The zombie has been eliminated, and the calamity has passed.

Unexpectedly, the Little Prince encountered problems. At such a young age, he was infected with corpse poison twice in a short period, and there was no cure—he transformed into a zombie.

However, strangely, the Little Prince retained some intelligence after becoming a little zombie.

Seeing this, Master Yixiu recited Buddhist scriptures for several days to purify the corpse's evil aura from the Little Prince.

Thanks to Master Yixiu's relentless efforts, the Little Prince managed to maintain his sanity.

Seeing this, Xiao Yu couldn't help but think to himself, could this little zombie prince be the same little zombie that Uncle Nine would raise in the future? Unfortunately, it ultimately perished together with a vampire.

Xiao Yu hadn't forgotten about the golden coffin in the tall forest, but unfortunately, it was actually a copper coffin, though still quite valuable.

However, dealing with it was quite troublesome.

...

During this time.

Wu Shilang attempted to secretly take the Little Prince away, but the Little Prince went berserk under the moonlight, and Wu Shilang never mentioned it again.

Now that the Little Prince had become a zombie, returning to the capital would surely lead to a bad outcome. After recovering from his injuries, Wu Shilang left on his own to pursue his future.

Half a month passed, and the injuries of Taoist Priest Qianhe and his disciples had mostly healed.

Taoist Priest Qianhe and his disciples bid farewell to everyone and left their mountain abode.

...

After eliminating the zombie, Xiao Yu felt as if he had divine assistance during his cultivation, making Qi Refining smooth and effortless.

"Could this be the Yin Merit that Master mentioned? Solving those ghosts and monsters that harm the world can earn Yin Merit, which aids in cultivation."

"This is also the fundamental reason why cultivators are keen on slaying demons and eliminating monsters."

Xiao Yu suddenly realized and, riding this momentum, successfully broke through to the second realm, Refining Qi into Spirit.

"Hahaha, Xiao Yu has broken through to Refining Qi into Spirit."

Sensing the spiritual power fluctuations from Xiao Yu's closed-door cultivation room, Taoist Priest Simu laughed joyfully.

Master Yixiu was also drawn over.

"Old monk, how about it? My disciple isn't bad, right?"

Taoist Priest Simu proudly showed off to Master Yixiu.

"What does it have to do with you? Don't flatter yourself. Clearly, it's Xiao Yu's exceptional talent and diligent cultivation."

Master Yixiu immediately retorted, displeased with Taoist Priest Simu's boasting, yet envious of his talented disciple.

"Haha, say what you will."

"Jia Le, prepare some good food and wine. We need to celebrate properly."

Taoist Priest Simu, in high spirits, ignored Master Yixiu's retort and cheerfully instructed Jia Le to prepare a lavish feast to celebrate Xiao Yu's breakthrough.

When Xiao Yu emerged from the room.

Taoist Priest Simu immediately took Xiao Yu to the Daoist hall to pay respects to the Patriarch.

Subsequently, he imparted higher-level techniques to Xiao Yu, including the Shangqing Dadong Scripture and the Spirit Summoning Rite, and shared insights on Refining Qi into Spirit cultivation.

Once Jia Le finished cooking and called them for the meal, Taoist Priest Simu and Xiao Yu finally left the Daoist hall.

Master Yixiu also brought Qingqing over to celebrate, and everyone enjoyed a harmonious gathering.

"Brother Xiao Yu, you're amazing. Master said your cultivation level is on par with some seniors."

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Qingqing looked at Xiao Yu with an admiring expression.

"Not at all, I'm still far from the seniors."

Xiao Yu humbly replied.

"Haha, the monk is right. Xiao Yu is indeed not far behind our generation's average talent."

Taoist Priest Simu agreed, his face full of pride.

"But Xiao Yu, you mustn't become arrogant. Cultivation requires diligence."

Taoist Priest Simu, worried about his disciple becoming complacent, sternly advised Xiao Yu to remain steadfast in his pursuit of the Dao.

"Master, rest assured, I will never slack off in my cultivation."

Xiao Yu immediately promised.

After the feast, Xiao Yu wanted to know how Master and Master Yixiu planned to handle the Little Prince.

