With virtue

At this very moment, on the other side of the village.

Many people were fleeing, but among the fleeing crowd, there was one person walking in the opposite direction.

She was an old woman.

She was quite a celebrity in the village, no... she was a genuine celebrity, the village's sorceress. She was in charge of handling all the village's weddings, funerals, ancestral rites, New Year's celebrations, and other such events.

She's usually the one who resolves things like little monsters entering the village or ghosts appearing.

These sorcerers and shamans are widespread in various villages. They belong to the category of shamans and can be considered practitioners. Most of them have family-inherited methods that have been rooted in the folk for generations.

The old woman looked to be about sixty years old. She was wearing a shaman's robe, with a straw rope around her waist, hemp shoes on her feet, and a feather crown on her head. In her left hand she held a bowl of glutinous rice, and in her right hand she held a bottle of clean water that had been inscribed with a spell. She was chanting incantations as she rushed straight toward the nearest walking corpse.

"Get out of the way! Let this old woman subdue these evil spirits!"

She shouted, looking very energetic, not at all like a woman in her sixties. As she shouted, she forcefully threw the glutinous rice in her hand at the walking corpse.

The white glutinous rice was slapped onto the zombie's face and body, making a crackling sound, but it had no effect whatsoever.

The zombie didn't stop its pace; with a low growl, it continued to lunge forward.

The sorceress's expression changed, and she took out another peach wood talisman, slapping it onto the walking corpse's chest. This was a peach wood talisman, a kind of vessel for carrying incantations and spells, and a very ancient one at that.

The yellow talisman used by Zhao Yunshu, the amulets and seals commonly used in Buddhism, and even all the magical artifacts and treasures in the world are almost all based on peach talismans or similar items. They are products of gradual change and progress, developed step by step from ancient times.

For example, the yellow talisman that Zhao Yunshu often used contained both Taoist incantations and the text on it was improved by Confucian sages. Many Confucian gentlemen practiced Taoism, and the famous Ge Hong, who was known as Baopuzi, was also a scholar before he went into the mountains to cultivate.

The result of this progress was that these new things were more effective than peachwood charms, so peachwood charms were gradually phased out. However, these shamanic families still inherited their unique usage, allowing them to be passed down and inherited in their own unique way.

In other words, this peach charm is definitely not a fake; it has the effect of restraining zombies, evil spirits, and malevolent entities.

The peach charm struck, but the walking corpse was completely unaffected and unaware, suddenly lunging towards the old woman's face!

The sorceress was terrified, but she was still quite strong. She jumped back and rolled backward, scrambling and crawling, and the bowl of glutinous rice fell to the ground.

As she backed away, she cried out in a trembling voice, "Why isn't it working? Why isn't it working?"

She had been a shaman for most of her life and had dealt with many reanimated corpses, but today, her ancestral corpse-driving technique couldn't even subdue a newly formed walking corpse.

Just then, a thunderous sound rang out, and the walking corpse beside him was knocked to the ground.

Her legs went weak, and when she turned her head, she saw and heard the young Taoist priest shouting not far away.

This old woman, probably skilled in maintaining her health, was still quite strong and ran faster than most of the villagers. She quickly reached Zhao Yunshu's side, her voice booming, and cried out, "Daoist Master! Daoist Master, what are these things?! Why are my methods completely ineffective?" Zhao Yunshu pulled her behind him and said, "Those methods of exorcising evil spirits are useless. These are not zombies, not even ghosts!"

Yes, Zhao Yunshu could confirm that these zombies were definitely not ghosts or monsters; there wasn't even a page about them in the Yellow Book!

"If it's not a zombie, then... what is it?" the old woman asked in astonishment.

"This is a soul-controlling technique," Zhao Yunshu said, his expression somewhat solemn. "After a person dies, their three souls and seven spirits leave the body. But if someone uses a curse to suppress their seven spirits, forcibly confining them within the corpse, and then uses evil magic to activate them, making the corpse walk and bite like a puppet, then it will look like a walking corpse."

