MMLZ CH12
“So that’s what it was. You should’ve said so earlier—you scared me. I thought Uncle had some strange intentions.”
Frequent interactions among sect members were something Uncle Jiu welcomed.
In the past, he had been against it mostly because Qiu Sheng and Wen Cai were unreliable. But Xu Yan was like his true disciple, and of course, he wanted him to interact more with peers.
“Since Uncle has invited me, of course I’m willing to go.”
Uncle Simu felt awkward to speak directly, so Uncle Jiu stepped in. Xu Yan immediately agreed—no big deal, and he did need to get out more anyway.
“Once I return from delivering the corpses, I’ll take you with me. Having you along will make the trip a bit easier.”
Uncle Simu often transported corpses for burial; his residence was remote and uninhabited. Most of his income came from this trade.
Xu Yan chuckled dryly and didn’t comment. Escorting corpses was the last thing he wanted to deal with!
Still, he couldn’t say it out loud—he’d just act like he didn’t know how to help when the time came.
“Uncle’s really enthusiastic.”
“Yeah, too enthusiastic.”
Wen Cai and Qiu Sheng chattered away until Uncle Jiu glared at them.
“How about you two go instead and let your junior brother rest at home?”
“Master, I have to help Auntie watch the shop!”
“Master, I need to clean, guard the mortuary, and cook! This honor should go to Junior Brother—we senior brothers can’t take it from him.”
The two found excuses and quickly fled.
“Those two little brats.”
Watching their backs, Uncle Jiu cursed them for being hopeless.
Xu Yan, now used to all this, pulled out two Purple Thunder Talismans.
“Master, I failed three times but succeeded twice. Please keep one in case of dangerous ghosts—better safe than hurt.”
“You actually succeeded?!”
Uncle Jiu widened his eyes like he was staring at a monster. He had expected Xu Yan to waste a ton of materials and had mentally prepared for failure. Who knew Xu Yan would say he had succeeded twice?
“Uh… is something wrong?” Xu Yan held the talismans, confused.
Taking the two talismans, Uncle Jiu examined them carefully. After confirming they were flawless, he laughed heartily and walked straight to Uncle Simu’s room—ready for another round of bragging.
“Xu Yan! Come here, your Uncle wants to discuss something!”
Not even five minutes later, Uncle Simu rushed out and dragged Xu Yan back into the room.
Inside, Uncle Jiu sipped tea leisurely, totally at ease.
“You made this Purple Thunder Talisman?!”
Uncle Simu asked urgently, holding up the talisman on the table.
“Yes, I made it this afternoon. Failed three times and wasted quite a few materials.” Xu Yan nodded.
“Ahem!”
Uncle Simu cleared his throat, rubbing his hands awkwardly, clearly wanting to say something but too embarrassed to ask directly. He paced the room nervously.
Uncle Jiu continued sipping his tea, pretending not to notice—intentionally letting his junior brother squirm a bit.
Uncle Simu wanted to ask for more talismans but was too shy to speak up.
And Uncle Jiu… well, he was clearly a bragging maniac. Normally composed, he became childish whenever he was around his sect brothers.
The bragging had clearly begun.
“Uncle,” Xu Yan said, not wanting him to suffer anymore, “If you want Purple Thunder Talismans, you’ll need to provide the materials. Also, I get half of what I make.”
He wasn’t going to work for free. Even if it was for his own Uncle, he still had to be compensated.
“Deal!!”
That’s exactly what Uncle Simu wanted to hear. He slapped the table in delight.
“You’ve got the right attitude, nephew! Uncle will provide all the materials. We’ll split fifty-fifty—Uncle guarantees you won’t regret this!”
Free materials, increased crafting skill, and some profit on the side—it was a win-win. Xu Yan was more than happy to help… but only for people close to him.
“Master! Help!!!”
“Help, Master!!”
Just as they were about to negotiate further, terrifying screams came from the mortuary.
Xu Yan, Uncle Jiu, and Uncle Simu all jumped to their feet and rushed over.
Just as they reached the door, a walking corpse burst out!
“Oh no! My cargo!!” Uncle Simu yelled.
“You dare run?!”
Uncle Jiu sprang forward, grabbed the corpse’s arms, and swung it like a windmill before slamming it into the ground—only to hear a painful groan from Qiu Sheng:
“Master… it’s me. The real zombies are inside.”
Uncle Jiu froze, realizing these troublemakers were messing around again.
If a corpse really turned, that would be serious trouble.
Inside the mortuary, a dozen corpses were jumping around, chasing after Wen Cai, who was screaming and crying.
Uncle Jiu and Uncle Simu rushed in. Xu Yan paused at the door—
Wasn’t this the exact scene from “Mr. Vampire”?!
Qiu Sheng and Wen Cai caused trouble, making Uncle Simu leave early. Then Uncle Jiu would go help Old Master Ren’s family with a feng shui job and coffin relocation.
“Ow, that hurt!”
Qiu Sheng got up, still wearing Qing dynasty robes, wincing in pain.
“Serves you right.”
Xu Yan rolled his eyes and asked,
“You’re not afraid of turned corpses, but you’re terrified of a few stiff bodies?”
“There were too many—I couldn’t beat them all!”
Qiu Sheng shouted.
“I just wanted to scare Wen Cai. Didn’t expect this to happen!”
Even if you’re skilled, corpses don’t feel pain. And they couldn’t be destroyed. Xu Yan gave up on helping—if he accidentally used Lightning Fist and destroyed a couple, Uncle Simu might cry blood over the loss.
Fortunately, these weren’t turned corpses, just a bit enhanced by moonlight. They were weak as hell.
Within two minutes, Uncle Jiu and Uncle Simu had them all under control.
“You little brats! You used my clients as props?!”
Usually playful, Uncle Simu was livid. His good mood had been ruined by these two idiots.
Uncle Jiu, stern and imposing, glared at his disciples.
“How many times have I told you not to mess with corpses? One mistake, and you could trigger a corpse transformation! You wouldn’t even know how you died.”
“Master, Uncle, we were wrong.”
Qiu Sheng quickly admitted fault, sensing the seriousness.
Wen Cai was the most wronged—scared half to death for no reason and still got yelled at.
“Master, Uncle—it was all Qiu Sheng! I had nothing to do with it!”