"Master, Master Yixiu, what do you plan to do with the Little Prince?"

Taoist Priest Simu and Master Yixiu exchanged glances and shook their heads in unison.

"I don't have time to raise a little zombie. Monk, it's up to you."

Taoist Priest Simu had no interest in raising a little zombie; he needed to earn money by serving clients.

"Daoists often deal with zombies, but have you ever seen a monk doing so? Although the little zombie is pitiful, I'm not suitable to take it in either."

Master Yixiu shook his head repeatedly, having no intention of raising a little zombie.

"Master, let me take care of it. The little zombie is so cute."

Qingqing suddenly spoke up, finding the little zombie adorable.

"Yes, Master, let me and Qingqing raise it together."

Jia Le immediately chimed in, seeing Qingqing's interest in raising the little zombie.

"You want to raise it? You're not qualified."

Taoist Priest Simu glared at Jia Le.

"Qingqing, this is not a game. If something goes wrong, you won't be able to control it, and it would be troublesome if it harms you."

Master Yixiu also disagreed with them raising it, as they lacked the necessary strength.

"Xiao Yu, what do you think?"

Taoist Priest Simu knew his disciple had many ideas and asked for his suggestion.

"I don't have any good ideas either."

Xiao Yu showed a helpless expression. Since neither Master nor Master Yixiu wanted to raise it, he had no interest in doing so either.

After discussing for a while without reaching a conclusion, they could only set the matter aside.

The feast ended, and everyone dispersed to their own rooms.

...

Xiao Yu broke through to the Refining Qi into Spirit realm and entered the Inner World to sense the changes brought by the advancement. His strength had increased, allowing him to comprehend and cultivate under the Dao rhythm in the Lesser Heavenly Dao Space for much longer.

Previously, with a lower realm, the Inner World was only used to accelerate learning and understanding.

Now, as his strength grew, he began to gradually utilize the Inner World's role in cultivating the Dao and understanding the path of the mind.

...

The Inner World was also slowly growing and expanding, now about fifty meters in size.

The medicinal ingredients growing within had already produced seeds, propagating more seedlings, creating a vibrant scene.

Several precious medicinal ingredients were thriving, continuously absorbing spiritual energy. It seemed it wouldn't be long before they became Spirit Medicine.

The Spirit Medicine, with its abundant medicinal potency and spiritual energy, would greatly aid even Master Simu in accelerating his cultivation.

Previously, Xiao Yu had given Jia Le many ordinary medicinal ingredients because Jia Le's cultivation was low, and ordinary ingredients were effective.

However, for Master Simu's level of cultivation, ordinary medicinal ingredients with sparse spiritual energy were of little use.

...

Now that Xiao Yu had broken through to the Refining Qi into Spirit realm, he could harness the Inner World's power to aid his cultivation.

In the Qi Refining stage of Refining Qi into Spirit, he could quickly refine Qi and elevate his realm using the Inner World.

The next step was to improve the quality of spiritual power until it transformed into magical power.

Magical power is achieved by enhancing the quality of spiritual power through Qi Refining, nurturing the spirit, and condensing the Yin Spirit.

Reaching the peak of the Refining Qi into Spirit realm, the Yin Spirit realm, allows the combination of spiritual energy and Yin Spirit to form magical power, which is above spiritual power.

...

A few days later, Taoist Priest Simu and Master Yixiu still hadn't decided how to handle the little zombie. Taoist Priest Simu then decided to take the little zombie to Uncle Nine.

Taoist Priest Simu first escorted the clients he brought back home.

He instructed Xiao Yu to wait for him, and then they would take the little zombie to Ren Family Town together.

...

The next day, Master went out to deliver the clients, which would take several days for a round trip.

With nothing to do, Xiao Yu took out some medicinal ingredients from the Inner World, prepared medicine for Jia Le to accelerate his cultivation progress.

Whenever he had time, he consulted Master Yixiu on medical skills and discussed cultivation matters.

Jia Le, whenever he had free time, would hover around Qingqing, seemingly enjoying himself.

Xiao Yu also found joy in cultivation, gaining new insights into talismans.

