With only 8 years to live at the start, I'm going all in.

As time went by, Ding Yi, with his eyes closed, felt more and more heat surging from his lower abdomen. Before long, it completed a full cycle around his body and then returned to his lower abdomen.

As the cycle continued, Ding Yi noticed that the heat in his lower abdomen seemed to have increased. His interest was piqued, and he continued to practice according to the requirements of the Evergreen Technique.

Unconsciously, Ding Yi lost count of how many times the warm current surging from his lower abdomen circulated, but when a ray of light shone on his cheek through the crack in the door, he was startled and opened his eyes.

"How come it's already dawn?!"

Ding Yi was astonished as he looked at the light and shadows that shone into the hall. He hurriedly tried to get up and open the door to check, but suddenly felt his body become light, as if he had lost more than ten pounds overnight.

But this illusion quickly disappeared after Ding Yi stood up, just like a hallucination, which left Ding Yi somewhat puzzled.

"What is this? My leg!"

But the next moment, Ding Yi was surprised to find that his leg no longer hurt after landing. He then realized that his injured right leg had healed without him noticing!

"Are you so awesome?"

Ding Yi clenched his fist, but didn't seem to notice any increase in strength. He just felt that he could breathe more easily and felt much lighter.

Just as Ding Yi was about to continue experiencing it, a commotion suddenly came from outside the door.

Upon hearing this sound, Ding Yi immediately stopped smiling, then moved closer to the door and peered out through the crack.

Outside the gate, on the cobblestone path in the middle of the village, stood a crowd of villagers for some reason. They all had blank expressions and were as withered as Old Man Wei. Most of them were carrying large packages, as if they were about to embark on a long journey.

"What is this going to do?"

Ding Yi was puzzled and squinted to observe for a moment. Just as he was wondering, he suddenly saw an old man walking towards him.

"Oops!"

Ding Yi suddenly dodged to the side, then looked around and quickly gathered the things on the table back into Old Man Wei's room. He then gently closed both his own door and Old Man Wei's door, and sat down at the table to wait quietly.

A short while later, Ding Yi heard a knock on the door:

"Old Wei, it's time to go to the Taoist temple."

The hoarse voice was devoid of any emotion, like that of a walking corpse, which made Ding Yi inside the room frown.

Seemingly hearing no movement from inside, the old man suddenly started pounding on the door.

Boom!Boom!Boom!

The loud noise shook the roof beams, leaving no doubt that the old man outside the door had done it on purpose.

Upon seeing this scene, Ding Yi quickly thought for a moment, then went behind the door and suddenly pulled it open.

"Wei...it's you. Where's old man Wei?"

The old man outside the door seemed somewhat surprised to see that it was Ding Yi who opened the door, and asked a question.

"He was injured while hunting yesterday and is lying in the house."

Ding Yi pointed towards the closed door.

"Hehe, at such an old age, still trying to hunt? I'm afraid an eagle will peck out his eyes."

The old man glanced at Ding Yi, then uttered a profound statement.

"What's your business?"

Ding Yi frowned and asked.

"Since Old Man Ding is not available, you can go to the Taoist temple in his place."

The old man spoke slowly.

What kind of place is a Taoist temple?

Ding Yi was taken aback.

"It seems Old Man Wei picked you up without telling you."

The old man chuckled, revealing his dry, yellow teeth.

“Every month, every household in our Xiaotan Village has to go to the Taoist temple to ask for lamp oil, unless that household is completely wiped out.”

The old man said expressionlessly.

Upon hearing this, Ding Yi looked past the old man and towards the group of villagers waiting behind him. He found that they were all looking in his direction, as if they were all waiting for Ding Yi's reply.

This scene left Ding Yi feeling parched.

He had no doubt that if he dared to say no, the villagers would probably rush at him like madmen and chop him into mincemeat.

At that moment, Ding Yi had no choice but to bite the bullet and say:

"Okay, is there anything you need me to bring?"

Upon seeing Ding Yi's reply, the old man finally managed an awkward smile and said:

"If there's meat, bring meat; if there's blood, bring blood; if there's nothing, just bring yourself."

Upon hearing the old man's words, Ding Yi felt a chill run down his spine. He glanced at the villagers in the distance and noticed that many of them had blood seeping from the packages in their hands, while many others had empty hands, clearly having nothing.

"Damn it, this old man Wei wants to kill me, is it because he wants to go to the Taoist temple?!"

A bizarre idea popped into Ding Yi's mind, yet he also felt it was quite possible.

At that moment, Ding Yi swallowed hard, then forced himself to speak:

"Okay, wait for me."

After saying that, Ding Yi closed the door and then hurriedly went to Old Man Wei's room, taking out the large piece of dried meat he had found last night.

After thinking for a moment, Ding Yi took a few more pieces of wood and strips of cloth, put them in the package and wrapped them up, and then reopened the door.

The old man glanced at the package in Ding Yi's hand, then said expressionlessly:

"Come with us."

After saying that, the old man walked towards the line on his own.

Seeing this, Ding Yi gritted his teeth and followed the old man into the line. When the people in the line saw Ding Yi coming, they stopped paying attention to this side and looked ahead with blank expressions.

"A bunch of psychos!"

Ding Yi looked at this strange scene and thought to himself, but he didn't show it on his face. He just quietly stood at the back of the line.

Ding Yi seemed to be the last household to arrive, and once Ding Yi arrived, everyone set off.

Despite their thin appearance, these people walk incredibly fast, almost like a normal person jogging.

Ding Yi picked up the pace and followed for a while, but then he felt a tightness in his chest and his calves started to ache.

"What do these people eat normally? They don't seem to practice martial arts!"

Ding Yi was puzzled, but dared not fall behind. As he hurried along, he suddenly remembered that there was a page in the Evergreen Skill that described a method of cultivation through walking. Immediately, an idea struck him, and he unconsciously began to adjust his breathing in accordance with the description in the manual.

"Exhale! Inhale! Exhale!"

At the same time, Ding Yi slightly bent over and immediately felt that familiar warm current surge up from his lower abdomen and begin to move along the route from last night. He felt much more comfortable, and his unsteady steps gradually became steady again. Instead of slowing down, his speed increased, and he caught up with the group as if taking a walk.

"This Evergreen Skill is truly miraculous. Not only can you practice it while sleeping, but you can even practice it while walking. I just don't know if this is the only effect of increasing endurance."

Ding Yi suppressed his joy and continued to follow the group without making a sound on his face, but in reality, he began to secretly observe these strange villagers.

These strange villagers were all very thin, giving the impression of malnutrition.

Moreover, the expressions on these people's faces were almost always numb and unchanging, just like those soulless walking corpses.

Ding Yi felt this deeply after spending the past few days with Old Man Wei.

But none of that matters. What Ding Yi doesn't understand is why the villagers don't move away from Xiaotan Village, which is so dangerous at night. Is the darkness outside really that terrifying, or even worse?