"But they look different in essence. They are just moving bodies, just like a frog that can still jump even if its head is cut off and its skin is peeled off. Your methods of driving away zombies are designed to suppress Yin energy, but the driving force of these zombies lies in their seven souls. If the seven souls are not dispersed, they are irrelevant to your methods."

The sorceress was dumbfounded; this was clearly beyond her capabilities. After a long pause, she stammered, "Then... what should we do?"

Zhao Yunshu did not answer immediately, but instead raised his head and looked at the zombies that were still alive in the firelight.

To break the Soul-Controlling Technique, ordinary exorcism methods are completely useless; one must find the person who cast the spell or scatter the seven souls.

Of course, there is another clumsy method, which is to completely destroy the body, so that it will be impossible to hurt anyone anymore.

But in this chaotic situation, where can he find the person who controls the walking corpses? So he can only use thunder to scatter the seven souls and make them leave the body, or use fire magic to destroy the corpses and eliminate the threat.

The problem is, this is not a long-term solution. His physical strength is limited. Whether it's the Thunder Sound or the Fire Magic, they are quite taxing. His brain is already starting to ache.

But now there was no turning back. Zhao Yunshu made a hand seal, and the flame in his palm reignited. He turned to the villagers and shouted sternly, "Hide in the houses over there! Block the doors and windows! No one is allowed to come out unless I call you!" After he finished speaking, his mind raced.

While yin spirits and other malevolent entities possess protective yin energy and unique characteristics, such as invulnerability to weapons, they can still be subdued using exorcism techniques.

But it's completely useless against the zombies in front of them.

Because this is not actually an evil art; in fact, it can be said to be an extremely profound method within Taoism, a truly righteous practice.

The art of controlling the seven spirits, as the name suggests, is a method for controlling the seven spirits.

The scriptures say: "Binding the gate of the soul and controlling the door of the spirit are the ways to secure the gates of the soul and spirit. This is the method to sharpen the eyes, preserve life, and restore the spirit."

Year after year, through diligent cultivation, receiving methods to prolong life, following the laws of the Jade Scripture, abiding by the prohibitions of fire and food, understanding the principles of primordial energy, restraining the soul and controlling the spirit, preserving the embryo and stopping the essence, this is not without merit. In the end, one attains longevity and dwells eternally in the realm of clouds, which is indeed extremely profound.

The methods of capturing the soul and controlling the spirit, preserving the fetus and stopping the seminal emission, are one of the four methods of Taoist longevity techniques!

The so-called "binding the soul and controlling the spirit" does not refer to using it on others, but rather to binding one's own soul and controlling one's seven spirits, so that one's soul does not fly away, one's spirits do not dissipate, and one's nature can be preserved for a long time.

Taoism emphasizes the cultivation of both nature and life. Nature refers to the spiritual aspect, while life refers to one's physical body. Controlling the soul and restraining the spirit is one of the methods for cultivating nature.

If one cultivates this method to a high level, even if one loses one's life, one's true nature can remain in the world. Even if one's physical body decays and one becomes an existence similar to a ghost immortal, that bit of true nature can still remain in the world, so that one will not fall into the cycle of reincarnation and will not suffer as miserably as a wandering ghost.

But this is the proper use. As mentioned before, Zhao Yunshu was able to turn the straw doll summoning spell into a seal; the purpose of a spell's design may not necessarily be the purpose of its use.

That's how things are in this world. No matter how good a method is, if it falls into the hands of someone with evil intentions, it will be used to create evil.

Zhao Yunshu cursed inwardly, wondering which despicable bastard had ruined a perfectly good method of achieving immortality into this evil art that harms humanity!

This method of controlling the soul actually has flaws; no matter what, it's impossible to manipulate so many corpses out of thin air.

The practitioner forcibly locks the seven souls of the deceased within the corpse to prevent them from dissipating, and then activates them using a secret method. This is essentially the same principle as manipulating a puppet. The walking corpse can walk and move entirely because its seven souls are controlled, like a puppet on strings, with the strings actually being held by the practitioner.

So, is it possible to trace the source of the benefactor by following the clues from the scattered seven souls?

With that thought, he suddenly had an idea.

The young Taoist priest drew his iron sword and lunged forward.

