Chapter 20 Corpse Poison

“Thump…”

Another sound, like a knock on the door.

Something was in the room next door!

Zhang Yuanqing quickly swapped the rusty kitchen knife for a rusty dagger, and the wooden stick for a long spear.

Carrying his weapons, he tiptoed out of the room. Moonlight poured like frost, and silence reigned.

Zhang Yuanqing bent low, stealthily approaching the window.

The paper sealing the window was long gone. He crouched beneath it, cautiously raising his head to peer through a gap in the lattice.

The cold moonlight, filtered through holes in the roof, created beams of light that illuminated the narrow room.

Seeing the scene inside, Zhang Yuanqing’s heart skipped a beat.

In the dimly lit, silent room, there were three old coffins, their black paint peeling, their lids covered in dust.

Two desiccated corpses lay beside the coffins, dressed in work clothes. One of them had a copper awl lying beside its hand.

The awl caught Zhang Yuanqing’s attention. It was half an arm's length long, made of brass, its handle engraved with incantations and patterns. The craftsmanship was exquisite, and the most important thing was that all the weapons were rusty, but it was golden yellow, without any trace of copper rust.

A picture inexplicably flashed in his mind, San Dao Shan Niangniang’s hand, her five fingers closed as if holding something.

But her palm was empty.

“Thump…”

The muffled sound came again, forcing Zhang Yuanqing to shift his gaze to the middle coffin.

A teeth-grinding creak echoed as the coffin lid slowly slid open.

A bluish-black hand reached out, grasping the edge of the coffin.

Then, a terrifying figure sat up inside.

Bathed in the pale moonlight streaming through the roof, Zhang Yuanqing saw its appearance clearly: wrapped in tattered clothes, face swollen and highly decomposed, its lifeless eyeballs bulging.

Its hair was like dried grass, a messy tangle on its head.

“Heh heh~”

It raised its head toward the moonlight, exhaling a cloud of foul corpse gas, two fangs startlingly visible.

A zombie? A zombie!!

Zhang Yuanqing felt his Ying Shu PTSD acting up.

It was a zombie. Yes, it should be a zombie. Otherwise, what was the point of the corpse-suppressing talisman as a consumable? Zhang Yuanqing had an urge to retreat. He had gathered enough information at this point.

It was time to return to the main hall.

But just then, a weight suddenly settled on his shoulder, and a familiar chill descended, invading his body and raising goosebumps.

At this critical moment, the shoulder-sitting ghost had arrived.

Fifteen minutes were up… Zhang Yuanqing’s heart sank.

In this dangerous ancient temple, with his mind highly strained, it was difficult to spare the mental energy to count the time, so he had to rely on his sense of time, which could lead to deviations.

The appearance of the shoulder-sitting vengeful spirit was already adding insult to injury, but what followed was adding fuel to the fire.

As if sensing the aura of a living person, the zombie in the coffin stopped looking up, and its bulging eyes locked onto the window, onto the eyes spying on it from outside.

…Amid the rising tide of goosebumps, Zhang Yuanqing leaped to his feet and ran.

As soon as he turned, he heard the loud crash of the coffin lid falling to the ground.

Not daring to look back, he ran with heavy steps, carrying the vengeful spirit on his shoulder.

Another crash, and the door was smashed to pieces.

While sprinting, Zhang Yuanqing glanced back and saw the terrifying figure in tattered clothes burst out of the house, leaping like a tiger pouncing on its prey.

This was a zombie? Where was the “zombie” part? His expression changed drastically. He spun on his heels, using the momentum to turn and thrust the spear at the zombie’s chest.

He planted the spear’s butt on the ground, forming a makeshift chevaux de frise.

At the same time, he saw a hideous hole in the zombie’s chest, as if its heart had been dug out.

Senior Brother? The zombie was the Senior Brother from the notebook!

The next moment, the zombie charged forward, snapping the one-inch-thick spear shaft into a full moon arc with a crack.

Without time to think, Zhang Yuanqing seized the opportunity created by the broken spear and rolled past the zombie’s feet. His nostrils were filled with the stench of decay, and he heard the sound of a large blade chopping into the ground behind him.

He rolled behind the zombie, his knees snapping up, and he leaped to his feet, swinging the dagger.

“Clang!”

The dagger struck the back of the zombie’s head as if hitting steel. It only managed to sever a few strands of dry, grass-like hair and did no damage.

Instead, the force transmitted back through the hilt almost made Zhang Yuanqing lose his grip, and his hand was in excruciating pain.

“Copper skin and iron bones?”

Zhang Yuanqing was shocked. He then saw the zombie quickly turn around, raising its hands with their black, sharp nails and latching onto his shoulders.

Pain immediately surged.

The black, sharp nails pierced his skin, and scarlet blood dyed his jacket red.

The smell of blood seemed to excite it. A scarlet light emerged from the depths of its bulging eyes. The zombie opened its fangs, exhaling a foul breath, and bit fiercely toward Zhang Yuanqing’s neck.

