Zhang Family Village.
Squire Mansion.
A pale-faced male corpse was lying on the ground. There were two bloody holes on the side of his neck. The blood in his body had been sucked dry. His face was ferocious and frightened. Before he died, he had obviously suffered a great shock.
Zhang Shan, Li Si, and the other three constables hid far behind. Han Zhe stood beside the corpse with a gloomy face.
The deceased was a squire of Zhang Family Village. This morning, he was found dead in his backyard by his servants. The servants immediately reported it to the authorities. After learning that this case was strange and was likely to be the work of a demon, Zhang County Magistrates immediately asked Li Qing and Han Zhe to bring people to investigate.
Landlord Zhang's death was tragic. Li Mu endured the discomfort and stood beside Li Qing. He asked, "Boss, can you tell what kind of demon did this?"
Han Zhe squatted down and stretched out his right hand. He measured the distance of the bloody holes on the corpse's neck with his thumb and index finger. Then he stood up and said with a serious expression, "It's not a demon. It's a zombie."
Li Mu could feel that after Han Zhe spoke, Li Qing's expression also became more serious.
She looked at Han Zhe and asked, "What level of zombie is it?"
"It's at least a jumping zombie." Han Zhe took a deep breath and said in surprise, "When did jumping zombies appear in Yangqiu County? Did it come from Zhou County next door?"
Li Qing thought for a moment and shook her head. "Zhou County is in the east, and Zhang Family Village is in the west. It shouldn't be from Zhou County."
"Whether it is or not, we're in big trouble this time." Han Zhe said in a deep voice, "This thing is different from demons and ghosts. They have no humanity at all. If they hurt people once, they will hurt people again. We have to find and get rid of it as soon as possible …"
Li Mu's previous understanding of zombies all came from Hong Kong and Taiwan movies in the 80s and 90s. One of his favorite Hong Kong and Taiwan stars was the zombie Taoist Lin Zhengying. He was obsessed with his zombie movies.
The zombies in this world were not the kind that jumped around in Qing Dynasty official uniforms. According to the Records of Demons in the Ten Continents, zombies were transformed from human corpses after death. They were born from the resentment of heaven and earth. They were immortal, immortal, immortal, and could move according to the seasons. They liked to eat the blood essence of humans and animals …
Low-level zombies were White Zombies, Black Zombies, and Jumping Zombies... White Zombies were covered with white hair, which meant they had just turned into zombies and were very easy to deal with. They were very afraid of sunlight and moved slow.......
White Zombies ate the blood essence of cows and sheep. After a few years, they shed their white hair and were replaced by black hair that was a few inches long. They were called Black Zombies. Black Zombies were still afraid of sunlight and fire. They were still slow and could not catch up with normal humans.
Black Zombies absorbed Yin and sucked blood for a few more decades. Black Zombies shed their black hair and became Jumping Zombies. They moved mainly by jumping. They jumped faster and farther. Although they were still afraid of light, their bodies were made of copper and iron. Ordinary weapons and even magic weapons could not hurt them. According to this classification, most of the zombies in the zombie movies Li Mu watched belonged to the Jumping Zombies.
Zombies were not human, ghost, or demon. They did not have intelligence and moved purely by instinct. Because of this, they were much more dangerous than demons and ghosts.
Any demon and ghost with a little brain knew that they should not harm people easily. Otherwise, they would become the target of the imperial court. But zombies were different. They were transformed from human corpses. Their intelligence had disappeared along with the dissipation of the three souls. Their only instinct was to evolve by sucking blood.
Before they evolved into Flying Stiff, all zombies only had instinct and no intelligence.
This made them much more dangerous. Almost every time there were traces of zombies, the government would eliminate them immediately to avoid causing more harm.
Han Zhe left the Minister's Mansion and said to the people of Zhang Family Village outside: "Arrange a few people to burn Landlord Zhang's body immediately."
An old man walked out with a cane and said with difficulty: "Official, this is not good. A dead person needs to be buried for peace …"
Han Zhe looked at him and asked: "You are?"
The old man said: "I am the uncle of the deceased Zhang Dafu."
