Folklore and Strange Tales: At the Start, You Retrieve the Sea-Suppressing Black Iron

The worms that crawled out of the black wooden box were long and white, swimming along the mud.

As soon as the first batch of corpses touched the mud, a dense gnawing sound came from the bottom of the old pit.

Tieguai Li's face turned pale upon hearing this. "This thing eats mud?"

Zhou Banxian, holding the compass, took a half-step back with his heels.

"It doesn't eat mud, it sews corpses together."

Tang Wanqing gripped the red thread tightly, leaving red marks on her fingertips from the thread.

"The Nanyang Corpse Gu is raised on the oil of living corpses. It can walk on corpses and touch mud."

She stared at Boss Lin, her brow furrowed with suppressed anger.

"Boss Lin, you really dare to put this thing into the third pit?"

Boss Lin stood under the umbrella, the slight embarrassment from before now hidden beneath his stern face.

"Miss Tang, you've gone too far."

He raised his hand to straighten his cuffs, and water droplets dripping from the edge of the umbrella fell into the mud.

"I'm just adding a little help to the old pits all over the city."

Cheng Xiaojin watched as the grayish-white worms burrowed into the corpse mud, while the Zhonghua cigarette behind his ear twirled between his fingers twice.

"Your helper is quite particular; she even brought her own sewing kit before starting work."

Tieguai Li scolded, "What time is it? You still have the nerve to joke around?"

"A few words of poverty can prolong life."

Cheng Xiaojin looked at the old pit, a hint of blood in his throat.

"Otherwise, just watching them eat is disgusting."

The pieces of corpse mud in the old pit were lifted up one by one.

The corpses that had just scattered back to protect the stake were sewn back together by those insect threads.

Black mud forms the skin, rusted iron chains form the bones, and gray-white worm-like threads weave back and forth in the mud crevices.

The severed back of the knee was straightened, and the collapsed chest was filled with Gu threads.

The half of the waist token was pushed out, but was swallowed back by the corpse mud in the blink of an eye.

Tang Wanqing lowered her voice.

"It must not be allowed near Zhenhai Railway."

Zhou Banxian's face grew even uglier, and the compass needle trembled incessantly in the Heavenly Pool.

"It has a root of yin energy on it, and it is also connected by the Nanyang Gu thread. The corpse guarding the root is already dirty."

Master Ma gently tapped the lid of his teacup.

"Gu Corpse Stake".

Boss Lin clapped his hands lightly.

"Old Ma is very knowledgeable and experienced."

Cheng Xiaojin looked up at him.

"You praised it so naturally, someone who didn't know better would think this despicable thing was a Beijing intangible cultural heritage."

Boss Lin looked at him.

"Boss Cheng, once the Zhenhai Ironworks is settled, I have a way to get the third one to find a new owner."

"Do you acknowledge me?"

Cheng Xiaojin chuckled, but there was little warmth on her face.

"If the third claim is true, then the underground water veins in Beijing will have to be moved overnight."

Boss Lin didn't reply, but raised his hand and moved forward a little.

The Gu Corpse Stake, dragging its filthy remains, rose from the pit.

It stopped counting the water in its mouth.

The gray-white Gu threads burrowed in and out of its throat, making a series of soft, whistling sounds that sent chills down one's spine.

Its head turned towards Cheng Xiaojin.

A dull thud came from an old iron rod in the black mud on his chest.

Tang Wanqing shouted, "Retreat to the back of the copper coin formation!"

Tieguai Li picked up two hot nails.

"Are you going to puncture the back of the knee this time?"

Cheng Xiaojin shook his head.

"Don't get close, it's covered in insect threads, if you get in, you'll be climbing all over it."

Tieguai Li's face darkened.

"Where should we shoot?"

Cheng Xiaojin looked at the old bread truck.

Is the water tank hot?

Zhou's cousin peeked out from beside the car.

"It's hot after driving all this way."

"Release the water."

Tang Wanqing turned to look at him.

"Are you crazy? You can't touch open water now."

"I didn't let you touch it."

