After Yin Xiu led the camel and horse through the door, he saw a group of officials standing in the courtyard, surrounded by soldiers armed with swords, guns and clubs, in full formation.
These officials wore red or green official robes with white cranes and peacocks embroidered on them, and they looked quite impressive.
However, the expressions on their faces were very tired, even a little sad.
"Taoist priests, I have been waiting for you."
After observing Yin Xiu and the others, the leading official was very excited and bowed slightly to the three of them.
Yin Xiu had heard about it before coming. This was the local first officer, named Ruan Donghua.
Ruan Donghua's deeds are known to everyone in the small town of Wangnan.
Although it is still classified as a major military town in terms of configuration, in fact, the entire Cochin armament has been slack these days. After the French proposed "protection", they even released their troops to Nanshan, and Wangnan no longer has the original warning role.
Everyone pessimistically believes that this place cannot be defended. In the future, it will either be taken back by the Central Plains court, or it will become a bridgehead for the French to attack the Central Plains.
In this way, Wangnan has become a hot potato again.
It was then the Ruan Donghua family's turn to take action, spending a lot of money to donate officials here, and became the chief of Wangnan.
Originally a businessman, he transformed into a black gauze hat and official robe.
Compared with General Zhennan, the chief of this small town always gives people a timid feeling, probably because he was frightened by the zombies.
The interpreter saluted with greater amplitude.
"Sir, you're welcome. Pindao and his two colleagues are here to help you solve your problems and help people's livelihood."
"Come in!"
Ruan Donghua walked in front and led a group of officials to welcome the three people into the hall.
After the guests of honor were seated, Ruan Donghua introduced them to the current situation.
"Wangnan has twelve villages under its jurisdiction, half of which are small villages with a population of less than 100 people, and most of the people still live in the town.
Now we can no longer contact some remote villages, and only a few nearby villages have people coming to ask for help in the morning.
Not surprisingly, they have all been invaded by zombies and suffered casualties. ”
"Yeah."
The interpreter sighed, "In Pindao's village, a zombie came last night. Fortunately, Pindao knew some magic and methods, and finally subdued the soulless body."
Ruan Donghua knew that the interpreter might have some abilities, but he didn't expect that he could really subdue the zombies, and he couldn't help but be shocked.
After a pause, he asked again: "May I ask, sir, what is a soulless body?"
The interpreter stood up, put his hands behind his back and began to explain to everyone.
"Human beings have three souls and seven souls, but they cannot do any of them. Without one of them, people will inevitably suffer from three disasters and six diseases, and they will either become bedridden or become idiots.
Children are the most likely to lose their souls due to fright, so women often take their children to temples to frighten them and drink sacred tea.
Once a person dies, the three souls and seven souls will leave the body and return to their respective places of origin, waiting for reincarnation.
However, due to various reasons, a soul remains in the body of the dead person, which transforms into a corpse and becomes a zombie outside the Five Elements and Six Paths, causing harm to the world.
So I call these guys soulless bodies. ”
"That's it."
Ruan Donghua responded casually and asked the interpreter: "What should we do now?"
The interpreter touched his chin and said: "It's already afternoon now, and it's going to be dark soon. I'm afraid it's too late to find out where the zombies are hiding. All that can be done now is to evacuate and shelter them." The people.
First, don’t ask people to stay on the streets at night to avoid being harmed by zombies.
The second is to ask them to stay at home, close the door tightly, reinforce the doors and windows, scatter some glutinous rice around the courtyard wall, and never open the door if anything happens. In this way, they will be safe in the morning. ”
"Glutinous rice can also protect against zombies? What about duck eggs?"
"Let's eat it." Yin Xiu responded lightly.
Ruan Donghua glared at the official who asked the question, and then said to the speaker: "No problem, I will tell the soldiers to report before sunset, close the door tightly, and do not travel at night.
Also, should we send an elite night patrol team to patrol the streets? ”
As soon as the words were spoken, all the officials, including the soldiers, who had raised their heads and raised their chests, all lowered their heads, pretending not to hear, and fearing that their names would be called.
Yin Xiu put down the tea bowl and said calmly: "If you send people to patrol, aren't they giving midnight snacks to the zombies?"
When he said this, Ruan Donghua could only give up the idea in embarrassment.
He originally wanted to continue asking the interpreter, but he was afraid that he didn't understand anything and would make a joke.