"It's up to you whether you want to burn it or not." Han Zhe smiled coldly and said: "But let me tell you, he was bitten to death by zombies. He will become a living corpse tonight. Even if you bury him, he will climb out of the ground. Living corpses can sense people with similar blood. When the time comes, the first one they will bite will be you …"
"Burn it, burn it immediately!" The old man's face became serious. He stabbed his cane on the ground and said to the two strong men: "Zhang Da, Zhang Er, go find firewood immediately and burn the body. Why don't you listen to the Official's words?"
After the old man finished speaking, he seemed to think of something and said in horror: "Half a month ago, my brother, Zhang Dafu's father, his grave was dug up. His body went nowhere. Could it be …"
Han Zhe frowned and asked: "How long has your brother been dead?"
The old man said: "Less than a month ago."
"Impossible." Han Zhe shook his head and said: "If you want to become a living corpse, you need at least 20 years of cultivation. Who in your Zhang Family has been dead for more than 20 years? Go and see if there are any abnormalities in their graves …"
The old man pointed at several people and said: "You guys, go and see!"
Li Mu heard some knowledge he was familiar with from Han Zhe's mouth. He asked Li Qing curiously: "Boss, will zombies really kill their relatives first?"
Li Qing nodded and explained: "In addition to absorbing Yin Qi and moonlight, zombies also need to rely on human blood essence to cultivate. The blood of their relatives is of the same origin as them. For them, it is a fatal attraction."
Li Mu murmured: "Uncle Ying really didn't deceive me …"
Li Qing asked: "What?"
"Nothing." Li Mu shook his head and asked again: "Then, do we need to prepare paper, brush, ink, swords?"
Zhang Shan came up and asked doubtfully: "What paper, brush, ink, swords?"
"Yellow paper, red brush, black ink, kitchen knife, wooden sword." Han Zhe came over and looked at Li Mu in surprise: "I didn't expect you to know these."
Li Mu recalled a figure in a Taoist robe and said: "I learned from a Taoist priest before."
Han Zhe didn't say anything more. He just asked the villagers of Zhang Family Village to find a chicken. After killing the chicken, he used the chicken blood, ink, and a red brush to draw a Fu-lu. He lit the Fu-lu and mixed the ash with the chicken blood. He said to Zhang Shan and the other constables: "You guys, smear it on the blade, and then take some villagers to the nearby mountains to search. Pay attention to the graveyard and mass graves. If you find anything, come back immediately …"
A constable trembled and came up: "Boss, what should we do if we encounter that thing?"
Han Zhe glanced at him and said: "Don't worry, that thing is afraid of sunlight, so it won't appear during the day. But you must come back before the sun sets. If you encounter an accident, set off fireworks to call for help."
Li Mu's Baiyi Sword was originally a magic weapon, so it didn't need to be smeared with chicken blood. He was about to go out with Zhang Shan and the others to search for traces of the zombie when Li Qing suddenly said: "Li Mu, stay here."
Under Han Zhe's strange gaze, Li Mu came back and asked: "Boss, do you need me to do anything?"
Li Qing: "You stay here and watch over Landlord Zhang's direct relatives. Don't let them run around. If the zombie is an ancestor of the Zhang family, then it will definitely come back …"
"Got it." Li Mu nodded and asked: "Do you want to prepare some glutinous rice?"
Li Qing asked: "What do you need glutinous rice for?"
Li Mu was confused: "Isn't glutinous rice able to restrain zombies?"
Han Zhe snorted and said: "Don't think that any Jianghu magician knows the real Taoist magic. I've never heard of glutinous rice restraining zombies. It's so easy to believe such nonsense. Miss Qing, I have to discipline this subordinate for you. If this goes on, not only will he get himself killed, but he will also drag his colleagues down …"
"He's my man. You don't have to discipline him."
Li Qing said coldly. Then she looked at Li Mu and said: "There's no record of glutinous rice restraining zombies in books. Where did you hear it from?"
"A Taoist priest." Li Mu smiled and said: "His surname is Lin, and he's a Taoist master. His Taoist magic is specialized in restraining zombies and demons. People call him Zombie Taoist Priest or Taoist Yimei. I learned a lot about zombies from him. He said that glutinous rice can restrain zombies. When encountering zombies, as long as you hold your breath, you won't be discovered …"
Li Qing's expression changed slightly. She said: "Zombies are dead things. They can't see or hear, but they can sense people's location by their breath. That Taoist priest should not be lying since he has such knowledge. There are countless Taoist magic, and no one knows all of it. Maybe this is his secret magic. As for whether it works or not, we'll know after trying it …"
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