Cheng Xiaojin pointed to the toolbox.

"Brother Li, use an iron basin to collect the oil, mugwort ash, and dried ginger slices, then mix them all in."

He paused, his gaze fixed on the patch of damp earth in front of the car.

"Don't let the water touch the ground."

Upon hearing this, Tieguai Li immediately sprang into action, grabbing the iron basin and rushing towards the front of the vehicle.

"Zhou brothers, open the lid."

Zhou's cousin wrapped his hands in an old cloth, unscrewed the water tank opening, and hot steam rushed out.

Upon hearing the sound of water, a group of gray-white worms immediately turned around and crawled towards the car.

Tang Wanqing tossed out a copper coin.

"Don't let the insectoids cross the line."

The copper coins landed, the red threads stretched into an arc, and the first three coins had barely lit up when the Gu thread started to gnaw at their edges.

Click, click, click... The coin's eye was gnawed open, revealing a small flaw.

Tang Wanqing's face turned pale.

"They gnaw on copper."

Zhou Banxian spat out a mouthful of wine.

"Southeast Asian sorcery specializes in breaking inanimate objects and magical artifacts."

Cheng Xiaojin stared at the direction the Gu lines were crawling, and placed his hand on the protective iron scales.

Boss Lin looked at him and said, "Boss Cheng, the more you use these hands, the faster they'll become useless."

"Thanks for reminding me."

Cheng Xiaojin pressed the edge of the iron scale with his fingertip through the towel, and the iron scale emitted a clear chime.

The Zhenhai Iron in the wooden box emitted a low dragon's roar. The old iron root on the chest of the Gu Corpse Stake responded.

A large dark shadow loomed over Cheng Xiaojin.

He didn't read it aloud, he just listened to the three streams of energy.

A heavy feeling, carrying the earthy smell and rust left by the pile protectors.

A slippery texture, carrying the scent of Southeast Asian insect oil.

There's also a chilling sensation, creeping upwards along the underwater broken roots—it's a Yin Water Sha (煞).

He bit his tongue, and the taste of blood rose to his lips.

"Brother Li, hurry up."

Tieguai Li poured hot water into a basin and then added oil for braising.

Zhou's cousin handed over the ash.

"What else should I add?"

"Stove ash, dried ginger, and Zhou Banxian's drink."

Zhou Banxian hugged the wine pot tightly.

"This is the old man's fate."

Cheng Xiaojin didn't look up.

"You give up half your life for half mine, it's a good deal."

Zhou Banxian cursed under his breath, but still poured a mouthful in.

Steam rose from the iron basin, the braised oil floated on the surface, the mugwort ash and stove ash sank to the bottom, and the dried ginger slices swirled around the edge of the basin.

The Gu Corpse Stake has reached the second layer of the copper coin formation.

Tang Wanqing's red thread was bitten off by the Gu thread.

"I can't hold on any longer."

Tieguai Li picked up the basin.

"splash?"

Cheng Xiaojin pressed her finger down on the edge of the iron scale, her face turning pale.

"Let me pick out the worm threads."

Master Ma said in a deep voice, "Little Jin, keep it three inches away."

"Um."

Cheng Xiaojin didn't touch the corpse mud with his hands, but only placed the protective iron scales diagonally towards the chest of the Gu corpse stake.

The roar of the Zhenhai Iron Dragon traveled through the iron scales, and the sound penetrated into the chest cavity of the Gu Corpse Stake.

The gray-white Gu threads darted wildly through the corpse mud, forced to emerge in patches from the surface of the skin.

Zhou Banxian saw the wine pot stop in mid-air.

"You think you can get angry now?"

Tang Wanqing's eyes tightened.

"This is on the edge of memory; it cannot last long."

Cheng Xiaojin's teeth were tingling, but he still managed to force out a sentence.

"Don't promote me, my salary hasn't increased."

Boss Lin's face darkened.

"Stop him."

Two men in black rushed up, holding umbrellas.

The man with the nose scar lifted his foot from behind the crowd, the tip of his shoe pressing against a black line in the mud.

