Chapter 9: Inside Xiao Li Village Discussing Corpse Driving II

  "Please continue, tonight we will have a feast for our ears." The tribe leader saw that I had stopped speaking and quickly made a request.

  "To learn to drive corpses, one must first learn 'mute dog skill' and at the same time learn the method of hitting dogs to prevent them from approaching. Then learn 'standing skill', 'walking skill', 'turning skill', 'crossing bridge skill', 'treading water skill'... Finally, learn 'enough to cover all corners'. In total, there are thirty-six kinds of skills that need to be learned to drive corpses."

  "What is Angoulang?" The crowd asked in confusion.

  "The most important thing for a 'Corpse Driver' is to restore the soul of the dead. The more souls restored, the more the corpse will move like a normal person, and the easier it will be to drive. This directly determines how many corpses a Corpse Driver can drive.

  Secondly, it's about 'reversing the day'. Disrupting one's biological clock. A Corpse Driver must sleep during the day and travel at night. At the same time, they need to undergo rigorous training through methods such as blindfolded walking, listening to sounds from afar, etc., to gradually develop their night vision and hearing abilities.

  Next, they practice hand strength and leg strength. In the mountains, the roads are narrow and there are many ravines. Sometimes, a Corpse Driver has no choice but to carry a section of the corpse on their back. Without sufficient strength, it's impossible; without long-term endurance, it's even more difficult.

  Once these skills are acquired, that's when they can officially start learning from their master how to use magical tools."

  Just as he was about to continue speaking, the clan elder asked: "So, isn't it very beneficial for the corpse-refining masters?"

  I nodded and said, "Compared to ordinary people, a typical hearse worker is much stronger in terms of physical strength and endurance. Some hearse workers are even skilled martial artists."

  "Please continue, Master." Seeing that I had stopped talking, the enthusiastic tribal chief looked at me and said.

  "Alright. The Taoist priest uses many ritual instruments to control the corpse. Wearing a Taoist robe helps to ward off evil spirits and is also convenient for walking at night. The conch horn is blown in different rhythms to give different commands, sometimes replaced by an ox horn or copper whistle. The talisman stuck on the corpse's body is called 'Chen Zhou Fu'."

  "Isn't Chen Zhou adjacent to our Ma Yang? I didn't expect there was such a thing there." An old man interrupted my words, muttering to himself.

  "Yes, the Chen Zhou Fu is one of the three ultimate things in Xiangxi. This thing is also the key to driving corpses. The 'Chen Zhou Fu' is divided into many different kinds of symbols with different effects. The dead can walk mainly relying on this thing."

  Seeing the old man's suspicious look, I could only smile and continue: "The compass is a must-have for setting direction, it's the most powerful and spiritual tool for protecting oneself as a hearse master. Other essentials include paper money, rain lanterns, soul-guiding flags, etc., all of which are indispensable for a hearse master. Due to different schools of hearse masters, the incantations used vary; my school is called Chen Zhou Pai, which often uses Wen Tianxiang's "Zheng Qi Ge". After mastering the tools and incantations, learning the skills, one can start performing the hearse ritual."

  Just as Fang felt that he had revealed too many secrets and was about to change the subject, he heard the clan elder ask: "I've heard that your sect's ritual of summoning corpses has many taboos. Can you also tell me about them?"

  It seems that this guy wants to get to the bottom of it tonight. Seeing his request, I can only continue: "Asking is good, but there are many taboos about driving a hearse. Generally speaking, they are roughly as follows:"

  First, there is a saying 'three hurry three not hurry'. Those who were executed by the government can be hurried, those who died in war can be hurried, and those who died from exhaustion at work can be hurried. However, those who died of unknown illnesses cannot be hurried, nor can those who drowned themselves or hanged themselves to death. Those struck by lightning, burned by fire, or with incomplete limbs also cannot be hurried. These are the vengeful spirits in the corpse that may turn into a zombie during the driving process.

  Second, do not eat dog meat. Dogs belong to yin and eating dog meat can offset a person's yang energy, making the spell ineffective. For corpse handlers, their work requires that they cannot have any dealings with dogs, otherwise there will be endless troubles. The funeral master will not pay the remaining silver for corpses bitten by dogs.

  Third, do not get married and have children. Corpse handlers who are still in the business of handling corpses cannot touch women at all. Of course, corpse handlers with deep skills can marry. Lao Si said that every man has a long-lasting flame on his body that can drive away ghosts. Women are yin, and if they come into contact with the aura of women, the yang energy they possess will dissipate. Without yang energy and lacking in primordial spirit, one cannot walk at night, let alone calm down ghosts. Only when the disciple has taken over the business can he consider having children to pass on the legacy.

  Fourth, do not expose their identities. Although the profession of a corpse handler is sacred, it is not a noble one and no one wants to show themselves as a corpse handler. They usually keep a low profile and only disappear for several months or half a year when they go out to handle corpses. After retiring from the business, they will move to another place to live or become an "in-law" in a foreign land, so no one knows what profession they used to be in, and thus the mysterious corpse handlers disappear generation after generation in the storms of history.

  "The fifth is that the corpse cannot see sunlight. The sun represents yang and the moon represents yin. A dead body that has been made into a jiangshi through sorcery cannot be exposed to sunlight, or its magical powers will suddenly disappear. At that time, it will come back to life as a jiangshi, no longer under control but running amok and becoming a menace."

  After finishing, I licked my lips and looked at the head of the clan with my eyes, telling him that it was time for me to get the other half of the reward, but I was reluctant to speak directly, otherwise, it would seem that I was too greedy.

  Just as they were hesitating, the old man suddenly spoke up and asked: "This time we found Dao Zhang through an acquaintance. If we didn't have an acquaintance, how would we find a coffin carrier? And it must be very difficult for you to transport coffins along the way, right?"

