He became the True Lord of Ten Thousand Laws starting from Liaozhai.

The rain was heavier today than yesterday, and the small inn run by Lao Zhang and his son was full of guests early on.

The small inn is located about five or six miles outside the Red-tiled City, next to the main road.

Many traveling merchants or traders rested here.

Xiao Zhang was greeting customers inside the store.

Darkness quietly enveloped the sky, and the rain gradually intensified. Old Zhang had been planning to close up shop early.

Just as Old Zhang was about to close the door, a large, calloused hand suddenly reached out from outside and pressed firmly against it.

Startled, Old Zhang hurriedly said, "Guest, our inn is full. Please find another place to stay."

The owner of the large hand was a middle-aged man wearing a straw raincoat, followed by two other men also wearing straw raincoats.

With a smile plastered on his face, the man pleaded, "Innkeeper, my two brothers and I are from Huxiang County, on our way to Cuishi City to find relatives. The journey is long, so please take us in for the night."

The guest rooms were indeed full. The three men looked robust, and each had long strips of coarse cloth wrapped around their backs. After thinking for a moment, Old Zhang spoke with some difficulty.

He said, "Sir, there are indeed no rooms available, but there is one place that you can make do with, but I don't know if you..."

The three men had traveled a long way, crossing mountains and valleys, and were already exhausted.

The man in the lead quickly replied, "Shopkeeper, we're just happy to have a place to rest. We don't need anything more."

After hearing this, Old Zhang didn't say much, but simply said, "Please follow me, guest."

After saying that, Old Zhang took the lantern and led the way. The three of them followed Old Zhang to an unused room behind the inn.

This house was originally intended for storing miscellaneous items, but three days ago, Old Zhang's wife fell ill and died. According to local custom, the body must be kept for three days.

However, the carpenter who was making the coffin had caught a cold due to the rain, which delayed his schedule. He had no choice but to arrange these things for tomorrow.

Old Zhang led three men in straw raincoats into the house. They saw an altar with two white candles lit on it, and behind the altar was a funeral bed covered with a white cloth. Underneath the white cloth was the body of Old Zhang's wife.

In addition, there was a row of wooden beds in the room, which were placed together.

The three were originally wandering martial artists, skilled in martial arts. Although they did not believe in gods and ghosts, they still held them in awe.

After Lao Zhang left, the three of them each lit an incense stick on the offering table, muttering that they had offended him.

After doing all this, the three of them lay down on the bed, exhausted from their journey. Two of them quickly fell asleep.

Aside from the man at the head of the group, the bronze bell hanging around his neck unexpectedly rang a few times today.

Just as he was about to fall asleep, the bell would ring in his ear, waking him up, but the man was still very sleepy.

As time went on, the man inevitably became a little irritated, and he wanted to tear the bronze bell off.

But then he thought about it again. This bronze bell was obtained for him by his deceased mother from a Taoist temple. She said it had been blessed and had the power to ward off evil spirits.

Therefore, he tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep, just as he was about to get up to urinate.

A grinding sound came from the side of the deathbed, like gears that hadn't turned for years suddenly starting to move.

The man was startled. There was the sound of light rain dripping outside. Even with the door closed, every sound inside was clearly audible.

Beside me were two sleeping companions, and the rustling sound...

The man thought for a moment, then gently shifted his body, half-lying down, opened his eyes, and looked toward the deathbed.

"Huff..." The man's breath hitched, cold sweat poured down his forehead, and he felt a sticky sensation on his back. His clothes were soaked with sweat and stuck to his skin, which was very uncomfortable.

Having traveled the world for decades, he had heard some strange tales and legends, which he used to listen to for amusement.

But when it actually happened to him, he finally understood what torment was.

He saw that the female corpse actually sat up on the deathbed, and then got off the bed and walked towards the three of them.

The man was so frightened that his whole body went numb and he couldn't move. He tried to wake up his sleeping companion, but his body was too numb to move.

He saw that the female corpse was deathly pale, without any color in her face. She was dressed in a burial shroud and wearing a burial hat. A red rope was tied around her wrist. She walked very fast and soon arrived in front of his companion.

The female corpse leaned down, her pale face pressed against the nostrils of the man in the straw raincoat at the far end. With a gentle inhale, wisps of white breath flowed out of her nostrils and were drawn into her mouth.

In just fifteen minutes, the sleeping companion tilted its head to the side and stopped snoring.

Is it fast asleep? The burly man was shocked. Is it dead?!

After consuming one person, the female corpse's complexion became noticeably rosier, and she began to resemble a human again.

Immediately afterwards, the female corpse came to his side, preparing to absorb the life essence of another person.

Having witnessed this strange event, the burly man gradually regained some sensation in his body, and the clear bell sound rang in his ears once again.