Refining Qi into Spirit required improving the quality of spiritual power, and similarly, talismans could enhance the quality of runes.

Xiao Yu had read Uncle Nine's collection of books, which contained much information about the cultivation world, and knew that in the past, when spiritual energy was abundant, there were many Natural Treasures.

Materials used for drawing talismans often included many Natural Treasures, and back then, the power of a talisman varied depending on the materials used, leading to a classification system for talismans.

As spiritual energy continued to decline, heavenly and earthly spiritual materials became increasingly scarce, rendering the old classification system obsolete.

Xiao Yu's research direction remained focused on the Rune Spirit-Path Network.

Around the core rune, he extended lines linking other small runes, making it look like the rune was adorned with background embellishments, adding a mysterious touch.

This also allowed for more spiritual power storage, enhancing the power of talisman combinations and chain reactions.

However, drawing talismans became more complex. As the power of talismans increased, so did the difficulty of drawing them.

Even with the Inner World assisting in simulations and practice to increase proficiency.

When it came to actually drawing talismans, any mistake would cause the talisman to short-circuit like an electrical circuit, with the spiritual power on the talisman clashing violently, resulting in an explosion.

Xiao Yu discovered that to enhance the power of talismans, good materials were still needed to draw them, to bear the energy of spiritual power.

Otherwise, even if a talisman was drawn, if it were accidentally folded or crumpled, it would cause the spiritual power lines to short-circuit, leading to an explosion, turning the talisman into a bomb.

Xiao Yu had to halt his experiments and wait until they reached Ren Family Town to find suitable materials.

...

A few days later,

Taoist Priest Simu returned.

The next day, Xiao Yu, carrying a bag containing the little zombie, followed Taoist Priest Simu on the journey to Ren Family Town.

Traveling by day and resting by night, they finally arrived at Ren Family Town.

"Senior Brother, Wencai Senior Brother."

Arriving at the gate of Uncle Nine's Mortuary, Xiao Yu stepped forward to knock.

"Coming, coming, is that Junior Brother Xiao Yu?"

Wencai's voice came from inside the courtyard, along with the sound of hurried footsteps.

Wencai opened the door and greeted Taoist Priest Simu, arranging for the clients to be settled.

"Junior Brother, Xiao Yu, you've arrived."

At this moment, Uncle Nine came out from the inner room, draped in a robe.

"Senior Brother, I've come to discuss something with you."

Taoist Priest Simu intended to resolve the issue of the little zombie first and gestured to Xiao Yu.

Xiao Yu understood and immediately opened the bag, bringing out the little zombie.

"Junior Brother, what's this..."

Uncle Nine looked at the little zombie, inquiring about its origin.

"Senior Brother, let me explain slowly."

Taoist Priest Simu began recounting the experiences of Junior Brother Qianhe and his group.

"Junior Brother Qianhe is alright, that's good."

Uncle Nine was concerned about Junior Brother Qianhe's situation and was relieved to hear he was fine.

"A rational mutated zombie, truly, the world is full of wonders."

Afterward, Uncle Nine clicked his tongue in amazement, observing the little zombie.

The little zombie also widened its eyes, curiously examining Uncle Nine.

"Junior Brother, this little fellow will stay with me."

This piqued Uncle Nine's interest even more. Such an intelligent zombie was something he had never encountered.

"Senior Brother, this little fellow is in your hands now."

Taoist Priest Simu led the little fellow over, pinching its cheeks and teasing it.

"Little fellow, you'll be with my Senior Brother from now on. It's a fun place here."

Taoist Priest Simu brought the little fellow to Uncle Nine.

The little fellow hopped over to Uncle Nine and even bowed.

Seeing this, Uncle Nine liked it even more.

...

Taoist Priest Simu stayed at Uncle Nine's for two days before heading out again to escort clients.

In his free time, Xiao Yu went to visit Ren Tingting at the Ren Family.

"Dear nephew, you're back."

Ren Fa greeted warmly.

"Yes, I'm back, just came to say hello to Uncle."

Xiao Yu responded politely.

