Chapter 16

Zhang Yuanqing returned to the main hall, bathed in the candlelight, and calmed the recurring pain from his old ailment, taking the opportunity to purify himself.

Based on the timing, the vengeful spirit would attach to him in one or two minutes, making it unsuitable to enter the eastern courtyard and face the zombie directly.

After resting for four or five minutes, his physical condition worsened, with headaches accompanied by slight dizziness. He knew that the zombie poison was gradually eroding his body, showing initial symptoms.

The candlelight in the main hall seemed unable to purify the toxins in his body.

"I can't delay any longer..."

He had to take advantage of the half-hour usage limit of the red dancing shoes to quickly complete the dungeon.

Zhang Yuanqing left the main hall, followed the pebble path, and navigated through the overgrown grass to reach the quadrangle.

Standing in the yard with undulating weeds, he opened his inventory and summoned the red dancing shoes.

Two faint red glows danced in the night, transforming into a pair of brand new dancing shoes.

"Choose the second form!"

Zhang Yuanqing silently recited.

The red dancing shoes once again dispersed into a faint red glow, forming two arcs that enveloped his feet.

In an instant, the running shoes on his feet turned into a pair of large red dancing shoes.

This, this is like cross-dressing, but at least it's red dancing shoes, not high heels... Zhang Yuanqing looked at his feet, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

He forced himself to ignore this detail, took out the zombie-suppressing talisman, and held it in his hand. Amid the rustling of the large banyan tree, he passed through the arched gate and returned to the eastern courtyard.

In the eastern courtyard, the weeds undulated, and the moonlight shone down. Two large houses stood quietly, everything was so serene.

He carefully looked around and saw no sign of the zombie. He cautiously crossed the courtyard and approached the large house divided into four rooms.

The room with the coffins had its wooden door already knocked off. He didn't need to enter the room; he could look inside from a distance.

The moonlight shone through the gaps in the tiles, revealing the bodies, coffins, the upturned coffin lids, and the brass mace, all still in their original positions, untouched.

There was no sign of the zombie in the room.

"Could it have lain back in the coffin?"

From his angle, he couldn't see inside the coffin.

Just as he was hesitating, he suddenly noticed the moonlight dimming, and a black shadow descended, enveloping him.

Immediately, a strong smell of decay and a low growl came with the night wind.

It, it was hiding in the tree? Zhang Yuanqing was shocked, his heart contracting, and he instinctively thought of dodging.

In the next moment, the red dancing shoes on his feet glowed faintly, and Zhang Yuanqing suddenly slipped. Before he could react, he slid out, plowing a trail through the weeds.

Thud!

The zombie, wrapped in tattered clothes, missed its target.

Avoided... Zhang Yuanqing scrambled to his feet, overjoyed, and his heart returned to his chest.

The red dancing shoes were indeed magical, with a dodging ability stronger than he had anticipated. With his own reaction speed, he wouldn't have been able to avoid the zombie's attack.

Zhang Yuanqing's confidence grew.

"Growl..."

The zombie, with hair like withered grass, let out a deafening roar. Its protruding eyes grew more savage, and it sprang forward, attacking its prey again.

Its speed was like a high-speed car.

As the stench of decay hit his nose, the terrifying entity was already right in front of him. Zhang Yuanqing's feet moved involuntarily, spinning smoothly like a ballet dancer, avoiding the sharp claws and cutting behind the zombie.

Next, he "naturally" performed a split, his body collapsing, and his arms sweeping across.

Pulled, pulled my balls... Zhang Yuanqing's face contorted, wanting to scream in pain, but the red dancing shoes had already controlled his legs, making him jump up.

He leaped high, and his feet kicked the zombie's chest hard.

Thud!

In the dull sound, the zombie's tattered clothes splattered with dust.

It let out an angry and defiant roar, being kicked backward and falling flat on its back.

An opportunity! Seeing this, Zhang Yuanqing, despite the tearing pain in his crotch, rushed forward and slapped the zombie-suppressing talisman onto the highly decayed, foul-smelling face.

Onto its forehead.

Slap!

The bloodthirsty zombie, as if hit by a binding spell, suddenly froze.

All movement ceased, and silence returned.

The zombie lay stiffly among the weeds, its savage eyes gradually losing their redness.

It lost its "life."

Looking at the zombie, now like a clay sculpture, unable to cause any more harm, Zhang Yuanqing panted heavily, a mix of fatigue and joy surging in his heart.

