After Luo Tianhe finished speaking, he finally pushed open the coffin lid, and I was able to see the true face of this evil spirit.

Just as Ge Wang had said before, her face was extremely pale, but there was no sign of decay on her body.

If it weren't for the thick hemp rope around her neck, which had strangled her and left her bloodied and mangled, she would look almost like a normal person asleep, only a little pale.

"This is really weird," I muttered to myself as I looked at the scene.

After all, the evil spirit that had been dead for so many years showed no signs of decay, while the hanged ghosts that he had killed just a few days ago were all rotting beyond recognition.

I silently recited the incantation, then reached for the rope around her neck.

When I grabbed the blood-stained rope, the female corpse suddenly opened her eyes and stared straight at me.

Holy crap!

I was startled and stumbled backward several steps.

When I looked back into the coffin, still shaken, I found that the evil spirit's eyes were tightly closed, as if they had never been opened before.

I turned to look at Luo Tianhe beside me and asked:

"Did you see that evil spirit open its eyes just now?"

Luo Tianhe looked puzzled, shook his head, and then said:

"No, this thing has been lying there perfectly fine. But you, the moment you touched the rope, you acted like you'd been bitten by a snake."

Li Huai, who was standing to the side, actually had the mind to joke at this moment. He glanced at me and a smile appeared on his lips.

"The rope biting incident."

This idiot Li Huai almost made me laugh out loud, but it did reduce the terrifying atmosphere a lot.

I walked to the coffin again and reached out to grab the rope.

Fortunately, this time the thing didn't open its eyes either, but when I tried to pull it off, I found that the rope seemed to be tightly wrapped around its neck, and I couldn't pull it off for a moment.

What happened? Old man Ge Wang didn't mention in his previous account that this hemp rope was so difficult to remove!

I sensed something was wrong, so I took out a yellow talisman and wrapped it around my hand.

Only then did they remove the hemp rope.

"Brother Yan, what should we do with this body? Should we just leave it here?"

Luo Tianhe, who was standing to the side, asked.

"How about we just set it on fire..."

He felt that leaving it like this wasn't a good idea, and that it would be best to cremate it, which might actually bring her peace of mind.

I rolled my eyes at Luo Tianhe, annoyed.

"You think you're so smart? If cremation were possible, Ge Wang would have already led the way in cremating this evil spirit. The situation is still under control, but once you cremate it, this thing will go berserk."

After reprimanding Luo Tianhe, I looked at the surrounding villagers and solemnly instructed them:

"Do not cremate her before the funeral procession is over."

After saying that, I took out a cinnabar thread stained with dog's blood and first used it to bind the evil spirit's feet.

After that, I also tied the evil spirit's hands tightly.

"Brother Yan, I've seen this before. Brother Luo performed it in a bar before. You didn't tie it as well as him, hehe."

Hearing Li Huai's words, I was so angry my nose almost crooked. That Luo Tianhe kid was just playing around, I was fucking warding off evil spirits.

Seeing my livid face, and knowing I couldn't free my hands, Luo Tianhe gave Li Huai another hard slap.

Seeing this, my expression softened considerably, and I explained to them:

"This is to prevent her from turning into a zombie or letting her resentment escape. By binding her hands and feet, she will be unable to move for at least a short period of time after she turns into a zombie."

After binding her hands and feet, that wasn't the end of it. I took out some talismans and completely blocked her seven orifices.

Seeing my actions, many villagers immediately showed expressions of admiration, as if I were a true master.

After removing the hemp rope, they did not make any arrangements for the body and hastily proceeded with the funeral ceremony.

Now it seems that it's definitely better to have professionals do it.

Clearly, I am the professional in their eyes.

Although this was my first time presiding over a funeral ceremony, my grandfather had explained all the important points to note to me in great detail.

It seems he had anticipated that I might run into him.

After removing the hemp rope, I had Luo Tianhe and the others put the coffin lid back on. Then, I pasted several talismans between the coffin lid and the coffin body, and wrapped it with red gauze.

Although these effects are negligible, doing something is better than doing nothing.

Even if we can delay this evil spirit for just one second, it will give us one more second to escape.

I took out a cloth bag covered with runes and stuffed the hemp rope inside.

Then I plugged the opening with a talisman I had drawn with my own blood.

We handed the bag to Li Huai, who stopped joking and solemnly accepted it, saying he would definitely keep a close eye on it. Then, our group went to the door.

Luo Tianhe put on the Zhong Kui costume and, following my instructions, made various exaggerated movements while leading the crowd along the route we had planned.

Meanwhile, other people along the way scattered items such as rice, salt, beans, and nails.

These items symbolize warding off evil spirits and setting up barriers, effectively preventing negative energy from dissipating.

I stood in the center of the group, holding a talisman in one hand and a peach wood sword in the other.

But actually, I was the one in the most dangerous position.

Anyone with eyes can see that I was in charge of this funeral ceremony, and if this evil spirit is going to make a move, it will definitely target me first.

Soon we arrived at the village entrance, at the locust tree where the witch who hanged herself had been.

I couldn't help but look up and saw a blurry, swaying figure hanging in the tree, waving at me.

To my horror, I discovered that the person was actually the sorceress we had exorcised during the day!

How could that be? We clearly performed the rituals for her soul during the day, and it's only evening now!

I instantly realized that it must be that thing that was behind this!

After all, the sorceress's resentment had been completely dispelled through my intervention, so it was impossible for her to turn into a vengeful ghost!

Sure enough, when I opened my third eye, there was no ghostly figure on the locust tree; it was completely empty.

Just then, I heard Li Huai's somewhat terrified cry:

"Brother Yan, Brother Yan, this rope is about to run away."

I turned to look at Li Huai, and saw that the cloth bag in his hand seemed to have come to life, writhing desperately in his grasp, as if trying to reach out and grab it. His right hand was also holding a talisman, which he was sticking onto it.

The sack stopped wriggling immediately and billowing black smoke began to rise from it.

But it stopped for less than a second, and as the talisman burned to ashes, it began to struggle again.

Seeing that Li Huai was about to lose his grip, he let the rope slip from his hand.

I gritted my teeth. Damn it, if this rope really gets away, I'll be the one hanging from the locust tree!

At the critical moment, I stepped forward, bit my right index finger, and then, with my own blood, quickly drew a talisman on the cloth bag.