The candle's purifying effect was still in place. He didn’t lose his mind due to fear. With a thought, the fluorescent blue item bar appeared, and a talisman appeared in his hand.

The zombie, which had been savage and brutal just moments before, retreated repeatedly, as if avoiding a viper.

Effective! It's afraid of me, it has some intelligence… Zhang Yuanqing endured the pain in his arms, tensed his muscles, stared intently at the zombie, carried the vengeful spirit on his shoulder, and slowly retreated step by step.

As he retreated, he prayed that the female ghost in the well wouldn't pop up and cause more trouble.

Fortunately, whether it was because of the zombie or because Zhang Yuanqing was walking backward, the female ghost in the well did not appear. Zhang Yuanqing retreated from the East Courtyard, returned to the Quadrangle Courtyard, and ran towards the main hall without stopping. As he approached the upturned eaves of the main hall, he heard a faint, shrill scream in his ears.

The weight on his shoulder lightened, and all the negative effects disappeared.

…

“Huff, huff…”

Inside the main hall, Zhang Yuanqing leaned against the latticed door, gasping for breath, his legs spasming uncontrollably.

This was partly out of fear and partly a physiological reaction after the adrenaline wore off.

After resting for a few minutes, the adrenaline subsided, and the wounds on his arms began to throb. He grimaced as he took off his jacket and shirt, revealing that both arms were a bloody mess, the blood flowing out of them a dark, reddish-black color.

Clearly, the zombie's nails contained poison.

The situation suddenly became dire.

“There's no disinfectant here, no tetanus shots. How fast does the corpse poison work? I'm not going to die from poisoning, am I?”

A series of thoughts flashed through Zhang Yuanqing’s mind, and he was surprised to find that he wasn't very afraid. Then he realized… it had nothing to do with him. It was the candle giving him courage.

Bathed in the candlelight, his emotions gradually calmed down.

“Now that I've been poisoned by corpse poison, I can't delay any longer. I'll just go with the second plan.”

Before entering the spirit realm, Zhang Yuanqing had made two plans for himself. The first was to carefully explore the Mountain God Temple, gather information, and then find a way to break the situation.

It was a cautious and steady approach.

Then, inspired by playing games with his aunt, finding patterns and methods, he had formulated a second, relatively risky plan.

Try to subdue the red shoes.

Since they were both items, and he could use the yellow paper talisman, who said he couldn’t use the red shoes?

Guan Ya had said that breaking the rules of rule-based items had a certain probability of subduing them.

“With my abilities, it's unlikely that I can stick the yellow paper talisman on the zombie's forehead by myself.”

Sticking a talisman on the forehead of a ferocious, terrifying, and intelligent ghoul was like a child taking on an adult with a knife. Although the adult feared the blade, it didn't mean the child could actually hurt him.

Zhang Yuanqing didn't delay any longer. He supported himself against the latticed door, got up, stepped over the threshold, and came to the courtyard in front of the main hall.

This was where he had first encountered the red shoes.

The round moon hung like a disk in the sky, illuminating the old house, the weeds, and the swaying shadows of the trees.

He waited and waited… standing among the weeds for a long time, wary of changes in his surroundings, but he couldn't wait for the red shoes to appear.

The shoes didn't seem to have a fixed territory. At first, they had followed him into the temple, then they had appeared in the Quadrangle Courtyard. Now, he didn't know where they had gone.

Zhang Yuanqing, whose physical condition was deteriorating the longer he delayed, sighed and turned around helplessly, returning to the main hall.

As soon as he turned around, his body suddenly froze.

“Tap, tap…”

Between him and the main hall, a pair of red dancing shoes emitting a faint red glow were rising and falling together, as if an invisible person were stepping in place.

The sound of footsteps echoed eerily in the empty, silent night.

Can you change your entrance? It’s so spooky every time… Zhang Yuanqing's soul, which had almost been scared out of him, slowly returned to its place. He quietly swallowed.

Even though he had been looking forward to its appearance, Zhang Yuanqing still felt his sanity dropping uncontrollably when faced with the eerie dancing shoes.

The red shoes continued to step in place, the heels tapping the ground with a crisp sound. The echoes overlapped, becoming increasingly lonely and terrifying.

A fluorescent blue message suddenly popped up in Zhang Yuanqing's field of vision:

[Would you like to dance with me? If so, please step in place.]

The message appeared next to the red shoes, as if they were talking to him.

As expected, it wanted to dance. It would kill if he didn't dance with it. What terrible shoes… Zhang Yuanqing had no choice but to take a gamble, because he had realized one thing: the red shoes had cut off his retreat.

They had appeared between Zhang Yuanqing and the main hall.

Once the dance failed, he would definitely die.

Was it a coincidence? Or was it intentional? Did the shoes also have intelligence…? Zhang Yuanqing restrained his thoughts, calmed his emotions, and visualized his father's appearance in his mind.

At the same time, he lifted his foot and stepped in place.

