpse!
Er Pang flung the broom aside. The walking corpse lunged at him again, and Er Pang, having nowhere left to retreat, began shouting at the surroundings: "Where is my dad, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King? Save me!!!"
Seeing that Er Pang was about to be bitten, I snatched the prepared Corpse-Suppressing Talisman from my bag.
"This talisman of mine is no ordinary charm! With the Dipper stars pointing to the heavenly axis; point to the sky and it clears, point to the earth and it enlivens, point to man and he lives long, point to ghosts and they perish! By the order of the Divine Soldiers, act with haste!!!"
I shouted at the top of my lungs and threw it.
A flash of yellow light erupted from the talisman as it shot through the air!
My heart soared. This thing was truly powerful!
But before I could revel in my success, the talisman slapped squarely onto Er Pang’s forehead.
"What is this! I can't see! Hey! Is anyone there!"
Er Pang struggled, trying to rip the talisman off. The walking corpse paused, staring blankly at Er Pang, apparently confused by his antics.
I smacked my forehead in frustration. How did I manage to hit the wrong person?
As soon as Er Pang peeled off the yellow charm, he looked at me by the gate and immediately shouted, "Tian Gang! Run! There's a mad dog biting people here, hurry up and run!"

He didn't think to ask me to save him first. Instead, he told me to run. My resolve to be his friend only deepened.
The walking corpse was already lunging again, aiming for Er Pang’s neck. There was no time for me to get there.
I could only shout at him: "Er Pang, stick the talisman in your hand onto his forehead!"
Er Pang had always been simple-minded. Without a hint of doubt, he raised his hand and slapped it firmly onto the face of the creature that was about to bite his neck!
"Smack!!!"
He put his whole weight into it. A dull thud echoed from the creature’s forehead.
The next second, Er Pang squeezed his eyes shut.
"It's over, it's over, it's all over. The Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King didn't come, but Han Tian Gang did. I'm doomed!"
After waiting a moment, he realized nothing was happening. He opened his eyes to see the walking corpse standing rooted to the spot, as if struck by an acupuncture needle, completely motionless.
Looking curious, he waved a hand in front of the corpse’s eyes and poked its chest.
After confirming it wouldn't move, he looked at me in surprise. "Tian Gang, what is this? Why did it stop moving?"
I let out a long breath and said helplessly, "It’s my first time using it, that’s why I hit you in the forehead first."
Er Pang came over to my side and asked, "Is this from that book you read every day?"
He often hung out with me, so he knew I was always reading a book, though he didn't know the contents, nor did he care.
I nodded and asked, "Why is there a walking corpse at your place? Did something happen in the village?"
Hearing this, Er Pang’s interest peaked.
"Tian Gang, I’m wondering the same thing. I went to the ancestral hall to steal some offerings this morning. Not long after, some people arrived, so I hid under the table beneath our ancestors' memorial tablets. And guess what?"
Seeing him dawdle, I said impatiently, "Stop babbling. I have many urgent matters today; keep it short."
Er Pang continued, "At first, it was just the village chief and Widow Wang paying respects to the ancestors. Then, they started hugging and kissing just like my parents did. I thought that was all, and I’d just leave once they were done."
"But then, Widow Wang started acting like a lunatic. She stopped kissing and started gnawing! She was biting the village chief until he was screaming. I thought it was just like my parents, but I figured if anyone should be screaming, it would be the woman. Why would a grown man like the village chief scream? I peeked out and saw a huge hole bitten right into the village chief’s neck!"
"I was so scared I hid back inside. I only came out when it was quiet. My legs were numb, so I ran all the way home. My house was empty, then this thing popped out, and then you arrived."
After finishing his story, Er Pang looked at me nervously. "Tian Gang, you read books about this stuff all the time. What is going on? Is this a person or a dog?"
Hearing his account, my brow furrowed deeply.
It seemed that not only had Old Granny Er’s family turned into corpses, but the rest of the village might have fallen victim as well.
However, one thing didn't make sense. If it were just some zombie that escaped and bit a villager, and that villager then infected others, it would be a vicious cycle—one bites ten, ten bite a hundred.
But what about the family tomb set up for Old Granny Er’s family?
Do zombies possess enough mercy to want a family reunion?
No!
It wasn't a zombie or a walking corpse. It was that Taoist!
When I was pulling that girl toward the mountain, Old Granny Er had been following that Taoist, completely spiritless.
In that case, it must have been Old Granny Er’s soul being used for some unknown purpose.
And the body I saw in the graveyard halfway up the mountain was her physical corpse.
That explains why I saw "Old Granny Er" twice.
Although I was new to this craft, I knew that a person was composed of three souls, seven spirits, and a physical shell. A walking corpse lacks consciousness because only the shell has turned. The soul is what determines if a person's thinking is normal.
So, the question remains: what exactly is that Taoist doing? If he is the one behind this, why today?
Because today was the day I went up the mountain to find the mysterious female corpse.
Before this, outsiders rarely visited the village. The village was poor, lacking everything, and there was no tourism.
Was all of this just a coincidence?
The feeling of unease grew even stronger.
Seeing me silent, Er Pang asked, "Tian Gang, why did you come to my house?"
The question snapped me back to reality.
The coffin fungus!
There wasn't much time left. As for the affairs of the village, I was only one person, weak and powerless; trying to uncover the truth now would just be acting on impulse.
The right choice right now was to get the coffin fungus immediately.
If the female corpse could truly be revived, this small matter would be effortless for her. I had seen her power clearly when I was three years old.
Whether it was the Earth Immortal weasel or that old Taoist, none of them were a match for her.
Even if she couldn't be revived immediately, asking her what was going on would be better than running around like a headless chicken.
Having reached this conclusion, I immediately told Er Pang, "I need your help. Come with me up the mountain!!!"