He had survived!

"Without the help of the red dancing shoes, it would be very difficult to deal with the zombie alone. And the zombie is just one of the eerie entities. No wonder this is an S-level spirit realm, it's too difficult.

"But the construction team had many people, so logically, dealing with the zombie shouldn't be a problem. How could a group of men be so incapable..."

Zhang Yuanqing suddenly sighed, knowing the reason.

The zombie-suppressing talisman was found in the pocket of the corpse under the window. The senior who obtained this item didn't tell his companions but kept it to himself.

Human hearts are more complex and terrifying than ghosts.

Having dealt with the zombie, the next step was to find the shameless female ghost in the well.

However, there was something else that Zhang Yuanqing was very concerned about.

He left the zombie and walked to the room with the coffins, supporting the door frame and stepping over the threshold. In the dim room, the moonlight shone like a beam.

He stopped before the mummy, bent down, and picked up the brass mace.

Despite being made of brass, it didn't feel cold in his hand but was warm and smooth like jade.

Immediately, a message appeared in his field of vision.

【Name: Demon Subduing Mace】

【Type: Weapon】

【Function: Purification, Spirit Suppression, Demon Destruction】

【Description: A weapon imbued with the power of the sun, it is the nemesis of all dark entities. Offering blood to this mace will grant the power of the sun.】

【Note: Powerful? It costs a life.】

Indeed, it was an item. From the function description, it seemed stronger than the candles in the main hall. The senior of the construction team must have intended to use it to kill the zombie but failed. Alas, they had already lost too many people before dealing with the zombie... Zhang Yuanqing was glad he made the right decision.

He cleverly used the red dancing shoes to overcome the challenge.

Of course, the seniors of the construction team had no choice. They couldn't control this rule-based item, and most of them died from the red dancing shoes' trampling.

"Having this item that specifically targets dark entities, combined with the red dancing shoes, greatly increases my chances of completing the trial mission."

Holding the Demon Subduing Mace, he felt a surge of confidence. With five minutes left, he left the room and returned to the courtyard.

This time, he headed straight for the ancient well for the final exploration.

The well opening was dark and deep, emitting a damp, decaying smell of vegetation.

Go down and check... Zhang Yuanqing gripped the Demon Subduing Mace in a defensive stance, lifted one foot onto the well edge, and walked down, as if walking on flat ground.

Previously, he wouldn't have dared to explore, not to mention the potential dangers at the bottom. Without a rope or help, jumping into the well would mean certain death.

Soon, he smoothly reached the not-so-deep bottom of the well, where the moonlight was very weak.

The water in the well had long since dried up, leaving black mud at the bottom, with clumps of weeds growing around the edges and dark green moss covering the walls.

"There's no ghost in the well..."

Zhang Yuanqing frowned, thinking this was odd. He had clearly seen a faceless female ghost in the well.

He thoroughly checked the bottom of the well, but with the limited time of the red dancing shoes, he could only reluctantly climb back up the steep well wall, quickly returning to the eaves of the main hall.

He then safely removed the red dancing shoes.

...

In the main hall, bathed in the dim candlelight, Zhang Yuanqing leaned against the offering table, looking weary. The zombie poison was further eroding his body, causing dizziness, difficulty breathing, and chest and lung pain.

Time was running out.

"I have explored both backyards and successfully subdued the zombie. The mission isn't over, which means there's still something I haven't explored..."

He had explored every room in the backyards and even the bottom of the well, so there couldn't be any oversight.

Then, where is it?

When all possibilities are ruled out, the remaining one, no matter how unbelievable, must be the truth... He muttered to himself, slowly supporting his body.

The place he hadn't "explored" was right here, the main hall in front of him.

Zhang Yuanqing's gaze slowly swept across the main hall, finally resting on the three clay statues of the Mountain Lady. When he first entered the main hall, a detail on the statue had caught his attention.

The right hand of the statue was empty but in a gripping position, indicating it originally held something.

He didn't know what it held before, but now he did.

It was the Demon Subduing Mace.

With a try-it-out attitude, Zhang Yuanqing stepped forward and inserted the golden Demon Subduing Mace into the statue's hand, then jumped down from the platform and stepped back.

Almost immediately, the surface of the platform "cracked," sending up a cloud of dust. Then the entire platform collapsed, revealing a dark, hollow pit.