Zhang Yuanqing returned to the Main Hall, bathed in candlelight, calming the throbbing pain from his recurring ailment while purifying himself.
Based on his calculations, the Vengeful Spirit would latch onto him within a minute or two. Now was definitely not the time to enter the East Courtyard and confront the Zombie.
After resting for four or five minutes, his condition worsened. A headache was accompanied by mild dizziness, signaling the Corpse Poison's gradual invasion of his body and the onset of initial symptoms.
The Main Hall's candlelight seemed ineffective at neutralizing the toxins within him.
"I can't delay any longer."
He needed to seize the remaining half-hour of the Red Dancing Shoes' usage time, strike swiftly, and clear the dungeon in one go.
Zhang Yuanqing left the Main Hall, followed the cobblestone path through the overgrown weeds, and arrived at the Courtyard House.
Standing in the weed-choked courtyard, he opened his Inventory and summoned the Red Dancing Shoes.
Two crimson wisps of light danced through the night air, coalescing into a pair of pristine Dancing Shoes.
"Second form!" Zhang Yuanqing silently commanded.
The Red Dancing Shoes dissolved again into crimson light, arcing around his feet.
In an instant, his sneakers transformed into oversized red Dancing Shoes.
This... this is just cross-dressing in disguise! At least they're red dancing shoes, not high heels. Zhang Yuanqing glanced awkwardly at his feet, feeling distinctly out of place.
Forcing himself to ignore the detail, he retrieved the Corpse Suppressing Talisman, clutched it in his hand, and stepped through the arched gate into the East Courtyard, the rustling of the Great Banyan Tree filling the air.
In the East Courtyard, tall grass swayed under the clear moonlight, and two large houses stood silently, the entire scene bathed in an eerie stillness.
He cautiously surveyed the area, finding no sign of the zombie. He carefully crossed the courtyard, approaching the large house divided into four rooms.
The wooden door of the room containing the coffins had been smashed open. He didn't need to enter; he peered inside from the threshold.
Moonlight streamed through a gap in the roof tiles, illuminating the corpse, the coffins, the overturned coffin lids, and the brass staff—all lying undisturbed in their original positions.
The zombie was nowhere to be seen.
Could it have climbed back into its coffin?
From his angle, he couldn't see inside the coffin.
As he hesitated, he suddenly noticed the moonlight dimming. A dark shadow descended from above, enveloping him.
Immediately afterward, the night wind carried a thick stench of rotting flesh and a low, guttural growl.
It's hiding in the tree? Zhang Yuanqing's heart clenched in terror, and his instincts screamed for him to dodge.
In the next instant, the Red Dancing Shoes on his feet glowed with a faint crimson light. Zhang Yuanqing's feet suddenly slipped, and before he could react, he was propelled forward in a sliding tackle, carving a furrow through the tall grass.
Thump!
The raggedly clothed zombie lunged at empty air.
I... I dodged it! Zhang Yuanqing scrambled to his feet, his heart pounding with relief.
The Red Dancing Shoes were truly miraculous. Their evasive capabilities far exceeded his expectations. With his own reflexes, he would never have been able to evade the zombie's attack.
Zhang Yuanqing's confidence surged.
"Hrrgh..."
The zombie, its hair like withered grass, let out an ear-splitting roar. Its bulging eyes burned with renewed ferocity as it flexed its knees and lunged at its prey again, moving with the speed of a speeding car.
The putrid wind slammed into Zhang Yuanqing's face as the terrifying Yin creature closed in. His feet twisted uncontrollably, spinning him in a balletic pirouette. He smoothly carved a half-circle, evading the zombie's razor-sharp claws and positioning himself behind the creature.
Immediately, he "naturally" performed a split, his body collapsing abruptly as a fierce wind howled above his head and two arms swept horizontally past him.
Ouch, that's gonna hurt! Zhang Yuanqing's face twisted in agony. He desperately wanted to clutch his groin and howl in pain, but the Red Dancing Shoes had already propelled his legs into a spring, launching him upward.
He soared high, his feet slamming into the Zombie's chest with brutal force.
Boom!
The muffled impact sent dust billowing from the Zombie's tattered clothes.
It roared in furious defiance, the massive force knocking it flat on its back.
An opening! Ignoring the searing pain in his groin, Zhang Yuanqing sprinted forward, slapping the Corpse Suppressing Talisman against the Zombie's putrid, decaying face.
He slammed it onto its forehead.
Slap!
The bloodthirsty Zombie froze mid-roar, as if struck by a Stasis Spell.
All movement ceased, plunging the scene into silence.
The Zombie lay stiffly among the wild grass, the crimson in its ferocious eyes slowly fading to darkness.
It had lost its "life force."
Gazing at the now-lifeless Zombie, reduced to a clay statue, Zhang Yuanqing gasped for breath, exhaustion and elation surging through him in equal measure.
