Chapter 4: The Little Devil in the Altar
Wow! !
"Hijira, please invite the gods to come!"

Xu Yang held a bell in his hand, wore a Changming Bagua robe, and recited scriptures with a serious face.

Charity cemeteries are one of the characteristics of this world. Because this world is filled with negative energy, demons and monsters, after a person dies, the family members will deposit the body in a charity cemetery, which will be guarded by Taoist priests. The family members will return to prepare for the funeral and then carry the body away for burial.

Of course, it does not necessarily have to be in the form of a charity cemetery. Some are temples, some are coffin shops, paper figurine shops, or ordinary mountain villas.

The means of suppressing corpses are also different. The charity cemetery is used to store corpses and suppress them with corpse-driving bells; the temple uses statues of gods and ritual water.

In short, weddings, funerals and sacrificial ceremonies at the grassroots level are controlled by these low-level monks, and their essential purpose is the same - to make money.

So Xu Yang performed with all his might.

"Edict!!!"

Xu Yang shouted softly, flicked his fingers, and the flame ignited the ingot candle.

The dim green flames showed that this fire was extraordinary.

Everyone exclaimed.

"Tsk tsk!! The new Taoist priest is indeed worthy of being the disciple of Taoist Changming!!"

"Master Changming has accepted a good disciple."

"Master Changming is a very kind person, and so is my disciple."

The ceremony was over and the feast began.

Women and strong men carried food and distributed it to each table, and the villagers ate with relish.

The table had two plates of pork, two plates of chicken, a freshwater fish, a bowl of noodles, two bowls of vegetables, and plenty of steamed buns.

Xu Yang took off his robes and sat down at the main table.

On the table were the township heads, village heads, and so on of the two townships.

Xu Yang picked up a glass of wine and said, "Thank you all for coming to my master's funeral. I am very grateful. Let me drink first as a token of my respect!!"

"Master, you're welcome!" Shiqiaoxiang was a middle-aged man, and he drank it all in one gulp following Xu Yang.

Lingwei Xiangzheng was quite old and couldn't drink much, so he just took a sip.

Xu Yang sat down, only to find that the table was not even full.

"What about the rest?"

"Ahem... The Ren family, the Lin family, and the Hu family claimed that they were busy and could not come, and they did not send any representatives."

Lingwei Township was feeling a bit embarrassed. After all, they were the ones who notified the people, but in the end, these people didn't show up.

"That must be something wrong. Come on, let's eat first!"

Xu Yang remained calm and continued to raise his glass.

They were toasting each other and having a great time, as if everyone had forgotten that it was Taoist Priest Changming's funeral.

While chatting with everyone, Xu Yang almost couldn't hold it in. In the eyes of everyone, the old thief Chang Ming was actually a good man.

"Hey, Taoist priest, you don't know that our two villages are relatively good. The Huai Gong in the neighboring Daluo San Village is simply a lion with a big mouth and a bad temper. People often disappear in the mountains. And the Shiye Temple in Qingshi Village occupies most of the village's land... Taoist priest Xu, you have to inherit the legacy of Taoist priest Changming."

Old man Liu from Lingwei Township blushed and, regardless of his old age, toasted Xu Yang.

"It's my duty. It's my duty." Xu Yang clinked his glasses together, deep in thought.

The King of the Fire Kingdom conferred titles on the gods and ghosts who had surrendered to them, divided their spheres of influence according to the first to ninth ranks and even lower-ranking cultivators, and made them responsible for handling matters concerning gods and monsters among the people in order to maintain their rule; this world had basic order, but did not care about the details.

For some people, this loose system gives them great room to develop and a channel to climb up.

The same is true for Xu Yang. At least there is no so-called senior master in the sect to search his soul or restrict him from doing anything.

However, no one is in charge, which means there is no backstage protection when encountering danger, so you still need to be strong on your own.

In the future, you can climb up and obtain more sophisticated spells. According to the rules of the Heche Palace of the Fire Kingdom, Taoists with a certain rank can exchange for Taoist spells, or other treasures, or even join the Heche Palace.

Xu Yang was drinking and thinking, and then he said to Lingwei Xiangzheng:
"Liu Xiangzheng, have you reported the master's death to the authorities?"

"That's right. In about three months, the Heche Palace will send an envoy to inspect your practice and merits. With Master Xu's ability, it should not be a problem for him to take over the job."

"I understand. Thank you for the guidance." Xu Yang took it to heart. Naturalization is not the same as admission to a rank, and it is just a small profit in the village, so it is estimated that it will not be too strict. Moreover, he also knew what to do, so naturally the envoy's "travel expenses" would not be less.