There was another walking corpse rushing towards them, but since it was a corpse, its movements were particularly stiff. The young Taoist priest was not only agile but also skilled in martial arts, so he was not afraid at all.

He dodged the attack, seized an opening, took a few quick steps forward, and thrust out his iron sword with remarkable speed. The blow pierced through the chest of a walking corpse in front of him, the tip going through its back. The blade still carried a great force, dragging the walking corpse backward until it was embedded in the earthen wall behind it, firmly pinning the corpse to the wall.

Despite suffering such a severe blow, the zombie was completely unaffected, still baring its fangs and claws, but because its spine was pinned down, it couldn't move, only its limbs flailing futilely against the ground.

Zhao Yunshu casually picked up a piece of door panel that had fallen to the ground and pressed it onto the walking corpse to immobilize it.

The zombie growled in its throat, its ten fingers frantically scratching at the bottom of the door.

Zhao Yunshu ignored it, fixed it in place, closed his eyes, and sank his mind into his inner vision, taking the walking corpse's body into his observation.

He focused his mind and immersed himself in the inner world of the walking corpse, beginning the examination of his body.

Within the inner landscape, the walking corpse's bones, flesh, blood, and internal organs were clearly visible. Zhao Yunshu stared at it carefully and discovered that there were indeed seven barely visible grayish-white light spots inside the walking corpse's body.

These are the seven souls that have already died and are about to separate from their physical bodies. The reason they look like this is that they have not been able to leave and have been forcibly imprisoned in their bodies.

Normally, the seven souls are perfectly integrated with the physical body, leaving no trace. Unless it is a case of possession or being sealed inside the body after death, such a state cannot be seen.

The seven points of light were extremely faint, flickering on and off, and were connected by a faint, almost invisible black mist, like a string of beads strung together.

The black mist extended from the seven souls, passed through the back of the walking corpse's head, and disappeared into the night sky, heading west.

Realizing this, he stopped examining the body, lifted the door panel, drew his sword, severed the corpse's head, and threw it into the fire.

Then they moved on to the next one, doing the same thing. After checking three or four zombies in a row, they confirmed that they were all pointing in the same direction.

Since that's the case, let's deal with the zombies in front of us first.

He swept his way through, sword in hand.

In the firelight, the young Taoist priest moved about as if he were in an empty place. The sword light and the firelight crisscrossed, and the walking corpses fell one by one when they came, and two by two when they came.

Some of the zombies were still crawling on the ground after their limbs were severed, so he simply set them on fire.

Many times, he was surrounded by too many walking corpses, so he would use thunderous sound to intimidate them and break their control over the seven souls. Simple souls fear thunderous sound, so they will flee when they hear it and leave their bodies. Once the seven souls leave, the corpses will naturally fall to the ground.

After all, he had cultivated for twelve years. Even though his skills were only rudimentary compared to those of a proper martial artist, he used the Thunderous Sound of the Heart and the Water and Fire Technique, along with some other minor spells, and the young Taoist priest swept through the crowd with ease. In just a quarter of an hour, he had dealt with all the dozens of walking corpses.

After catching their breath, they continued to extinguish the fire using water and fire methods, whether by pouring water or directly drawing out the flames. They worked back and forth like this, and although several houses were half-collapsed by the fire, fortunately the fire did not spread, saving most of the village and preventing the flames from spreading further.

Although there was still some damage to houses, it has been reduced to a minimum.

The young Taoist priest, leaning on his iron sword, found a place to sit down, panting heavily. After resting for a while, he raised his hand and used his sleeve to wipe the blood, sweat, and dust from his face.

When the villagers inside the house saw that the zombies were no longer moving, they began to peek out one by one. Some squatted in the corner and vomited, while others collapsed to the ground and cried loudly.

Some bold young people stepped forward, but when they saw the walking corpses on the ground that were once their relatives and friends, their eyes reddened, and they hesitated to go forward. "Don't relax yet, don't relax yet!" Zhao Yunshu supported himself, took a few breaths, stood up, and shouted in a hoarse voice.

His voice attracted almost all the villagers, and they all looked at the young Taoist priest.