He survived!
"Without the Red Dancing Shoes, taking down a Zombie single-handedly would have been nearly impossible. And Zombies are just one of the many horrors in this S-rank Spirit Realm—it's truly brutal."
"But the construction team had numbers on their side. Theoretically, dealing with a Zombie should have been easy for a group of burly men. How could they have been so utterly useless...?"
Zhang Yuanqing suddenly sighed, realizing the truth.
The Corpse Suppressing Talisman had been found in the pocket of the corpse beneath the window. The senior member had obtained this Rule Item but kept it secret from his companions, hoarding it for himself.
Human hearts are far more complex—and far more terrifying—than any ghost or monster.
With the Zombie dealt with, it was time to find that shameless Female Ghost in the well.
But before that, there was something else that deeply concerned Zhang Yuanqing.
Leaving the Zombie behind, he walked toward the room where the coffins were displayed. Leaning against the doorframe, he stepped over the threshold into the dimly lit chamber, where moonlight streamed in like a beam.
He stopped before the mummified corpse and bent down to pick up the bronze pestle.
Though made of bronze, the pestle felt neither cold nor metallic in his hand. Instead, it was warm and smooth, like jade.
Immediately, a notification appeared in his vision:
[ Demon Subduing Pestle ]
[ Weapon ]
[ Function: Purification, Spirit Suppression, Demon Subduing ]
[ Description: A weapon imbued with the Solar Divine Power, it is the bane of all Yin creatures. By offering a sacrifice of vital essence to this pestle, one can harness the Solar Divine Power. ]
[ Note: Powerful? It comes at the cost of life. ]
It was indeed a Rule Item. Judging by its description, it seemed even more potent than the Candles in the Main Hall. The construction team veterans must have intended to use it to kill the Zombies, but they failed. Sigh, they had already lost too many men before even confronting the Zombies. Zhang Yuanqing felt fortunate to have made the right judgment, cleverly using the Red Dancing Shoes to overcome the obstacle.
Of course, the construction team veterans had no choice. They couldn't possibly subdue this Rule Item, and most of them had died under the Dancing Shoes' relentless stomping.
"With this item specifically designed to counter Yin creatures, combined with the Red Dancing Shoes, my chances of completing the Trial Mission have greatly increased."
Grasping the Demon Subduing Pestle, Zhang Yuanqing felt a surge of confidence. Before the five minutes were up, he left the room and returned to the courtyard.
This time, he headed straight for the ancient well, determined to conduct a final investigation.
The well's mouth was dark and deep, and a damp, rotting smell of vegetation wafted upward.
Zhang Yuanqing gripped the Demon Subduing Pestle, adopting a defensive stance. He placed one foot on the well's edge and then simply walked down the wall as if it were flat ground.
Previously, he would never have dared to explore the well. Even if there were no dangers at the bottom, jumping in without ropes or assistance would have been a death sentence.
He quickly reached the shallow bottom, where the moonlight barely penetrated.
The well had long since dried up, leaving behind a layer of black silt at the bottom. Clumps of weeds grew along the edges, and the walls were covered in dark green moss.
"There's no ghost in the well," Zhang Yuanqing frowned. This doesn't make sense. I clearly saw a faceless female ghost peering out from inside.
He searched the well bottom repeatedly, but with limited time left to wear the Red Dancing Shoes, he reluctantly climbed back up the steep wall and hurried back to the eaves of the Main Hall.
Only then did he safely remove the Red Dancing Shoes.
Inside the Main Hall, bathed in the dim yellow candlelight, Zhang Yuanqing leaned weakly against the offering table. The Corpse Poison's effects were worsening. After the dizziness, he now suffered from shortness of breath and chest pain.
Time was running out.
"I've explored both rear courtyards and successfully subdued the zombies. Since the mission isn't over, there must be somewhere I haven't explored yet..."
He had searched every room in the rear courtyards, even descended into the well. There couldn't possibly be any oversights.
So, where could it be?
When all possibilities are eliminated, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth. Muttering this to himself, Zhang Yuanqing slowly pushed himself upright.
The only place he hadn't "explored" was this very place—the Main Hall before him.
Zhang Yuanqing's gaze slowly swept across the Main Hall, finally settling on the clay statue of the Goddess of Sandaoshan. A detail on the statue had caught his attention the first time he entered the hall.
The statue's right hand was empty, yet it was sculpted in a grasping pose, indicating it originally held something.
He hadn't known what she held before, but now he did.
The Demon Subduing Pestle.
With nothing to lose, Zhang Yuanqing stepped forward and inserted the golden Demon Subduing Pestle into the statue's palm. He then leaped off the pedestal and retreated a few steps.
Almost the instant he moved back, the pedestal's surface cracked with a sharp crack, sending up a cloud of fine dust. The entire structure collapsed, revealing a dark, gaping cave beneath.