The big man fully regained his mobility. Taking advantage of the moment when the female corpse was absorbing his life essence, he seized the opportunity and leaped up.

He rammed his way towards the door. Having trained his body for many years, the wooden door was practically useless to him. After breaking through the door, he was momentarily bewildered.

How can a human resist the power of ghosts and gods? Although he was a martial artist, he had been so frightened that he lost his will to live.

The rain grew heavier, a clap of thunder sounded in the sky, and a flash of white light illuminated the courtyard.

The courtyard gate was locked, and the big man felt a chill in his heart. A sense of despair rose in his mind. Although the three brothers were not very famous in the martial arts world, they were still somewhat well-known.

But now the other two have lost their lives at the hands of demons, how pitiful.

He roared and shouted. There were many traveling merchants in the inn. Even the martial arts masters had no power to resist, let alone these merchants, scholars, and even the innkeeper who hadn't even charged them for their rooms.

However, his voice was destined to be unheard by those who were fast asleep.

The heavy rain drowned out his roar, and another bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the courtyard with a white light that revealed the figure of the female corpse before him.

The man was startled, and fear drove him to run to the gate of the courtyard.

He could escape by smashing it open, but his brother had died in vain. A sense of chivalry rose in his heart.

Perhaps all heroes feel a sense of tragic heroism before they die.

He thought again, there were still some ordinary people in the inn, and a surge of passion welled up inside him, which made him very calm.

The burly man turned around, and the female corpse, having absorbed the essence of the two men, even became more agile.

He was horrified; the female corpse was truly terrifying, yet he felt no fear whatsoever.

A true martial artist never leaves his sword behind. He untied the long strip of coarse cloth wrapped around his back, revealing a long sword inside. He assumed a fighting stance, waiting for the female corpse to make a move.

moo~

Moo moo~

Suddenly, the big man heard several cow mooing sounds. Although he found it suspicious, he thought that even corpses could be reborn and harm people at this time, so what was so strange about a bull demon appearing?

The female corpse seemed to have heard the cow's bellow and took a few steps back, but soon became fierce again and rushed towards the big man.

The burly man gritted his teeth. For some reason, a cold breeze suddenly blew up behind him, and he felt a void behind him, losing all sense of support.

He turned around and saw that a Taoist priest had somehow appeared in the courtyard, riding a green ox backwards.

The fine rain falling from the sky seemed to have a mind of its own, deliberately avoiding the Taoist priest and the green ox.

The Taoist priest carried a sword on his back, his hair was tied up, and his clothes were washed and clean.

He possessed an otherworldly air and was unfathomable.

For some reason, these two words suddenly appeared in the big man's mind.

The female corpse, however, ignored everything and lunged at the Taoist priest with bared teeth and claws.

In his panic, the burly man shouted, "Taoist priest, be careful!"

The Taoist opened his eyes and smiled slightly at the big man. He calmly and slowly took out a yellow talisman from his sleeve and flicked it lightly.

The talisman fell with the wind and landed firmly on the woman's forehead.

The female corpse stopped moving and fell straight down.

The big man was dumbfounded and couldn't utter a word for a moment.

Xu Yi shook his head and said with a half-smile, "Brave warrior, the talisman won't work if it gets wet."

The burly man snapped out of his daze, made a few "oh" sounds, and hurriedly rushed into the rain to pick up the woman's corpse and run towards the guest room. He moved carefully, afraid that the wind would blow the talisman off.

However, with a powerful figure backing him up, the big man became bolder.

After entering the house, the big man laid the woman's body on the funeral bed, and he saw his dead companion.

Overwhelmed with sorrow, I recalled the days when I roamed the martial world.

The three were friends from the same village and had dreamed of becoming chivalrous heroes since childhood.

They aspire to uphold justice and punish evil while promoting good.

Time flies, and the three of them grew up and then became apprentices together. Although they did not achieve anything in martial arts, they still mastered a skill that made it impossible for three to five people to get close to them.

The world is a dangerous place, and people's hearts are unpredictable. The three brothers went through many hardships but their original intentions remained unchanged. As the saying goes, a gentleman judges by his actions, not his intentions. No matter how crude the two brothers' words and deeds were, they did nothing but uphold justice and did not violate the code of the martial arts world.

Now that the three of them have gone out to make their way in the world, only he has returned. How can he face his brothers and family?

He thought a lot, but he didn't burst into tears. Tears silently streamed down his cheeks and dripped onto the muddy ground.

"My name is Bai Tao, and I thank you for saving my life, sir..."

The burly man wiped away his tears, turned around and knelt before Xu Yi. This was a master, capable of suppressing evil spirits. Perhaps if he begged the Taoist priest, there might be a way to save his life.