Tap, tap… As if it were the switch to activate the item, the rhythm of the red shoes changed with his steps, breaking into a rapid tap dance.

They were tap dancing, with a catchy rhythm and a fast tempo. The loud “tap” sounds echoed in the silent night sky, in the abandoned ancient temple.

Under the moonlight, among the weeds, on the cobblestone path, a pair of red dancing shoes danced alone, possessing an indescribable, bewitching beauty.

Zhang Yuanqing widened his eyes, letting his pupils absorb the moonlight, staring intently at the red shoes. He didn't need to deliberately memorize. He just needed to imprint the opponent's steps in his eyes.

At the same time, his heart was like an overloaded engine, beating rapidly. His ears were filled with noise, and countless fragmented images flashed through his mind.

His brain began to automatically receive external information: the sound of the wind blowing, the slight bending of the weeds, the frequency of the leaves swaying on the distant locust tree, the posture and frequency of the red shoes' tap dancing…

The brain, receiving the information, quickly analyzed and memorized it.

A few minutes later, the red shoes stopped contentedly, stepping back with their left foot and rising on their toes.

The posture looked strange, but if someone were wearing them, it would be a standard curtsy.

How polite… Zhang Yuanqing muttered in his heart as blood flowed from his nose. Then he saw a sentence appear above the red shoes:

[Your turn!]

In those few minutes, the shoes had danced hundreds of rhythms, and the steps were all different. This was beyond the average person's ability to memorize.

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Zhang Yuanqing steadied himself, took out a small pill from his pocket, and put it in his mouth.

Then, his brain entered a strange state. The scenes from the past few minutes played back frame by frame.

“Tap, tap, tap, tap…”

He danced a few rhythms with a slow speed and awkward posture, then carefully examined the red shoes.

If the standard was an exact replica, then even if he could memorize all the rhythms and movements, it would be impossible to complete the task.

Seeing that there was nothing unusual, Zhang Yuanqing breathed a sigh of relief and began to dance with all his attention.

Tap, spin, small jumps, crossing his left and right feet… He danced slowly, his posture awkward and ugly. Compared to the red shoes' fluid movements, it was simply an eyesore.

But the slow-paced dance steps could ensure that he wouldn't make mistakes.

Seven or eight minutes later, Zhang Yuanqing recreated all the steps of the red shoes and stopped, panting.

His nostrils were filled with warm liquid, dripping down his lips and chin, but he couldn't bother to wipe it off. He stared intently at the red shoes.

Whether he could walk out of the spirit realm alive, whether he could successfully complete the trial…

Depended on now.

[Your dancing skills are as terrible as ever!]

The red shoes displayed this message. Then, they turned into a faint red light and dissipated into the night.

Immediately afterward, Zhang Yuanqing heard a cold voice in his mind:

[Ding! You have completed a dance with the red shoes. Congratulations, you have gained the appreciation of the red shoes, but because your dancing skills are too poor, the red shoes only appreciate you for half an hour. Good luck!]

Zhang Yuanqing collapsed weakly to the ground, his face pale, his brain throbbing.

Half a minute later, the symptoms subsided. He sat up, his face pale, and couldn't wait to open the item bar.

In the second slot lay a pair of red, brand-new dancing shoes.

After staring at the shoes for a few seconds, the item information automatically appeared.

[Name: Red Shoes]

[Type: Shoes]

[Function: Tracking, Killing]

[Introduction: Their former owner was a princess of a Western kingdom. The princess was born beautiful and excelled at dancing, and the men of the kingdom were captivated by her. But the wicked stepmother, jealous of her talent and beauty, imprisoned her in a high tower. The lonely princess danced alone in the cold moonlight and eventually died. These red shoes inherited her legacy and began to wander, dancing endlessly.]

[Note 1: Use form one: Throw the red shoes at a designated target (you can also use the target's blood, hair, skin, and other cells as a medium to lock onto the target). They will relentlessly pursue the target. During the pursuit, they ignore any physical obstacles and cannot be escaped or destroyed until the target dies or completes a dance with them. The type of dance is not limited.]

[Use form two: Wearing the red shoes increases agility, improves evasion ability, allows you to run regardless of terrain, and does not require stamina. The only thing you need to pay attention to is that you can only wear them for five minutes at a time. If you exceed that time, the red shoes can never be taken off, and you will run with them forever until the end of your life, or you cut off your feet.]

[Note 2: Don't dance with me? You will all be killed.]

It’s a divine artifact… Zhang Yuanqing was overjoyed after reading the item's properties.

Was this what a rule-based item was?

It was ridiculously powerful.

The item descriptions of the previous yellow paper talisman and candle were relatively simple, only a few short sentences, while the item information of these red shoes was lengthy.

From this alone, it could be seen that the red shoes were unique.

“It’s a pity that they only appreciate me for half an hour…”

Zhang Yuanqing noticed the countdown next to the item bar and felt a pang of regret.

If he could own such a divine artifact, it would be of great use, both in reality and in future spirit realms.

…

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