I Can Recognize Everything, But the Information is Wrong

"Among these tasks, staying behind with Wang Yuanji in the small house is the safest. Zhou clearly has malicious intentions, assigning us the most dangerous task."

Mei Xiangu complained through a voice transmission, listening as Tian Lin comforted her:

"As long as these Evil Spirits remain fearful of the so-called county masters, heading to the old Village Chief's house will surely be safe."

As they spoke, they could already see the small courtyard where the old Village Chief resided from a distance.

The so-called small courtyard was anything but; beside the Corpse Well, over a dozen coffins had long been arranged.

As if it were an illusion, Tian Lin noticed that the young men guarding the coffins in the courtyard wore sinister smiles.

"County master, the mummies are all in the coffins. Would you like to come see?"

The old Village Chief moved the crowd aside, pointing to the black coffins ahead.

"These villagers are suspicious. Could they be plotting to use us as pawns?"

Mei Xiangu communicated secretly with Tian Lin, "If something goes wrong, I'll throw out the Divine Lady Tree to block them. We'll run to the house of the night watchman, making Zhou Ting the scapegoat."

Tian Lin nodded noncommittally, then said to the old Village Chief:

"We haven't eaten or drunk anything since this morning. As our host, waking us up early, don't you have something to entertain and fill us?"

The old Village Chief was taken aback, and Mei Xiangu stared at Tian Lin in astonishment.

She couldn't help but secretly ask Tian Lin, "Are you crazy? Where's the rationale for seeking food from Evil Spirits? Would you really dare to eat what they offer?"

Tian Lin replied in a low voice, "If they could have poisoned us, they would have already prepared the poison long ago, instead of putting on this show; besides, I asked for food on impulse, they might not have poison prepared."

He said this to appease Mei Xiangu. While it sounded reasonable, there was a substantial risk involved.

However, Tian Lin had protective charms, and he was not afraid of any risk.

Even if the Evil Spirits had poisoned the food, consuming it would cause him no harm.

"The county master makes a good point. Someone, bring my floral tea!"

The old Village Chief commanded, and soon an old woman came over with a tea tray.

The tray held a beautifully decorated teapot, along with two cups.

The old woman filled the two cups, and a chilly breath emanated from the tea, as if ready to freeze a person to the bone.

Tian Lin lifted the teapot lid, glancing inside to confirm it held tea leaves. However, these leaves, lingering in this eerie place after their owner's death, had long turned into a ghostly beverage.

Mei Xiangu adamantly refused to drink the tea, gesturing a clear refusal when the old woman handed it over.

The old Village Chief smiled, addressing Tian Lin, "County master, your tea is here, please enjoy!"

Hearing this, Tian Lin picked up a teacup and drank it all in one gulp.

A large amount of Yin energy entered his body, carrying considerable resentment as well.

Yet this Yin and resentful energy did no harm to Tian Lin; instead, it converted into Spiritual Energy, filling Tian Lin's Dantian.

"Haha, this is much better than Spiritual Liquid. I wonder if the old Village Chief's house has more of this stock?"

Mei Xiangu thought Tian Lin was being sarcastic, while the old Village Chief likely guessed Tian Lin's intention to stall for time.

He waved a hand, telling the old woman, "Wrap up all our village's tea and give it to the county master, for him to enjoy at his leisure."

As long as Tian Lin died here, he naturally couldn't take the tea leaves away.

Moreover, to these Evil Spirits, the tea wasn't particularly precious.

The old Village Chief intended to conserve time. Seeing Tian Lin had finished the pot of tea, he said, "The tea leaves are now prepared for the county master. You can drink whenever you like. It's currently high noon, the perfect time to open the coffins and inspect the bodies."

Tian Lin looked up at the sunlight, hinting, "Indeed, the sun is high, but who knows how long it will last?"

Whether the old Village Chief understood his implication or not, he ambiguously replied, "Naturally, it will last as long as desired. It won't set until the county master finishes his inspection."

Hearing this, Tian Lin wasted no more time, following the old Village Chief to the first coffin.

Mei Xiangu stood at a distance, prepared to throw the Divine Lady Tree at any moment.

Then came a 'clatter'—the coffin finally opened, spewing a thick Corpse Qi.

In the distance, Mei Xiangu's face changed, her hand nearly raised, clutching the Divine Lady Tree.

Corpses exuding Qi from a coffin wasn't unexpected.

But the density of the Corpse Qi was rather unexpected.

From afar, Mei Xiangu saw Tian Lin's clothes rapidly growing visible mold, in a blink he was covered in mildew and white hair, resembling a zombie.

Just as Mei Xiangu was about to throw the Divine Lady Tree, the white-haired Tian Lin spoke, "Such a fine mummy, the Village Chief must have been nurturing it for quite a while?"

As Tian Lin spoke, the fur on his body began to rapidly recede.

The sight caused Mei Xiangu to freeze, and the Evil Spirits, including the old Village Chief, were visibly taken aback.

"Indeed, it took me several months of effort, yet this mummy is not of the highest quality."

Tian Lin's brow furrowed as he stared intently at the closed-eyed, red-faced, fanged Drought in the coffin.

This Drought wasn't even the most powerful?

And talking about months?

Surely, such a Drought would take hundreds or even thousands of years to form?

"This mummy is decent, let's look at the next one."

The mummy in the coffin lacked talisman paper; Tian Lin didn't understand why they lay dormant in the coffins.

But he knew not to let these mummies inhale the scent of living people for too long.

Before the old Village Chief could speak, Tian Lin took it upon himself to slam the coffin lid shut with a 'bang.'

One man and one Evil Spirit then moved to one coffin after another.

The coffins held flying zombies and Droughts, all exuding intense Corpse Qi.

If not for the protective charms, Tian Lin would have turned into an undead due to the excessive inhalation of Corpse Qi.

"Over a dozen mummies—"

After inspecting the last coffin, Tian Lin asked, "Are these all the mummies in the village?"

Tian Lin's question was met with the old Village Chief shaking his head, "In our village, every household has mummies in their Corpse Wells. Besides here, there are hundreds more yet to see."

Tian Lin raised an eyebrow at this, unable to help but ask, "Does the old Village Chief know the tax the county master is demanding this year?"

The old Village Chief replied, "Naturally, it's twenty top-quality mummies."

Tian Lin frowned. According to Wang Yuanji, the villagers were killed due to failing to gather enough mummies.

Yet it seemed now the village had thousands of mummies, far exceeding twenty.

Could it be, within a single day, many Wenda Sect disciples wandered into the village and were turned into mummies to reach this number?

Or perhaps, was it that the so-called thousands weren't gathered overnight but included disciples from Wenda Sect and Xiangxi Sect who wandered here before the locust plague and were turned into mummies by the villagers—

Tian Lin couldn't discern the truth. As he pondered whether to continue inspecting more mummies, the sound of the watchman's drum echoed, signaling nightfall.