  "He finally said something that sounds like human language. I thought to myself, somewhat impatiently, that this was the last time I'd answer his question."

  Nowadays, it can only be said that: "There are rules for the way and rules for doing things. If someone dies in a foreign land, the mourning owner will endure the pain and find the 'hurry corpse store' through familiar people. Those stores are generally tens of miles away from the wilderness, with a yellow flag on top, written with three characters 'Zhù Yóu Kē'."

  "What about the specific contact process? How should we proceed?" asked the tribe leader once again.

  "Haha, this is easy to handle. You have to call the person who drives the corpse 'Lao Si' or 'Shifu', and ask him to take a walk. If the corpse driver agrees, he will leave the name of the deceased, his birth and death time, and then discuss the price and hand over most of the silver. Then they will leave separately. In the mouth of the corpse driver, the dead person is called 'Xi Shen'." I explained to him in detail.

  "It seems that rushing a corpse is not an easy thing to do after all." The clan leader sighed as if he had gained some insight.

  My sixth brother, seeing that I was getting impatient, quickly finished a large cup of wine and took over the conversation, saying: "Of course, this is a matter of course for the clan leader. Before rushing to the front, we need to set up an altar, light incense, recite mantras, and burn paper. Then, the corpse will be rushed by the corpse handlers using the Chen Zhou symbol to block the deceased's forehead, back, chest, hands, feet, and other seven places. Next, cinnabar will be inserted into the ears, nose, and mouth of the corpse to retain its three souls and seven spirits. After the corpse is raised, there are usually two people driving it away, one holding a soul-guiding banner and the other holding a corpse-driving whip, with one in front and one behind driving the corpse. The corpse must be wrapped in hemp cloth, with a hood over its head, and a bamboo hat to prevent its face from being exposed. During the journey, the corpse handlers must choose some remote and desolate roads that are rarely traveled by people to avoid passing through villages."

  "The strong man continued to speak, and the more I listened, the more energetic I became."

  "Do you all know why we should avoid the pedestrians and bypass the village?" Old Six surprisingly said something that started to whet everyone's appetite.

  "Because the official road is crowded, and at night there are often fast horses and carriages. If you're not careful, you'll startle them and they'll be frightened. In rural areas, you might encounter travelers on the road who will catch a chill from the yin energy and become ill or go mad. That's why the corpse handlers shout loudly to warn passersby to get out of the way quickly. If it's impossible to avoid them, the corpse is placed face down to let people pass by. Of course, if the corpse handler has high-level skills, they can transform the corpse into something else when encountering oncoming traffic, and then restore its original appearance after the people have passed."

  "Ah, will it still change? It's too divine, right?" The crowd looked somewhat unbelieving, apparently thinking that Lao Liu was exaggerating.

  What Lao Liu said is true, but this wasn't something I would say out loud. Otherwise, wouldn't they have believed it?

  "Of course it's true. And if you encounter a dog, it's even more troublesome. Dogs are yin-yang creatures that can see ghosts and will often desperately bite the corpse. Due to the difficult road conditions, encountering obstacles and ups and downs, we have to constantly remind the corpse to avoid obstacles. If it's really not possible, we have to ask you to personally carry or hold it, and even use ropes to pull it up the slope one by one. The hardships of this job can only be understood by those who do it."

  Lao Liu looked around at the crowd on the seats and saw that everyone was silent, knowing they had once again believed his words, and he seemed extremely pleased.

  "Along the way, to prevent wandering ghosts and evil spirits from invading and disturbing the corpse, causing it to change, we need to frequently change talismans and occasionally swing the peach wood sword to clear the path. Sometimes, when encountering other hurrying corpse workers on a narrow road, if they refuse to give way, we must be prepared for a magical duel. After finally making it till dawn, we have to carefully plan our route to find a place to rest, usually a dilapidated temple or a small inn that specializes in receiving joyful gods. Inns that do hurrying corpse business never close their doors all year round, have no threshold, windows, and rooms are set on the first floor, all for the purpose of hiding the dead body behind the door and inside the room. If staying at an ordinary guest house, we must first ask the boss for permission, calling it a 'joyful god'..."

  "What's going on?" Everyone curiously asked, and they all looked forward to Lao Liu continuing his story.

  "Heh heh, of course the shop owner will generally welcome us. Firstly, they pay a lot of money for our services. Secondly, the arrival of the auspicious spirits can bring good luck to the store. After sending off the auspicious spirits to their hometown, as soon as they step onto their native soil and smell the scent of their loved ones, they immediately collapse to the ground and cannot get up again. Only after dressing them in mourning clothes, holding an all-night vigil, and placing them in a prepared coffin can we bid farewell to their relatives one by one. This is considered a major accomplishment for us corpse escorts."

  Looking out the window, I knew it was already around 8 or 9 pm. Knowing that we couldn't stay here any longer, I hurriedly signaled Old Six to stop talking and finished the green tea in my cup. Then, I said to the clan leader: "I think it's getting late, and we still have urgent matters to attend to tonight. We might need to bid farewell to everyone here and head back to Chen Zhou."

  "See me want to go, the head of the clan hurriedly persuaded him to stay: "Why are you in such a hurry? We haven't even properly entertained our distinguished guests yet.""

  I see that he has made up his mind to leave, and I know that staying will not be possible. After waving goodbye, a servant came over with the reward money. When I weighed it in my hand, it turned out to be several times more than the advance payment. It seems that this person is still a straightforward one.

  Li Zhuang, Knife Scar Six and Fourth Brother knew I was worried about Master's affairs and followed me silently. The three of us took advantage of the moonlight to head back from Hope Mountain to Chen Zhou Huo without a word.