Chapter 29: North, South, East, and West

I finally arrived at the entrance to the mountain peak. I walked inside with quick steps, eager to share the good news with the female corpse immediately. However, when I reached her private southwestern corner, I saw a thin, white-bearded old man standing before the grave, appearing to be chatting with her.

I slowed my pace upon seeing this, approaching cautiously until I came to a stop behind a thick tree.

"These three conditions are each quite difficult to fulfill. Are you certain you want to entrust this to such a self-taught amateur?"

The speaker was the large white rat. That white weasel’s voice remained sharp and unpleasant. After a few seconds, the cold, elegant female voice responded.

"I have my own plans. All you need to do is provide assistance from the sidelines; do not meddle in matters that do not concern you."

After hearing the female corpse's words, the white-bearded old man replied, "Yes, yes, I will certainly do my best to assist. Once those three conditions are met, you will surely awaken again. The people from the Maoshan Sect will likely rush here, and with my cultivation, I fear I cannot hold them off..."

"Hmph! Are those Taoists even worthy of interfering in my affairs? I have my own ways of dealing with them when the time comes. When that moment arrives, go find your descendants and set fire to the village. Those self-righteous, gentlemanly Taoists will surely be distracted by the need to put out the fire!"

Behind the tree, I froze in shock. Set fire to the village? Surely she meant my village? There were no other villages nearby. Was this woman truly so vicious? My parents and my grandfather were all in the village; what if the fire reached them? And there was also Er Pang's family.

My expression shifted. Was this female corpse not a good person after all? I was starting to have doubts, unsure if helping her was the right thing to do. What if she was a demoness who would bring disaster upon the world? Furthermore, the entire Qingqiu Mountain dared not help me, yet she did, which showed how powerful she was—and that was without her even being fully awake. If she were to wake up and decide to do something, what could I possibly do to stop her?

As I was lost in these thoughts, the female corpse spoke again: "The boy must have succeeded; he is almost here. You should continue to hide and do not intervene unless absolutely necessary."

"Understood!"

The old man turned, transformed into a white weasel, and vanished into the grass. Peace returned to the area, but I stood there, at a loss for what to do. I decided I had to ask her directly. Once my mind was made up, I walked slowly toward the grave.

When I reached the burial mound, the female corpse asked, "Where is the coffin fungus?"

I didn't answer her question immediately, stammering as I struggled to find the words. She coldly snapped, "Spit it out if you have something to say!"

I quickly said, "Fine, but you have to promise not to hit me."

"Speak!!!"

The female corpse roared at me. I jumped in fright, then blurted out, "Are you a good person or a bad person? Once you wake up, you won't harm my family, will you?"

Hearing my words, the female corpse fell silent for a moment. Then, she asked in confusion, "Why do you ask? I have no grievances with them; why would I harm them?"

"That’s what I thought! Then it’s fine. I have to tell you, I’ve already found the coffin fungus, but I need you to go there yourself. I don't have enough hands to bring it to you!"

I felt much relieved. Only then did I tell her the truth. Perhaps I had been overthinking it. Killing my family wouldn't benefit her in any way. Besides, in a sense, she was practically my daughter-in-law.

The female corpse had no objections and told me, "Before opening the coffin, place three sticks of incense to the east, offer a boy's urine to the west, and kowtow three times to the north. Do not look to the south."

She stated the conditions for opening her coffin in a flat tone. I didn't know what it all meant, but as long as I opened the lid, carried her down, and fed her the coffin fungus, it would be fine.

I took three sticks of incense from my bag and went to the land on the east side to plant them. After lighting them, I was about to leave when I noticed the incense had gone out. "Click!" I lit them again. Just as I was about to walk away, they went out again. What was going on? There wasn't even a strong breeze here!

The female corpse's voice rang out: "Are you a pig? You’re just supposed to plant them, not light them! Go to the west and relieve yourself!"

"Oh, oh!" I answered quickly. She hadn't been clear—why was she being so fierce? I changed my mind about her again. Even if she was beautiful and had a great figure, I didn't want her. She had never spoken a kind word to me; it was nothing but scolding after scolding.

Suppressing my annoyance, I went to the west and unzipped my pants. "Don't you dare peek! I don't even know where you are!" I looked around as I spoke. Her voice came from the air; who knew where she was? If she peeked, I’d be the one losing out—I was still an innocent young man, after all!

"Piss, piss—" The female corpse's voice cut in instantly. "Just do it, stop making those sounds!"

I had just started to feel the urge, and her shout scared it right back in. I said indignantly, "Mind your own business! This is how I always do it!"

The female corpse went silent.

"Piss, piss—"

Finally, I was able to relieve myself. Looking at the yellowish liquid, I muttered to myself, "Looks like I'm dehydrated. Well, I haven't had much water today..."

"Hurry up!!!" The female corpse roared again.

I quickly tucked myself away and buttoned up. I went to the open ground to the north and kowtowed three times. It wasn't to a person, but to heaven and earth, so I had nothing to hesitate about. After that, all I had to do was avoid looking to the south.

I arrived at the female corpse's coffin and looked at the pit, asking, "I'm starting now, okay?"

The female corpse didn't answer. Apparently, she didn't feel like talking unless she was truly pushed to the limit. Fortunately, I was smart enough to bring a shovel. I took the short spade from my back and began digging into the burial mound.

Practice makes perfect. This time, I was much more efficient. Since no one tended to this grave, the soil was constantly washed away by rain, and it was barely higher than the ground level, so it didn't take much effort.

After about half an hour, I had finally cleared the soil from around the coffin lid. The shape of the lid gradually emerged. Strangely, the coffin was oval-shaped, almost like a cylinder, and it was much larger than an average coffin. That explained why there had been so much space inside when I was in there.

What was even stranger was the color. The coffin was pure white. I had no idea what material it was made of. I tossed the shovel aside, took a brief breath, and gripped the edge of the coffin lid.

"One, two, heave!!!"

I pulled with all my might! Goodness, it was heavy! This lid was at least ten times heavier than the one on Old Man Liu's coffin.

"Creak—"

As I continued to exert force, the coffin slid open more than halfway. Instantly, a fragrant scent filled the air. It was overwhelmingly fragrant, yet it wasn't unpleasant. Once the coffin was fully open, the face of the female corpse was revealed before me.