Chapter 62: Encirclement

“What… what are those?” Old Zhou, who had been standing beside Bai Yu, was utterly stunned. He stared blankly toward the doorway, and everyone inside the house looked the same—the events had happened too quickly for anyone to react.

Yun Jiao took a few steps forward, casually picked up a wooden stick, and prodded the charred corpse on the floor. After examining it closely, she finally said in a deep voice, “It’s a yin corpse.”

“What?!” Everyone was taken aback, clearly not understanding.

Yun Jiao swept her gaze across the room before explaining, “These people had already died long ago. Somehow, someone sealed their souls inside their bodies, allowing them to disguise themselves as living humans.”

“So… he was already a corpse?” Old Zhou couldn’t help asking.

“Yes.” Yun Jiao nodded. “Even if the body can move freely, death is still death. Without the support of life force, the flesh naturally begins to decay.”

At once, everyone recalled the appearance of the village chief after the talisman had been stuck to his forehead. A chill ran through them. Some glanced at the bowls in their hands and instantly tossed them aside; any appetite they’d had was gone. A few even turned and began vomiting.

“So…” Yun Jiao’s face darkened slightly. “To keep these bodies moving, they must have done something else.”

“What?” someone asked instinctively.

Yun Jiao didn’t answer directly. Instead, she lifted her head to look toward the sacrificial mountain and said slowly, “Don’t you all think… there are far too many spirits on this mountain?”

Everyone froze. It took a moment before the meaning sank in. Gasps spread through the room as disbelief filled their faces.

The old man blurted out, “Holy crap!”

Indeed—yesterday the number of spirits on the mountain had been absurd. Yun Jiao’s group alone had encountered several hundred. Add in the fifty Celestial Sect disciples here for the exam and whatever the others had faced, and the total number of spirits might have reached several thousand.

This village barely had a hundred households. Even if generations had lived and died here, that still wouldn’t explain so many restless souls. The only explanation was that most of these spirits had died recently—likely killed by the likes of the village chief and his kind, who pretended to be human but were actually yin corpses.

“The four yin corpses that escaped will definitely harm more people!” Shao Xian said angrily, his voice urgent. “We can’t let them keep killing. We need to search the village and destroy them.” He snatched up the peachwood sword at his side. Others nodded in agreement.

But Yun Jiao turned and looked at him, sighing softly. “I’m afraid there are far more yin corpses in the village than just those four.”

“…”

What did she mean?

Everyone stared blankly. Before they could respond, a disciple suddenly cried out toward the outside, “Look! Something’s coming!”

Startled, everyone turned to see. Not far away, countless figures were emerging from the village, heading straight for them—and their numbers were rapidly increasing. In no time, there were already over a hundred of them. Each figure moved strangely, with visible signs of decay, just like the ones they had fought earlier.

“They’re the villagers!” someone recognized the clothing and gasped. “The entire village… everyone here is a yin corpse!”

Hearts sank as one. Not a single living human remained in this place.

Some kept their wits enough to pull out talismans and magical tools to prepare for battle, but when they tried to channel their spiritual energy, their meridians suddenly locked up. Blood spurted from their mouths.

“M-My spiritual power!”

“Mine’s blocked too! What’s going on?” It wasn’t just one—several cried out in shock.

“There was Spirit-Eating Grass in the porridge!” Yun Jiao finally said aloud. “Your spiritual power will be sealed for about ten hours. During that time, don’t try to use it.”

Only then did everyone realize why she had stopped them from eating earlier. But it was already too late—out of the fifty people present, at least ten had eaten enough to have their spiritual power sealed.

“What do we do now?” Many of the examinees were still young and unprepared for such danger. Staring at the advancing horde of yin corpses, panic spread. “This… this can’t be part of the exam, right? Where are the Celestial Masters Hall officials? Why haven’t they come? Are… are we going to die here?”

As soon as those words left someone’s mouth, faces turned pale, and the room threatened to descend into chaos. Some even started edging backward, ready to run.

“It’s just an exam going off-script, what’s there to panic about?” Yun Jiao suddenly raised her voice, snapping their focus back. “You all should have defensive talismans, right? Quickly! Stick them around the house. These things are yin corpses—they won’t break through defensive talismans easily!”

People hesitated, doubt flickering in their expressions.

Yun Jiao quickly turned and ordered, “Old man, Old Zhou, and those two from the Tang family—you four come with me to set up a formation!”

“‘That guy’ (Shao Xian): …”

“‘Those two’ (Tang Chen): …”

Even in this emergency, a faint wave of irritation spread. Seriously? He was ranked just below her, second place overall, and she still couldn’t remember his name?

Still, the four immediately got up to follow her. Inside the house, however, most others remained frozen in uncertainty. Could talismans and a temporary formation really hold off hundreds of yin corpses?

The few blue-robed disciples, however, quickly stood up. They pulled out every defensive talisman they had and began sticking them across the front door. As they worked, they urged the others, “Fellow cultivators, listen to Daoist Yun! She’s a spiritual physician and just saved my senior brother. No one here understands these yin corpses better than she does!”

That startled the others. They hadn’t expected there to be a spiritual physician among the examinees. Relieved, they turned and began posting defensive talismans as well. Still, their supplies were limited—just barely enough to seal the key entrances.

Outside, the horde of yin corpses was closing in fast. They had completely dropped their disguises, their twisted faces contorted with feral hunger as they hurled themselves at the barriers. But the protective talismans flared to life, blocking them at the doors.

Dozens of scarlet eyes stared in hungrily, making everyone inside shudder. These weren’t people anymore—they were beasts. And now it was clear what they wanted: to eat them. That hunger was the secret behind their human guise.

Fear only grew as the corpses slammed into the glowing barriers again and again, but none could break through. Then, as if realizing why they were failing, the creatures suddenly retreated toward the outer walls.

“They’re trying to climb over!” someone shouted in alarm.

Sure enough, within moments, a few figures were scrambling up and over. Unlike the well-guarded doorways, the walls had far fewer talismans. After a few heavy impacts, the creatures found weak points and began swarming inside.

Hearts skipped a beat. People clutched their weapons, preparing to fight to the death.

Suddenly—a brilliant white light burst forth. The first yin corpses to cross the wall were instantly flung back with piercing screams. Beneath everyone’s feet, a vast white array lit up, enveloping the entire house.

The formation… was finished?!

So fast!

(⊙ o ⊙)

(End of Chapter)