Xu Yang added: "The Qingming Festival is coming, and this year's Qingming Festival will be held as scheduled, and everything is normal."

The Taoist priests in the charity ceremonies are in charge of rituals such as weddings and funerals, among which sacrifice is the largest part. Most of the sacrifices are public sacrifices, with village elders and powerful people raising funds and donating money to invite Taoist priests to hold blessing ceremonies.

To put it bluntly, it is protection money, which is the name used by Changming Taoist to make money. In previous years, there were three festivals: Spring Festival, Qingming Festival, and Zhongyuan Festival.

Since Xu Yang inherited the charity cemetery, he would naturally inherit these rituals as well. Otherwise, where would he get the money to practice? Moreover, these sacrifices would also be recorded in the legal books of merit.

The only obstacle now may be the three major families in these two villages.

In particular, the Ren family, the largest local landlord, probably thought that they were young and ignorant, so they took this opportunity to get rid of the charity cemetery.

"You guys dance for a while first. When I have mastered the magic, I will show you the consequences of offending a Taoist priest."

Xu Yang secretly sentenced them to death in his heart. As a new official, he had three things to do upon taking office, so he could make a fortune from these wealthy families.

Soon, the banquet was over and the village strongmen carried the coffin up the mountain.

The sun sets in the west, and the red clouds look like fire.

In front of the new grave, there are still ashes and warmth. The lonely grave has just been filled, and there are still incense sticks burning in front of the tombstone.

Xu Yang untied the Qiankun bag and reached in to count the supplies.

"One hundred wen, three liang, fifteen liang... a total of twenty-six liang, three qian and fifty wen. Haha, I made a profit."

Xu Yang was delighted. One hundred coins equal one cent, and ten cents equal one ounce.

Five taels of silver is the annual expenses for a family of five. How could he not be happy when he suddenly received five years' expenses of others?

"The cost of refining zombies should be enough. I have the Warring States silk book, so I should be able to grind it out quickly." Xu Yang thought.

As the sky gradually darkened, a bright moon appeared on the skyline. Smoke rose from the village below the mountains, and the figures gradually became scarce.

Xu Yang took advantage of the night and went to a secluded charity cemetery.

A luxurious mansion.

There are flying eaves and pointed corners, pavilions and towers, tall and strong servants and young maids.

Five men and several children sat around a large dining table. The women stood by and served them but did not sit at the table.

"Brother, do we really want to break up with the Taoist priest of Yi Zhuang? Even if he is young, he is still a Taoist priest." Someone asked in confusion.

"Our old man's coffin is still in the funeral home. Who should perform the ritual?"

The oldest man snorted coldly and said:
"I'm testing you. Who said we've fallen out? If Xu Yang doesn't say anything this time, it means he's cowardly. If I go one step further, Sanji will find an excuse not to pay. I have to pay at least 40 taels a year. Isn't this money?"

"Our family business was built by our ancestors, and we can't ruin it. Besides, what's the harm in offending this person? At worst, we can take refuge in the Stone Lord Temple next door, and I don't think he would dare to say anything."

"Brother is wise!"

Among the three major landlords, the Ren family is the strongest, and the other two families also look at his face and follow the head of the Ren family to get benefits.

Director Ren Jiajia put away his cold face and suddenly smiled:
"We won't push too hard, second brother. Ask Shuncai to pay three taels of silver as an apology. By the way, let me know that the funeral for the old man will continue to be handled by the charity cemetery, and it will be held in a grand manner!"

The three families exerted joint pressure, and Yizhuang took a step back.

The Ren family members concluded that from today onwards, they would not have to pay for the three sacrifices. The richer the family, the more money they had to pay for the three sacrifices. Forty taels of silver could buy two acres of good land. If they harvested two acres of land a year, the landlords would also feel the pain.

The charity cemetery in the evening was still gloomy and desolate.

Xu Yang pushed open the door.

Grumbling…

Suddenly, a half-meter-high black jar rolled over, even snaking an arc to avoid the bumps, and stopped steadily in front of him.

Wow!
A boy's head popped out of the jar.

The boy had pigtails, his face was as pale as if he had been painted with lead powder, his lips were blood red, his cheeks were even redder, and his eyes had no whites. He looked so weird that Xu Yang was almost scared.

"My young master, I finally found you. I was almost starving to death."

(From now on, there will be one update every day at 12 noon and around 6 pm.)
(End of this chapter)