One of the men in black slipped, and his umbrella collided with another man's copper ruler, causing both of them to tumble into the tall grass.

Boss Lin glanced back.

With his head down, the man with the nasal scar pressed his sleeve against his blackened wrist, pretending he hadn't done anything.

Cheng Xiaojin didn't look over there.

He stared at the chest of the Gu Corpse Stake.

"come out."

The iron scales clanged again.

Layers of Gu threads floated to the surface of the corpse mud, their grayish-white color turning into a patchwork under the moonlight.

The Gu Corpse Stake opened its mouth, squeezing out half a number from its throat.

"one……"

A bluish line appeared on the back of Cheng Xiaojin's hand, creeping towards her wrist.

Tang Wanqing grabbed his sleeve.

That's enough.

"Another half breath."

"Cheng Xiaojin".

"I heard the pile protector."

On the chest of the Gu Corpse Stake, the afterimage sewn into the mud revealed half of its face.

The afterimage's mouth moved slightly.

"The stake...don't get dirty..."

Cheng Xiaojin looked up.

"Brother Li, splash it on my chest."

Tieguai Li held the basin with both hands and poured it onto the chest of the Gu Corpse Stake.

Hot water, braised oil, mugwort ash, dried ginger, and stove ash were all poured over the Gu thread.

The sizzling sounds blended together.

The grayish-white worm threads were scalded and curled up, their surface turned black, and a foul smell of worm oil wafted out.

Tang Wanqing immediately replaced the copper coins.

She strung the last few intact copper coins onto the broken red thread and tossed them into the hot water.

"Fire Line Suppresses the Gu".

Master Zhou sprayed wine to boost his energy.

"Burn it clean for the old man."

When the copper coin was heated, the red line on it briefly lit up against the ground, while the insect thread was forced into a clump of black ash.

The Gu Corpse Stake retreated two steps, and the corpse mud on its chest fell down.

The fading figure of the pile protector emerged from the mud, kneeling in the direction of the Zhenhai ironwood box.

He couldn't see his face clearly, only half a wooden ruler at his waist.

Cheng Xiaojin put down the protective iron scales.

"Thanks, bro."

The afterimage bent down and then disappeared into the bottom of the pit.

The Gu corpse stake collapsed back to its original spot, and the corpse mud did not stir up again.

The worm threads inside the black wooden box were also blackened, and a fishy smell emanated from the edge of the box.

Boss Lin pressed his fingers against the ring face.

"Boss Cheng, your hands are becoming more and more valuable."

Cheng Xiaojin took a couple of breaths and looked up at him.

"Don't worry about it, I only accept RMB, not those Southeast Asian insects."

Tieguai Li used his iron hook to turn over the corpse in the mud.

There's something there.

He picked up half a copper coin.

The copper coin is only half left. There is an old pattern from the waist tag of the stake protector next to the coin hole, and the other side is blackened by the Gu fire.

Tang Wanqing walked closer to take a look.

"Guardian Copper Coins".

Zhou Bansian asked, "What's it for?"

Tang Wanqing looked toward the nose scar.

"Press the gap in the shadow, and it can protect the shadow that has been shortened by the door's energy for seven days."

The man with the nasal scar looked up, and the moonlight shone on the old scar on his face.

Cheng Xiaojin took the dry cloth handed to him by Tieguai Li and asked him to put the half copper coin in the bag.

"Hey, you with the 'scarred nose,' did you hear that?"

The nasal scar and Adam's apple moved slightly.

"I heard you."

Boss Lin looked at the nose scar.

"You're very concerned?"

The man with the nasal scar said in a low voice, "I'd care if anyone's shadow was even half an inch shorter."

Cheng Xiaojin put the half copper coin into his cloth bag.

"Boss Lin, you must have spent a lot of money releasing those bugs, right?"

Boss Lin looked at him.

"What are you trying to say?"

"I mean, you've really lost out this time."

Cheng Xiaojin turned to look at the moon.

"It's midnight."

Master Ma stood beside the wooden box, and the lid of the teacup clicked.

"Download iron."