Born Saints: Starting from Liaozhai

"Uncle Han, I'm telling you, I saw a deity!"

Niuwa said proudly upon seeing Han Tiezhu and his two companions return to the village.

Han Tiezhu and his two companions, who were preparing to go home, were slightly stunned.

"What are you talking about, kid? What kind of deity?"

"Where did this deity come from?"

The three of them looked at Niuwa strangely, wondering what the little brat was saying.

"Uncle Han, today..." Niuwa excitedly recounted what happened that evening, including encountering a water ghost and being saved by a young immortal dressed in white.

Han Tiezhu and the other two were dumbfounded.

"Kid, are you telling the truth? You can't lie about something like this!" Han Tiezhu's face was full of surprise and doubt.

Niuwa shouted, "I wasn't lying!"

Han Tiezhu and the other two exchanged glances, their astonishment growing.

Could it be that this little rascal has really encountered a deity?!

Another man, Feng Shu, suddenly remembered something and asked, "Kid, what did that deity you were talking about look like?"

Niuwa paused, then subconsciously asked, "White clothes, looking so ethereal, like a young man, what's wrong?"

Feng Shu stared in disbelief, exclaiming, "Is it that young master? Is he a deity?"

Han Tiezhu and the other two also realized what was happening and were shocked.

If Niuwa wasn't lying, wouldn't that mean the young man they met not long ago was a deity?!

A mix of emotions welled up within them, and the three of them felt a pang of regret for not having talked to that person more.

Just as Han Tiezhu and his two companions were experiencing emotional turmoil because of what Niuwa had said.

……

As dusk fell.

Zhang Family Residence.

East wing room.

Su Chen sat cross-legged on the bed, picked up a light gray peach, and stuffed it into his mouth.

It melts in your mouth, and a cool, refreshing sensation instantly washes over you, somewhat like eating mint-flavored rock candy.

His magical power and cultivation were rapidly increasing.

【Name: Su Chen (15 years old)】

Lifespan: 51 days

[Innate Talent & Comprehension: 49 (A Rare Talent)]

【功法:草上飞（大成1%）、伏虎拳（大成1%）、清虚养元决（大成1%）、五禽戏（小成1%）、吐纳术（入门56%）】

【Taoist Method: Flowers Bloom in an Instant - Incomplete (1%)】

[Realm: Daoist Novice (10%) Ten Years of Daoist Cultivation]

Seeing the Daoist boy's improved realm and the nine years of cultivation he had gained, Su Chen couldn't help but gasp.

"Is this the growth brought about by Taoist magic and plunder?" Su Chen murmured.

Compared to the arduous cultivation process, relying on the Daoist method to instantly refine demons and monsters results in a much faster rate of improvement in one's cultivation!

In a short while, his cultivation level increased from one year to ten years!

Su Chen's mind was racing.

He had originally planned not to go out in the evening, but now he changed his mind.

Compared to the daytime, ghosts are restrained by yang energy, and even demons are wary of yang energy, which limits their actions. Nighttime is when they are most active.

The more you go out, the higher the chances of encountering demons and monsters will be, which is equivalent to wearing a layer of negative effects on you!

"Moreover, I've been practicing Taoism for ten years. Unless I'm unlucky enough to encounter a hundred-year-old vengeful ghost or a thousand-year-old demon, I can generally handle it!"

In an instant, Su Chen made a decision.

"Little Yao," he called out.

"Young Master, what's wrong?" Xiao Tao's puzzled voice came from outside the door.

Su Chen said directly, "You don't need to keep watch tonight, you can go back to sleep."

He paused, then added, "Don't ask why."

"Yes, young master." Xiao Tao was secretly puzzled.

Once Xiao Tao's footsteps faded away, Su Chen walked out of the room and used his mastered lightness skill, "Flying Over Grass," to leap over the courtyard wall and outside in a few swift movements.

The streets outside were pitch black and dim, but some things could be seen by the moonlight.