So he asked Yin Xiu: "This Taoist priest, what do you think we should do next? What should we prepare?"
"What are you preparing for?"
Yin Xiu scratched his face and glanced at Ma Xiaoyu.
Ma Xiaoyu cast a secretive, watery look.
So Yin Xiu waved her hand and said, "Let's eat first."
……
In the evening, the interpreter erected the Dharma platform in the courtyard.
His use of magical instruments, proficiency in rituals, and perfect coordination made even Ma Xiaoyu praise him for his professionalism.
After arranging things, offering sacrifices to the ancestor, and seeking the influence of the gods from all directions, the interpreter came down from the altar.
"You two, I'm afraid we have to take the initiative tonight. It would be best if we could catch the source of the zombie scourge. No matter what, we have to catch all the zombies in the town. Otherwise, there will never be peace here. Day.”
"Understood."
Yin Xiu nodded, "Taoist priest, don't worry, leave the outside to me, as for the inside..."
Needless to say, Ma Xiaoyu asked: "You mean where the family members are?"
The place Ma Xiaoyu was talking about was the backyard, a garden surrounded by rockeries and with the sound of clear springs.
"Yes, there are many women and children housed there. Although there are high walls, if zombies get in, the consequences will be disastrous."
"I'll just go."
Ma Xiaoyu didn't take it seriously, "I'll take care of it later. Not a single zombie can get in."
"Thank you very much, girl." The interpreter bowed.
"You're welcome."
Ma Xiaoyu cupped her hands and walked into the backyard under the leadership of the servant.
The interpreter did not stare at Ma Xiaoyu like Yin Xiu until she disappeared from sight.
He just waited for Yin Xiu to turn around and then asked: "I don't know, Taoist Master Yin, what magic weapon do you use?"
"You're welcome. If you don't mind, just call me Brother Yin, because I haven't obtained the ultimatum yet, and I can't be called a Taoist priest in front of my fellow disciples."
"So, Brother Yin, you haven't been awarded the imperial edict yet?" The interpreter didn't seem surprised. He just said lightly: "Actually, it's just a document, a token. The government and ordinary people recognize it, but the ancestor doesn't. This.”
He glanced around and saw Ruan Donghua and a group of officials kneeling on the ground, holding incense and praying, and kowtowed.
"The Patriarch will bless those who are kind-hearted, resolute and brave. However, the most important thing for people is to save themselves. They pray to gods and Buddhas all day long. Even if gods bless them, there will inevitably be oversights."
< br>
The interpreter sighed and took another look at the sky.
At this time, the moon was mostly covered by dark clouds, which was not a good sign.
Yin Xiu didn't have as many people as he thought. For him, it was certainly impossible to save all the people in Wangnan by his own strength.
If he had such thoughts, then he should be running around outside and wandering among the villages at this time, instead of staying in Wangnan Town.
Of course Yin Xiu knew what he was capable of. He was not a great golden immortal. He could not see thousands of miles by day or spy on ghosts and gods at night. All he could do was try his best to save others.
But sometimes when faced with a difficult choice, he can only choose one of them.
Just like the people of Longmai and Wangnan, when the critical moment comes, he can only choose the former. This is the most responsible behavior and choice.
The great chivalrous person is not only because he has great benevolence, but also because he has great love.
Of course he can rescue a child who fell into the water and rescue the crying child from the stormy waves.
But when the dilemma comes, a real hero must be mentally prepared to accept the cruel reality, even if the cries of children echo for the rest of his life.
If he wants to accomplish such great things, he must be ruthless to others and even more ruthless to himself.
When Yin Xiu was thinking this, a cold light filled her eyes unconsciously, and she was surprised to understand the speaker.
However, the interpreter only thought that he was full of fighting spirit, patted his shoulder and said: "Fellow Daoist Yin, I guess there are not too many zombies in the town. According to the commander's guess, there may only be two or three. We only need Working closely, it’s not a big problem.”
As he spoke, he first confessed to Yin Xiu and showed a sword with a cold light.
"This is my sword, and it is also a magic weapon. It has only killed demons and ghosts. In addition to a zombie last night, the yang energy is extremely strong, so it is named [True Yang]."
Yin Xiu looked at his sword and felt that the sword body had been wrapped in the dragon and tiger's energy and was faintly purple.
The interpreter probably practiced and danced with the sword every day. Over time, the sword had such a color and temperament. The sweat and hard work put into it is difficult for outsiders to understand.