"Dear nephew, I have good news for you. All those Protective Jade Plaques have been sold out, hahaha."

Ren Fa couldn't help but laugh joyfully after speaking.

"Sold out? Ren Family Town couldn't have absorbed that many."

Xiao Yu inquired, puzzled, wondering if the Protective Jade Plaques were really that popular. In this world, although it's a mystical world, incidents of evil spirits harming people aren't that common.

After all, the underworld governs the rules between the yin and yang realms, overseeing the cycle of reincarnation.

Convincing ordinary people of the supernatural is somewhat challenging; they don't believe in spirits until they encounter them.

"Of course, Ren Family Town couldn't consume that many. Many were sold to other towns."

Ren Fa explained to Xiao Yu.

"Xiao Yu, you're back. Why were you away for so long?"

At this moment, Ren Tingting walked in.

"Dear nephew, stay for a meal, and we can have a good chat."

Seeing his daughter arrive, Ren Fa invited Xiao Yu to stay for a meal and then left.

"Many things happened, causing some delays."

Xiao Yu recounted the events to Ren Tingting.

"That's terrifying. I feel like I don't recognize this world anymore."

Ren Tingting, having witnessed the other side of the world, had her knowledge from studying in the provincial capital overturned.

"Those things have always existed; you just hadn't encountered them before."

Xiao Yu shifted the topic to new things, lightening Ren Tingting's mood.

Later, Master Ren sent a servant to call them for dinner.

After the meal, Ren Fa invited Xiao Yu into the study to settle accounts and discuss future matters.

As night fell, Xiao Yu took his leave.

During this period, Xiao Yu had been searching for materials for drawing talismans in the town.

One day, in a shop, he stumbled upon some special paper. The paper was delicate and flexible, perfect for drawing talismans.

Xiao Yu inquired about the paper from the shop owner, who said it was consigned by a family-run workshop.

The paper's quality was excellent, so Xiao Yu decided to buy some to test its effectiveness.

Previously, Xiao Yu had tried materials like animal hides and jade plaques, but jade plaques were too costly, and animal hides required special processing, which was quite troublesome.

Moreover, good animal hides were not commonly available, which reminded Xiao Yu of the fox spirit he had burned. That fox, having attained spirit form, would have made excellent material for talismans.

Returning to Uncle Nine's, Xiao Yu began experimenting with drawing new types of talismans, meticulously outlining each pattern.

After numerous failures and adjustments, he finally succeeded in creating a satisfactory talisman.

This talisman contained more potent power, providing Xiao Yu with a strong card against evil spirits.

...

Today, Uncle Nine summoned Qiusheng back because they had business—going to the neighboring Huang Family Town to assess feng shui.

"Wencai, you stay and guard the house."

"Qiusheng, Xiao Yu, you come with me."

Uncle Nine made the arrangements.

"Master, understood."

Wencai was secretly pleased, as he didn't have to go out and could sleep in.

...

Uncle Nine and the two others set off for the neighboring Huang Family Town.

Upon their arrival, the clan elder of Huang Family Town warmly received them and hosted a banquet for Uncle Nine and his companions.

The next morning, after breakfast arranged by the clan elder, a group set out for the mountains outside the town.

"Hey, isn't that Ah Wei?"

Qiusheng noticed a familiar figure.

"What are you looking at? Come over and help move things."

Ah Wei also noticed Qiusheng and called him over to help.

Several people present looked at him, making their intentions clear, putting Qiusheng in a difficult position.

"Senior Brother, ignore him. Let's go."

Xiao Yu glanced at Ah Wei and continued walking up the mountain.

Qiusheng quickly followed.

"Hey, don't go."

Ah Wei became anxious.

Xiao Yu reached Uncle Nine's side, listening to Uncle Nine and the clan elder discuss the mountain's terrain and water veins.

"The mountain is fine."

"Let's go check the water situation."

Uncle Nine, holding a compass, assessed the feng shui and quickly reached a conclusion.

The group then followed the water flow to inspect, arriving at the upstream source.

"This small river is the main water source for your town, and this is the source. It naturally forms a water halo formation.

With this energy formation, it should bless Huang Family Town with prosperity and health for people and livestock.