Su Chen glanced around and saw almost no pedestrians.

However, Guobei County is not deserted at night; it's just that those who should be there are there, and those who shouldn't be there are also there.

Night watchmen, patrolmen, travelers who missed their appointed time, innkeepers who went out, and so on.

As for who the others are, that remains unknown.

With a clear goal in mind, Su Chen drifted towards the outskirts of Guobei County, his figure flickering.

In the pitch-black night, a few people who happened to see him were so frightened that they trembled.

Fifteen minutes later, Su Chen reappeared outside Guo Bei County.

As soon as he came out, he noticed something unusual. Compared to the daytime, the yin energy outside Guobei County was very heavy at night.

With a thought, Su Chen lightly touched the ground with his right foot and floated towards the direction with the heaviest Yin energy.

After walking for three miles, he gradually approached the place with the heaviest yin energy.

Then, he realized where he was.

"It's a mass grave?"

Su Chen was both surprised and felt a chill run down his spine.

Then, he looked enlightened and said, "I was making a fuss over nothing. A county like Guobei County is bound to have mass graves."

Unclaimed corpses, people who died violently, refugees, those who died of plague, those who died by drowning, those who died in prison, etc., are basically thrown into mass graves.

Every county town will inevitably have such places!

Su Chen approached cautiously.

Because of his advanced cultivation, he has good night vision.

From a distance, the old trees in the mass grave were sparse and their branches were withered, as if their life force had been drained away.

When the wind blows, the grass blades rustle against each other, as if whispering secrets.

The shadows of the graves are uneven, scattered like people lying down, reclining, or kneeling with their heads bowed.

The night dew was extremely heavy, and the fog rose close to the ground. As I wandered among the graves, if I slowed my pace, I could hardly tell whether it was the fog that was moving or the graves that were getting closer.

The graves are scattered and uneven, mostly just mounds of yellow earth, with white bones still visible hidden by withered grass.

A foul, rotten smell permeated the mass grave.

As soon as he got closer, Su Chen noticed that the surroundings had become even quieter.

It was as if some people who were talking suddenly stopped and were quietly watching him.

"Playing tricks!"

Su Chen snorted coldly.

He refused to believe that this mass grave was completely devoid of ghosts, and that these ghosts could refrain from attacking him, a living, breathing human, all the time.

Sure enough, he had only taken a few steps on the yellow earth of the mass grave when he heard a commotion not far away.

The gray-bodied, rotting corpse, its body and face blurred from decay, shakily crawled out of the grave.

Su Chen glanced at it but didn't pay it any more attention; these kinds of zombies were incredibly weak.

However, even a small mosquito is still meat, so he naturally wouldn't let it go.

With a thought, Su Chen pointed his right hand at the trembling walking corpse.

In an instant, a phantom gray flower took shape on its shoulder.

A few seconds later, a wail rang out, and the zombie was refined into ashes. A gray peach the size of a thumb floated over and was eaten by Su Chen in one bite.

The depleted mana within his body was quickly replenished, and even his cultivation level barely increased a little.

[Realm: Daoist Novice (11%), Eleven Years of Daoist Cultivation]

Su Chen strode forward, heading deeper into the mass grave.

After walking a dozen or so feet, he saw a locust tree that looked like a crooked-necked tree.

On its branches, a thick hemp rope hangs, with an old man dressed in a blue burial robe, his tongue sticking out long, dangling from the rope.

The moment Su Chen saw the rope, a thought welled up in his mind: life is meaningless, it's better to end it all.

The thick hemp rope under the locust tree became increasingly clear and pleasing to the eye.

It was as if someone was whispering in my ear, "Just go over there, stick your head out, and everything will be over..."

However, this feeling only lasted for a moment before it was dispelled by his powerful cultivation.

"A hanged ghost?"

Su Chen was slightly surprised, and at the same time gained some understanding of this hanged ghost.

It's probably another ghost looking for a substitute; as long as someone is tempted to hang themselves, this hanged ghost can be freed.