The Maoshan sect originally valued magical weapons and spells. In addition to the Seven-Star Fire Lin, Uncle Ming also had two other peach wood swords on the altar that could not be used. They were all his efforts.
As for Yin Xiu, it is said that he does not refine weapons, but in fact he has the world-famous sword Chaofeng by his side.
However, Chaofeng was used more as a weapon than a magical weapon. Yin Xiu was too busy and did not have the time and energy to refine the peach wood sword or the copper coin sword, so he used the weapon as a magical weapon.
Just like Ma Xiaoyu, even though the three-color ruler she uses every day is a magical weapon, there is no doubt that it is used to fight with people.
Therefore, when the interpreter asked him what magic weapon he was using, Yin Xiu without hesitation took out the famous sword Izumi Ichimonzonori that had been put aside and wrapped in cloth.
He was not willing to use the Five Ghosts to bring wealth in front of everyone, so he took out the sword early and kept it by his side for later use.
"It turns out that fellow Taoist, you are using the sword to enter the Tao, and you are protecting the Dharma."
Before the interpreter saw the sword, he already felt the sharpness and murderous intent contained in it.
Yin Xiu didn't explain too much: "Well, people are much worse than monsters and monsters these days, and we always deal with people more often than zombies."
"People's hearts are not ancient."
The interpreter didn't say anything else, he just took the hat that had been placed on the stage in his hands, put it on his head, and straightened the ribbon.
After taking incense and worshiping the gods, the interpreter grabbed the glutinous rice on the plate and threw it towards the incense candle.
boom!
The flames suddenly rose, startling everyone watching in the audience.
Then the interpreter stepped forward, holding a bell in one hand and a talisman in the other, waving it in the air and mumbling something.
The sound of the bells spread out from the courtyard and floated in the silent night sky, covered by the night fog.
Yin Xiu just sat on the chair, closing her eyes and relaxing.
After a while, a dull sound suddenly came from the street outside the high wall, full of rhythm.
Yin Xiu opened her eyes and looked at the conciliator. Both of them understood: the zombies are coming.
Sure enough, soon the soldiers who were looking out from a high place shouted: "Sir, Taoist Priest, there is something moving on the street!"
"Don't panic. Tell me clearly what's going on." Yin Xiu replied.
"Yes, there are two things running here, they look like people!"
"Then you are not human."
Yin Xiu grabbed Izumi Ichimonji, climbed over the wall several times, and jumped outside.
According to the direction pointed by the guard, Yin Xiu saw two figures running towards this side in the mist, very fast. They seemed to be shouting something and spitting out liquid.
"So fierce..."
Yin Xiu pulled off the cloth wrapping the sword, and Izumi Ichimonji took it out of the sheath.
"Kill!"
Yin Xiu drew his sword and moved forward, stepping lightly on the ground. In the next second, he appeared a few feet away.
When the two figures saw Yin Xiu running towards them, the noises in their mouths became louder, and a stream of fishy wind hit Yin Xiu's face.
Yin Xiu's eyes sparkled, and she moved her feet, grabbed two talisman papers, one on each side, and threw them towards the faces of the two zombies.
"Tai Shang Laojun is as urgent as the law, edict!"
The talisman paper followed Yin Xiu's guidance, fell on the two figures, and then fell off.
Huh?
Yin Xiu couldn't help but be stunned. Could it be that the talisman paper was invalid?
At this moment, the moon emerged from behind the dark clouds, and the situation on the street became clearer.
What kind of zombies are these? They are clearly just two innocent passers-by who ran away and foamed at the mouth.
Yin Xiu supported one of them and frowned: "Why does it smell so bad?"
"Pigsty, we were hiding in the pigsty for a while."
The two people were out of breath, "Help, help."
"You're safe now." Yin Xiu took a step away from them.
When the two people heard this, they couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief, but when they looked back, they yelled again.
"Here we go again, here we go again!"
Yin Xiu looked towards one end of the street, and sure enough, there was a zombie jumping here, breathing white air from its mouth.
"It's good to come."
When the two men were about to continue running away, Yin Xiu had already picked up their collars and threw them one by one over the wall into the courtyard.
Then Yoon Soo runs towards the zombie.
The moment the zombie raised his hand, Izumi Ichimonji came out of his sheath.
Under the moonlight, a head rolled onto the street and fell to the side. (End of chapter)