Chapter 36
Chapter 36
The bizarre sight turned the faces of Old Cao, Big Bull, and the other bearers grim.
They had expected an easy job, only to encounter extreme difficulty at the outset!
A vicious corpse was a transformed body progressing toward becoming a fiend. Most never completed that change into a corpse fiend, but without an expert to suppress it, a vicious corpse alone could slaughter a village!
No one expected Miss Duan to possess such overwhelming resentment.
“Master Cao, what do we do? You’re the expert in carrying coffins and handling emergencies!”
Bewildered, Yuan Fei appealed to Old Cao.
Though a folk Taoist master, he mainly selected graves, assessed feng shui, and drove away lonely ghosts and lesser spirits.
He had probably never encountered a corpse surging with baleful force and becoming vicious.
And since it remained inside a coffin, Old Cao truly knew more!
But the coffin grew heavier every moment, and the five bearers’ faces were turning purple. Old Cao could not speak.
At the limits of strength, a person relied on holding one breath.
Speaking would release it!
Fortunately, the dragon spine, phoenix rope, phoenix poles, and other tools belonged to Old Cao and Big Bull’s men. After years and countless processions, they had become almost like ritual implements.
Without their special properties, the coffin would have snapped them long ago.
Desperate, I thought, “Master said a household familiar strengthens practitioners of our arcane lineage and accompanies them for life. When major trouble comes, we should face it together.”
“Roundy, help! Roundy, hurry!”
I repeated the plea inwardly, rushed to the coffin, and heaved upward. “Why are you all standing there? Help lift! If a middle-school kid dares help, why are so many adults frozen?”
My shout woke the terrified crowd.
Boss Duan called, “Every able-bodied Duan man, help carry the coffin!”
The people surged forward and pushed upward against its lower edges.
At last, they stopped its descent.
“Huff… huff…”
Old Cao and Big Bull’s men finally caught their breath.
The instant he recovered, Old Cao shouted, “You men with benches, don’t stand there! Stuff them under the coffin. The rest, run back for more!”
We were less than thirty meters outside Duan Family Manor, so fetching them took little time.
Old Cao and Big Bull’s men held their phoenix poles while the Duan men and I supported the coffin. Yuan Fei directed others to work benches underneath from the corners.
They had been intended for later rest stops but proved vital now!
“Turn sideways slightly so the bench can slide in.”
“Mr. Yuan, it won’t fit! The coffin isn’t high enough.”
“It needs another inch and a half.”
After trying, the men reported failure.
Yuan Fei gritted his teeth, bit his index finger, and drew symbols in blood across his brass compass. Raising it with both hands, he aimed the bloody face at the head of the coffin.
Wedged among the adults, I felt the coffin lighten slightly.
“Mr. Yuan does have genuine skill!”
Together, we raised it another inch.
But the final half inch remained impossible!
More black mist seeped through the seams, bubbling upward into dark clouds that filled everyone with dread.
“Half an inch! Just half an inch more! Lift!” Big Bull shouted.
I cursed inwardly. “Roundy, you damned fat hen! You ate my offerings and became my household familiar, but apart from appearing in dreams, you’ve been useless. If you don’t come now, I disown you! Hurry up and get over here!”
At the final moment, a faint, piercing eagle cry sounded beside my ear, accompanied by rustling wings.
“Coo, coo, coo!”
After one eagle shriek, it became the ridiculous sound of a pigeon or hen. Straining beneath the coffin, I raised my head and saw a round white shadow circling above the lid.
It was not Roundy’s physical body, so no one but me could see it!
But my hands immediately felt lighter, and the coffin rose half an inch.
Roundy’s apparition had indeed intimidated the corpse and reduced the coffin’s weight.
The effect could not last. The moment the pressure eased, I shouted, “Slide them in! The benches–now!”
At last, all five long benches went beneath the coffin.
Everyone sighed with relief.
After supporting it for such a short time, my muscles ached and my arms trembled.
“Good. Ease off slowly. Withdraw in groups,” Yuan Fei instructed.
Duan women ran from the courtyard carrying more benches. Only after they added them beneath the coffin did I slowly let go.
The entire coffin sank the instant I released it.
It had grown heavier!
Fortunately, the clustered benches acted like one thick plank, their legs distributing the pressure. For the moment, the coffin was stable.
At least it would not touch the ground.
Now we could recover and consider our next move…
“You did very well, Xiao Wu. Very well indeed! A formidable young talent, just as expected of a child chosen by the Immortal Lady.”
Old Cao patted my shoulder.
He clearly approved of my performance.
I did not feel smug.
My starting point was high, and I had already seen much. My very first encounter involved sending a drowned revenant into the Hundred-Bone Pagoda, while the ghost that invited me to a feast was a century-old spirit!
This situation frightened me but remained within the pressure I could endure.
There was no need to mention that the final half inch came from summoning my household familiar Roundy.
“Master Cao, my daughter’s coffin…” Boss Duan approached, looking conflicted.
Before Old Cao answered, Yuan Fei snorted and glared at him.
“Boss Duan, you haven’t treated us honestly. You’re paying generously, but you can’t toy with us. You said your daughter had no unfinished wishes or resentment and would be easy to bury. Look at her now.”
He pointed to the coffin still leaking black energy.
“Your daughter has become a vicious corpse. How can we bury her? Even if we force her into the ground, the Golden Phoenix Spreading Its Wings site will be useless and cannot protect the Duan family.”
Boss Duan’s expression darkened.
As a prominent man accustomed to scolding others, he was unused to being scolded.
But this time he restrained himself.
“Mr. Yuan, Master Cao, I truly didn’t deceive you. My daughter had no unfulfilled wish or resentment. I don’t know why this happened. As her father, I’m the one who hurts most.”
He looked at the coffin, eyes reddening.
His grief did not appear feigned…
Old Cao stroked his chin. “Then this is strange. Why does Miss Duan carry so much resentment, and why is she becoming a vicious corpse?”