The Unremarkable Little Taoist Master

I looked at the Jiangshi clad in heavy armor and couldn’t help but find it absurdly amusing, simply because its appearance was so bizarre.

Just as I was about to make a move, I heard the door creak open, and a burly man stepped out from behind it. His impressive build and bronze skin conveyed a sense of strength, while his well-defined features reflected a determined demeanor.

I thought of the master I had come to see and asked, “Are you Blacksmith Hu?” The burly man nodded and let out a mysterious whistle, causing the Iron-armored Jiangshi to instantly vanish from my side. Blacksmith Hu stepped out with a hearty laugh, patting me on the back as he said, “Kid, you’re pretty sharp! If I hadn’t come out, my Iron-armored Jiangshi might have gotten into trouble.” I smiled and replied, “That’s not going to happen.”

Blacksmith Hu invited us to sit down, and the two of us settled in his small courtyard. I began, “I came to ask if you’ve noticed anything suspicious happening in the village lately, since there have been frequent disappearances of corpses and even Jiangshi.”

Blacksmith Hu pondered for a long moment before answering, “There is one thing that strikes me as odd. A few days ago, I was out working, transporting four corpses back home. While I was in the valley near Tiger Cave, I stepped away for a moment. Suddenly, I heard the roar of my Iron-armored Jiangshi. I hurried back, and when I returned, the corpses were still there, but my Iron-armored Jiangshi was injured. After completing my task, I was planning to take good care of my Iron-armored Jiangshi at home.”

Immediately, my interest was piqued, and I quickly asked, “Did you notice what attacked your Iron-armored Jiangshi?” Blacksmith Hu shook his head and said, “I didn’t see what attacked me or the Iron-armored Jiangshi. You’ll have to investigate that yourself; I can’t help you further.”

I nodded and said, “Thank you for the information. It seems we have a lead now.” As we were about to leave Blacksmith Hu’s home, he called out, “Wait a moment, you two.”

We both turned back, puzzled by Blacksmith Hu’s expression, unsure of what he was getting at. His face was lit up with enthusiasm, similar to how a single man would react upon seeing a beautiful woman, which left the two of us feeling a bit uneasy.

We mustered the courage to ask, “Is there something else you’d like to say?” Blacksmith Hu looked at the old daoist priest with gleaming eyes. We exchanged confused glances, unsure why he was gazing at the old man in such a way.

The old man quickly shuffled behind me, but I didn’t pay him any attention. I focused on Blacksmith Hu, who said, “I have some questions for that gentleman.” He pointed at the old daoist priest.

The old daoist priest sported a perplexed expression and said, “What do you want from me?”

Blacksmith Hu replied, “I see you have an unusual bone structure and a refined face. I’d like to discuss a few things with you.”

The old daoist priest looked completely bewildered and exclaimed, “But I don’t know anything about corpse herding! What is there to discuss?”

Without saying much more, Blacksmith Hu grabbed the old man and they left.

I chose not to interfere with those two peculiar individuals and instead wandered over to the large tree at the village entrance. I quietly sat down beneath the tree and didn’t utter a word.

My mind replayed the moments I had spent with Xinger and the others, and before I knew it, the sun had dipped below the horizon, lost in my own thoughts.

The old man eventually found me, looking quite excited, and then we returned to the village chief’s house. We sat together, and the old man held a book in his hands, eagerly reading through it repeatedly.

I recognized it as the secret manual Blacksmith Hu had left for him, but I didn’t pry. We both drifted off to sleep in a haze.

The next morning, I noticed the old man practicing some mysterious gestures out in the yard. He looked quite serious, almost like a master. I chuckled softly and glanced at the old daoist priest, who was diligently focusing on his efforts, and shook my head.

After we quickly finished breakfast, we decided to venture into the valley where the Tiger Cave was located. If possible, we aimed to eliminate the person who had been stealing corpses. After asking the villagers for directions, we shouldered our packs and headed out of the village.

Following the villagers’ instructions, we arrived at the entrance of the valley leading to the Tiger Cave in no time. It was said that the Tiger Cave used to be the territory of a pack of tigers, but for unknown reasons, there were none left now.

As we stood at the entrance of the valley, we felt a thick aura of corpses even before entering. The old man and I frowned at each other. Suddenly, the old man’s face lit up with excitement, as if he had discovered an extraordinary treasure.

We slowly made our way into the valley, and the thick corpse aura seemed to intensify. We cautiously took our time, sensing that the environment was quite perilous. After making a large loop, we found no unusual occurrences apart from the overwhelming corpse aura, which left us perplexed.

We didn’t even come across a single corpse. At first, I thought I might have misjudged the situation, but with such a strong aura, I felt certain I couldn’t be wrong. There had to be something in this valley.

We just hadn’t found it yet. I shook my head and led the old man back to the village. I asked, “Did you notice anything out of the ordinary?”

The old daoist priest replied, “Nothing besides the strong corpse aura.”

I nodded, “I observed the same thing.” The old man shrugged and said, “So what should we do next?”

I thought for a moment and said, “Since that creature likes to steal corpses, it must need them. We should disguise ourselves as corpse herders and set up a trap to catch this corpse thief.”

The old daoist priest nodded, “That’s a good plan, but where can we find someone willing to put themselves in danger as a corpse herder for us?”

I looked at the old daoist priest with a sympathetic expression, the kind you might give someone who was a little slow on the uptake. He gazed back at us, confused, and said, “Why are you looking at me like that? Did I say something wrong? I don’t think I did. It’s true that no one would willingly put themselves in danger for us.”

Suddenly, he seemed to realize something, his eyes wide with disbelief as he said to me, “You’re not suggesting that I should go, are you?”

I nodded, a sly grin creeping onto my face.

The old man reacted like a startled rabbit, jumping high and loudly exclaiming, “No, no way!”