I Only Want to Lie Flat But Am Forced to Cultivate Immortality-Chapter 67 - 56: Playing Possum

March 6th, five days before the county exam for the student rank.

Xu Qing turned a deaf ear to the outside world, swinging his shovel and hoe, digging pits endlessly in the courtyard.

If zombies merely rely on absorbing moonlight Yin Qi for cultivation, their transformation speed is extremely slow. Thus, zombies often consume raw flesh and blood, killing living beings to seize their life force and enhance their cultivation.

Xu Qing wasn’t very interested in seeking human blood, as it was too risky and immoral.

After all, who could guarantee that they wouldn’t encounter a high master during their hunt?

After much contemplation, he decided that following the vegetarian method detailed in the Corpse Nourishing Scripture and seeking various materials to quicken the cultivation process was the safest approach.

This method was no different from how cultivators gathered precious materials to refine elixirs and enhance their cultivation.

Now, among the key Yin items needed for nurturing the Silver Armored Wandering Corpse, Xu Qing had already found the highest quality Yin Spirit Jade and the Old Cat Evil, specially refined, extracted from a cat-faced zombie. The only thing missing was the Ghost-faced Soil three feet beneath a grave.

Ghost-faced Soil is the layer of soil resembling a ghost face found three feet below a grave.

This type of Yin material usually forms in places rich in Yin Sha energy, most commonly found in the Chaotic Burial Mounds and Imperial Mausoleums.

Xu Qing didn’t want to seek it in those places, as encountering fellow zombies would be manageable; they might even chat idly in zombie language.

But encountering other underworld creatures wouldn’t be as fun.

A wise man avoids risking his life, and Xu Qing believed his strength wasn’t yet enough to dominate even a Newbie Village.

Following the principle of self-reliance, since there was no Ghost-faced Soil, he’d cultivate it himself!

Although there were no graves in Xu Qing’s courtyard, under the flat ground lay the remains of people from various trades and social standings, quietly absorbing the Yin Sha of the haunted house.

He inspected each, re-burying those that hadn’t produced Ghost-faced Soil.

At dawn, having plowed through almost all the land in the courtyard, Xu Qing finally stopped.

By then, he had collected one and a half bags of Ghost-faced Soil in a gray sack.

Storing away his farming tools, Xu Qing looked at the newly turned soil, feeling incredibly fulfilled.

Harvesting corpse seeds and tending to the garden like this was the life he yearned for.

In the following days, Xu Qing, besides waiting for business at the Funeral Shop during the day, would return to his courtyard at night, preparing everything for the evolution of his Silver Armored Wandering Corpse.

Just like wolves, dogs, cats, and rabbits search for dry grass to line their nests before giving birth, Xu Qing wouldn’t pull out his own corpse hair to line his nest, as he wasn’t giving birth.

The reason he prepared these was because the last time he evolved into an Iron Armored Corpse, it took him seven days and nights in the coffin to emerge.

Now, wanting to evolve into a Silver Armored Corpse, who knew how long it would take to cocoon successfully?

Thus, it became his primary concern to prepare a nest and defense before closing off for evolution.

The traps in the Feng Shui Treasure Residence were doubled, and Xu Qing dug a coffin pit under his bed where he’d close off and cultivate.

Above the bed, he placed a simple puppet as a blinding technique.

The only thing missing now was the timing.

Having spent these days in Linhe, Xu Qing was no longer the wild zombie unfamiliar with the place. If he disappeared without reason, not only would the neighbors on Funeral Street, but even Wang Lingyuan working in the Government Office would frantically search for him.

Old Wang was waiting for his junior brother to take care of him in his old age. For Wang Lingyuan, even if the current Emperor went missing due to dementia, it wouldn’t be as crucial as a hair from his junior brother.

"What a hassle. Looks like I can only wait until after the county exam, then invent an excuse for an outing, secretly return to close off and breakthrough..."

Having made up his mind, Xu Qing returned to his regular routine, locked his courtyard door, and went back to the Funeral Shop to continue managing the business.

Three days before the county exam, the Government Office, which had halted supply for half a month, finally resumed its business with the Funeral Shop.

This time, two unclaimed male corpses were sent over.

To Xu Qing’s surprise, among those delivering the corpses was Senior Brother Wang.

Avoiding the constable, Wang Lingyuan pulled Xu Qing to the counter, whispering, "Junior Brother, Tang Steward is offering a hundred taels of silver for these two bodies..."

"A hundred taels? Why doesn’t he just rob?"

Wang Lingyuan shushed him, "Junior Brother, don’t rush. It’s not asking you for money. It’s Tang Steward giving you the silver, provided you can handle these bodies. If not, I will take them away, and he’ll find someone else."

Xu Qing understood the implication, frowning, "These two bodies have issues?"

Wang Lingyuan nodded, explaining, "Two months ago, the Government Office received a corpse, a painter. While the forensic doctor watched over it, he found the corpse would rise every night to seek brushes and ink to paint. Usually, such cases are handled by the Demon Hunting Bureau, but this painter was somewhat renowned, and his works sold for high prices..."

"Could it be that Tang Steward wanted to profit from the corpse’s paintings, instead of reporting it to the Demon Hunting Bureau?" Xu Qing guessed immediately.

"You’re right," Wang Lingyuan sighed. "Tang Steward is too greedy. To profit from the paintings, he privately conspired with the forensic doctor to keep the painter’s corpse in the morgue."

"A free painter who doesn’t need food or wages, isn’t that a good thing for him? Why spend money to get rid of it?"

"It’s no good. If it were that simple, I wouldn’t have come to Linhe!" Wang Lingyuan said helplessly, "On the third day after keeping the painter, the forensic doctor died in the morgue. Guess how he died?"

Xu Qing’s gaze deepened. His senior brother was talented, except for his irritating habit of teasing suspense.

Maybe those storytellers in teahouses had influenced him.

"I can’t guess. Just tell me, Senior Brother."

Wang Lingyuan stroked his beard with a smile. Usually, his junior brother could guess everything, but now he finally had the upper hand.

"The forensic doctor was skinned alive, with a painting of a fine horse on the skin!"

"If it weren’t for this incident, I wouldn’t have been recruited as a forensic doctor."

Xu Qing looked at the two corpses bound like dumplings on the desk and pointed at the other one, "What’s with this one?"

"This one is a gift from your senior brother, no charge. Just delivering it to you together."

Xu Qing beamed. People said it was handy to have friends in the Government Office, and he was experiencing this convenience.

But before he could enjoy his joy, Wang Lingyuan continued:

"This man was a porter who died from a head injury caused by a heavy load. No one knew his origin, likely a refugee who recently entered the neighborhood.

He’s not problematic, except he occasionally rises at night to carry corpses out of the morgue."

"Luckily, I’ve accompanied Master Liu, seen more things, or else I might’ve been scared sick!"

After listening to Wang Lingyuan, Xu Qing didn’t find this tricky. Such corpse manifestations were common for a Corpse Driver, and these were the best materials to refine into Walking Corpses.