The young Taoist priest continued shouting, "The mastermind is still here! You all need to hide in the sorceress's temple. There's a local earth god there, and since you've never stopped offering incense, he'll protect you! Go now! Seal the doors and windows tightly, and no one is allowed to come out!"

The shaman usually works as the temple keeper of the local earth god temple, where she is responsible for all kinds of sacrifices and rituals throughout the village at the beginning and end of the year.

The villagers were already terrified and at a loss. Upon hearing this, they dared not delay any longer and rushed towards the local earth god temple outside the village, supporting the old and carrying the young.

The sorceress quickly got up and went to help several elderly people who couldn't run, even though these elderly people were not as old as her.

It seems that spiritual practice is quite useful.

Zhao Yunshu caught up, thought for a moment, took out the last cinnabar beam-setting talisman from his pocket, handed it to the sorceress, and whispered, "Grandma, keep this talisman safe and stick it on the main beam of the temple. If any evil spirits approach, this talisman will still be of some use. Combined with your magic, it should at least hold out until I return. I'll go find the person who cast the spell and come right back. I'll entrust the affairs of the village to you."

The sorceress took the talisman, her hands trembling slightly, and said, "What are you saying, Taoist priest? This is clearly the village where I grew up. It was I who entrusted it to you."

She accepted the talisman without hesitation and took out a peach wood charm from her person: "This peach wood charm has been blessed by the incense in the village for a long time. I hung it up when I was young, and it's been fifty or sixty years. Taoist priest, take it, it might be useful."

"Let's leave this in the village. With this, we'll be truly safe," Zhao Yunshu said.

The *Classic of Mountains and Seas* states, "Peach wood charms are drawn to ward off evil spirits." The *Treatise on Rites* says that peach wood charms are six inches long and three inches wide, with the names of the two gods, "Shen Tu" and "Yu Lei," inscribed on the peach wood boards. On the first day of the first lunar month, peach wood charms are made and placed on doors; these are called "immortal wood," feared by all evil spirits.

Peach wood charms are believed to have the effect of warding off evil spirits, so almost every household hangs them. However, peach wood charms that have been used for a long time are definitely very effective.

Moreover, Zhao Yunshu noticed that the figures drawn on the peach charm were not Shen Tu and Yu Lei.

Instead, it was Generals Yuchi Gong and Qin Qiong, both fully armored and imposing, one wielding a whip and the other a mace, their eyes wide with fury, exuding a formidable aura.

After all, it is a product of this era.

"There's also a statue of the Earth God in the temple, which has been worshipped for decades. It's more effective than this. Taoist priest, don't refuse. Having a strong foundation is better than anything else," the sorceress said.

Thinking about it this way, Zhao Yunshu agreed, nodded, took the peach charm, and headed in the direction indicated by the black line.

-----------

At that very moment, on a hill not far from the village.

On the flat stone at the top of the hill, there was a figure sitting cross-legged.

The figure was dressed in a Taoist robe, wearing a cloud-patterned crown, and had a focused expression.

Before him were four or five sections, each containing dozens of straw figures, totaling two or three hundred. These straw figures were no more than three inches tall, but each one was walking or running, pouncing and biting, with ferocious postures, similar to the postures of real people fighting, and looked extremely lifelike.

However, the straw figures in one area were not progressing well. They were hit several times from a distance by something, and they were all over the place. Some of them suddenly caught fire, and others were cut into pieces.

He opened his eyes and exclaimed, "Huh?"

"What happened? Why is it so badly damaged? And judging from the location, it's all from that village over there. Is there someone capable in that village? Wasn't it just an old woman with no real abilities? This isn't some kind of evil magic, so it shouldn't be affected by exorcism methods." The Taoist picked up a straw figure and curiously examined the damage on it.

"They were all burned, and there was the aura of inner fire. This must be an extremely pure fire technique."

"Which fellow Daoist passing by has ruined my plans? Judging by their methods, they do have some skill. Well, since I'm already here, it would be impolite of me not to come out and exchange greetings."

He stood up and flicked his finger.

But then all the remaining straw figures suddenly moved in one direction.