Bai Tao thought to himself and kowtowed repeatedly until his head was bleeding and his vision was blurred, but the Taoist priest did not react.

He suddenly looked up, only to find the Taoist priest sitting in meditation not far away, seemingly oblivious to his presence.

"Sir, please save my brother's life!"

Bai Tao spoke sincerely, then knelt on the ground and crawled toward Xu Yi, kowtowing as soon as he reached him.

But when he looked up again, Xu Yi's figure would appear in another corner of the room.

This continued until Bai Tao was so exhausted he was panting and had no strength left to move. Even so, he still softly murmured, "Sir... please save my brother's life. I, Tao, am willing to serve you for the rest of my life, to lead your oxen..."

Xu Yi then helped Bai Tao up, and he smiled and said, "Although this humble Taoist has no way to bring the dead back to life..."

"Considering your sincerity, I do have a method, but it requires the use of your lifespan as a catalyst. At that time, you and your two brothers will share your lifespan."

"how?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Tao knelt down again without the slightest hesitation: "Please, sir, perform the ritual!"

Xu Yi laughed loudly and said softly, "Good."

This method is called the Secret Technique of Sharing Longevity. It comes from the "Chapter on Clear Mystery and Controlling the Netherworld". Its core is "preserving qi and consolidating the soul, and harmonizing yin and yang". It uses the lifespan of a living person as a bridge, connecting three people into one. When the method is completed, the three people will be connected by qi and share the same lifespan.

Xu Yi instructed Bai Tao to place the two brothers' bodies on the ground, sprinkle cinnabar on the ground, and then have Bai Tao place them in a yang position.

He flicked three yellow talismans from his sleeve, which landed steadily on the foreheads of the three people.

Xu Yi stepped out in the Seven Stars Step and chanted the incantation: "May the fetal light not dissipate, may the refreshing spirit not wander, may the wandering soul return to its place."

"The living are the guide, the dead are the boat; the three sons share the same vow, their lifespans flow together."

Suddenly, a mysterious aura emerged from Bai Tao's head, splitting into three parts, which then entered the bodies of the three individuals.

The two people, who had been dead, twitched and their pale faces slowly regained their rosy hue.

The yellow talisman spontaneously combusted without fire, turning into a cloud of ashes that dissipated in the air.

When Bai Tao opened his eyes again, he seemed to hear his two brothers coughing.

He suddenly opened his eyes, a surge of joy welling up inside him. He went to his two brothers and called out, "Second brother, third brother!"

No matter how much they called out, the two only groaned and did not wake up.

Bai Tao panicked and staggered to Xu Yi's side, stammering, "Sir, why aren't my two brothers awake yet?"

Xu Yi was watching the rain in front of the door, his back to the three people. He saw that the rain was getting heavier and heavier, and it looked like a small snake was swimming in the clouds.

Turning his head, Xu Yi gently comforted him, "Bai Tao, your brother is just tired. He'll be fine after a rest."

"Take these talismans. They can extinguish wandering spirits, suppress walking corpses, and exorcise evil spirits. You can remove the talismans from the foreheads of walking corpses at cockcrow tomorrow."

"Then the burial can proceed as normal."

"My mount usually likes to eat grass. After you leave the inn tomorrow, just follow the blue ox and it will guide you to me."

"I have something to attend to, so I won't linger any longer."

After saying that, Xu Yi walked towards the door. By the time Bai Tao caught up with him, Xu Yi's figure had already disappeared into the heavy rain.

Suddenly, a strange sense of melancholy welled up in Bai Tao's heart. Masters are capricious, and to be able to meet one is already a great opportunity, let alone learn one or two spells from them, which is even more rare and hard to come by!

He closed the door, and a familiar voice rang in his ears: "Remember, take good care of my Green Ox."

Bai Tao was shocked. Such skills were truly those of an immortal!

The ground was soaked with rainwater, which mixed with sand and soil, turning into a muddy mess.

Bai Tao disregarded everything else and knelt down, bowing respectfully: "I will obey the immortal's decree!"

......

After the first spring rain in Wude Prefecture, it rained heavily for three more days.

Xu Yi drifted on the river in a small boat, waiting.

That sword strike affected the celestial phenomena, passing over the dragon and causing a downpour. In return, the dragon unleashed a three-day-long torrential rain.

That's really petty.

A clap of thunder echoed across the sky. Xu Yi looked up and saw a pair of indifferent eyes peering out from the thick clouds, staring intently at him.

"Roar~"

The sound of a dragon's roar rang in his ears, and Xu Yi sensed something and turned around to look.

An elderly man dressed in a short blue cotton jacket, with white hair flowing over his shoulders and deep, dark eyes, sat at the bow of the boat. A wooden table sat before him. The old man gestured for Xu Yi to sit down and said softly:

"Fellow Daoist, please have a seat."