"But this job is tough, and there are risks. It really tests your judgment. If the Corpse Hall doesn't want the body, they'd be at a loss."

"Corpse Carrier? Corpse Hall?" Lou Yi continued to inquire from the pancake vendor.

Lou Yi bought a pancake worth a qian of silver, a significant customer.

The pancake vendor patiently explained to him.

It turns out that the Corpse-Driving Sect of the Immortal Sect in the Zhao Kingdom has set up a Corpse Hall in every city, collecting bodies at high prices, which gave rise to the profession of Corpse Carriers.

However, the Corpse Hall doesn't accept just any body; they must meet three conditions.

First, the age must be below thirty-five; second, the limbs must be intact; third, there must be no resentment at the time of death.

Moreover, there are rules against touching wood, water, oil, gold, or iron, so it can only be carried manually, no vehicles can be used.

After hearing this, Lou Yi realized that having no resentment was the most important; otherwise, everyone in the Zhao Kingdom would live in fear.

"Why don't the families of the deceased sell directly to the Corpse Hall, instead of going through Corpse Carriers?" Lou Yi casually asked.

"I asked my grandfather the same question when I was a child, and he said he asked my great-grandfather.

He said it's a long-standing rule of the Immortal Sect, to avoid entanglement with karma and such.

Thus, it must be handled by others, without direct contact with the families of the deceased..." The pancake vendor revealed mysteriously.

'What avoidance of karma, more like avoidance of trouble. With a layer in between, no one can pinpoint them,' Lou Yi thought.

"Is there a Seeking Immortality Hall in this city?"

"No, there's only the Corpse Hall, but there are Corpse-Driving Sect Immortal Masters there too," the pancake vendor softly reminded, "If you need anything, I heard that Immortal Master is quite fond of wealth..."

"Thank you for letting me know."

Lou Yi's eyes lit up after hearing this; this information was quite valuable.

He asked the pancake vendor for the exact location of the Corpse Hall and headed straight there.

The direction to the Corpse Hall was quite remote, winding through several alleys, where regular passersby decreased and Corpse Carriers increased.

Before long, Lou Yi saw a flying eaves building with a black plaque, bearing the large characters 'Corpse Hall'.

At the entrance stood a grey-robed Daoist, slightly chubby, appearing to be in his thirties.

He had his hair in a Daoist bun, with a pale face and purplish lips, looking somewhat eerie.

In front of him, Corpse Carriers were lining up one after another obediently.

The first in line, a skinny old man, gently placed the body he was carrying on a bamboo mat in front of the Fat Daoist.

The body belonged to a young man in his twenties, robust and muscular.

The Fat Daoist held a small black bell in his hand, passing it over the young man's head.

He shook his head: "This quality is no good, far worse than the last time."

The skinny old man's expression turned bitter after hearing this, then he hoisted the body back up and left in another direction.

Behind him, someone else put down a body, which turned out to be a slender youth with rosy cheeks and white teeth.

The bell passed over the youth's head, emitting a crisp 'ding-a-ling', bringing a look of joy to the Fat Daoist's face.

He bent down, first lifting the corpse's eyelids for a look, then opening the mouth, and carefully inspected the entire body for major wounds or defects.

Finally, he nodded: "This one is good, three liang of silver."

The Corpse Carrier smiled upon hearing the approval from the Fat Daoist, but the smile froze when he heard the price.

"Master Daoist, I searched for this good corpse for three months, and it initially cost me five liang.

Yet you offer only three liang; I can't even recoup the cost."

The Fat Daoist sneered: "You claimed the original corpse cost five liang, even a three-year-old wouldn't believe it."

The two bargained for quite a while, eventually reaching a reluctant deal at six liang of silver.

Even though the deal was closed, the Corpse Carrier kept sighing, clearly unsatisfied with the selling price.

The whole process wasn't much different from buying vegetables at a market.

Lou Yi quietly observed from the side, noticing that there was still a large group of Corpse Carriers waiting; he decided to leave and return the next day.

Suddenly, he heard an angry reprimand: "How dare you bring a Resentful Corpse here, trying to deceive us!"

The Fat Daoist was red with anger, his eyes glaring fiercely at the Corpse Carrier opposite him.

The perpetrator was a middle-aged man with a sly and cunning appearance.

He was pale with fright, prostrating on the ground: "Immortal Master, I truly didn't mean to. This body was picked up by me; I didn't know it was a Resentful Corpse!"

"Tsk, try all your slippery tricks, the nation has its laws, and the sect has its rules!" The Fat Daoist was full of menace, "Bringing a Resentful Corpse to muddle through, according to sect rules, it's thirty strokes and five years in prison!"

The sneaky-eyed man's face almost fainted upon hearing this, sobbing and pleading for mercy.

From the Corpse Hall, six cold-faced armed guards emerged, ready to seize this rule-breaking Corpse Carrier.

Lou Yi glanced at the body labeled as a Resentful Corpse lying on the ground.

It was an ordinary-looking young man, seemingly no different from other bodies.

Feeling something, he approached the corpse, and when about a dozen meters away, the Attribute Panel prompted: 'Energy +1, absorb?'

"Yes."

Lou Yi absorbed the Resentful Corpse's energy, waiting quietly for the situation to unfold.

"What's going on?"

A tall and thin middle-aged Daoist emerged from the Corpse Hall, dressed in a dark grey Daoist Robe, pale-faced, though not as exaggerated as the Fat Daoist.

"Senior Brother, this guy brought a Resentful Corpse.

Luckily I was cautious and noticed something was off, using a Spirit Testing Talisman, or else it would have entered the sect gate..." The Fat Daoist expressed with a scared expression.

"Let me see." The thin Daoist went over to look, frowning, "Why does it seem fine to me?"

His palm emitted a faint red glow, which was then imprinted on the male corpse's forehead, seemingly probing for something.

After a moment, the thin Daoist shook his head: "This corpse is fine."

"What?"

The Fat Daoist didn't believe it, pulling a grey talisman paper from his pocket.

He mumbled something unknown, and the talisman paper was pasted onto the male corpse's forehead with a 'swish', transforming into a peculiar white character that vaguely appeared on its skin surface.

Upon seeing this character's change, the Fat Daoist's expression shifted.

"Strange, I just saw it had resentment... Could someone have dispelled it?"

"But unless it was done by a Golden Core Master with profound Divine Skills, even the most subtle techniques would leave some resentment behind, truly peculiar."

On the other side, observing everything, Lou Yi increasingly felt a connection with the Corpse-Driving Sect.

He could grow stronger by touching corpses; wasn't this sect, named Corpse-Driving Sect, fated for him?

Since the male corpse was fine, the Fat Daoist decided to accept it.

"Get out of here." He began to drive away the sneaky-looking Corpse Carrier.

"Master, this body was carried here by me, you see..." The Corpse Carrier rubbed his hands lasciviously.

"A picked-up body, what's the difference from theft? You fool, sparing you from punishment is already generous, and you still dare ask for money?" The Fat Daoist scolded, frowning.

"Forget it, it's not easy for someone to carry it over; just give him some silver," the thin Daoist couldn't bear it and said, then turned and went back into the Corpse Hall.

"I'll listen to my Senior Brother." The Fat Daoist fossicked on his body for a long time before tossing a small string of rusted Copper Plates, likely barely enough to buy a few pancakes.

Seeing that he could at most get this much benefit, the Corpse Carrier left with a worried expression.

"That's enough for today, come back tomorrow." After this disturbance, the Fat Daoist no longer felt like accepting corpses.

He was about to return to the Corpse Hall.

"Immortal Master, please hold on."

Lou Yi spoke up to stop him.

...

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