Why is Huang Family Town experiencing unrest? It's truly strange."

Uncle Nine observed that the feng shui here was excellent, and there shouldn't have been any issues.

"Uncle Nine, is there anything wrong with the water halo formation now?"

The clan elder inquired with concern.

"The water halo formation can also be called the Nine Dragons Playing with Pearls formation. When water flows through the circular hole, it creates a water halo and mist, resembling dragons soaring.

The pearl being played with is above; let's go take a look."

Uncle Nine led the group to a nearby stone.

Uncle Nine pointed to a stone in the stream, "The dragon pearl should be under the stone. Qiusheng, Xiao Yu, you two lift it and see."

Qiusheng and Xiao Yu stepped forward to lift the stone, revealing a round stone pearl beneath it, but it was already cracked.

"The dragon pearl is cracked, indicating an issue with the water."

"Clan elder, instruct everyone to search along the river for any anomalies."

Uncle Nine informed the clan elder of the problem.

The clan elder immediately instructed the young and strong to inspect downstream.

By the river, Uncle Nine caught a fish and found it was contaminated.

"Ah, there are so many dead bats here."

At this moment, Ah Wei stumbled by the riverbank, pulling out a vine covered in bats.

Uncle Nine said to the clan elder, "Clan elder, the river has been contaminated by bats. Tell everyone to stop using it."

"But, there's no other water source. What should we do?"

The clan elder responded with the current dilemma.

"How about this, I'll look for a water source and dig a well."

Uncle Nine proposed a solution.

Hearing this, the clan elder immediately made arrangements.

At noon, Uncle Nine assessed the mountain's terrain and water veins, using the Lotus Formation to locate the water vein and determine the well's location.

"Uncle Nine, should we start digging now?"

The clan elder asked.

"Not now, in the afternoon."

Uncle Nine specified the time for digging the well.

Since it wasn't time yet, everyone left.

After everyone departed, a group of bats flew in, moving the marked wooden stake for the well ten meters away.

...

In the afternoon, news came from the well-digging site that something undesirable had been unearthed.

Upon hearing this, Uncle Nine hurried to the scene, observing the unearthed dried corpse and noticing the deviation in the well's location.

"The water source should be there. Why has it shifted here?"

Uncle Nine, with an unpleasant expression, questioned the construction team.

"We dug according to the marked stake."

The construction team was certain of their actions.

"How is that possible? Did anyone move the stake?"

Uncle Nine couldn't believe it, confident in the location he had set.

"No, you can ask everyone."

The construction team denied responsibility.

"Uncle Nine, what's the situation, and how should we deal with what's been unearthed?"

At this moment, the clan elder hurried over, followed by Ah Wei leading the security team.

"The body should be taken to the town office. It's within our responsibilities."

Ah Wei, seeing the magical artifact embedded in the corpse, with its gem shining, had his own ideas.

"I suggest burning it immediately."

Uncle Nine sensed something unusual about the object.

"Uncle Nine, no problem. We'll follow procedure, gather everyone, and explain that this corpse is the source of the issue, then burn it in front of everyone. How about that?"

Burning it wasn't an option for Ah Wei, so he quickly devised a plan.

The clan elder had no objections, and Ah Wei led the security team to carry the corpse back.

Uncle Nine relocated the water source, solving Huang Family Town's water issue.

Returning to town, Uncle Nine felt uneasy.

"Master, that thing is problematic. The artifact embedded in the corpse is a Western priest's cross, likely related to a vampire, the priest's nemesis."

Xiao Yu hinted from the side.

"Junior Brother, vampire, what kind of ghost is that?"

Qiusheng asked, puzzled.

"Vampires are dark, yin-evil creatures from abroad, similar to zombies. However, unlike zombies, vampires retain their memories from life, are agile, and appear no different from living humans."

Xiao Yu explained the characteristics of vampires.

"So, it's a Western demon."

"Qiusheng, Xiao Yu, you two keep an eye on things to prevent any incidents.

I'll go urge the clan elder to burn it quickly."

Uncle Nine gave instructions, and the three of them immediately set off.