Kongqing's body had been dead for years - there was no reason it should remain perfectly preserved without any decay. If not for her waxen-white complexion, I might have thought she was merely asleep.
"What...what's going on here?" Dreaming Nun was equally perplexed. She was certain Kongqing's body had been buried for several years.
Did this mean the corpse was turning into a jiangshi?
I examined Kongqing's hands and noticed she was clutching the black comb - identical to the one I'd seen earlier in the room.
This was the real comb. Those held by the nuns were likely manifestations of vengeful energy.
"Take the comb and burn it!" I said, carefully attempting to pry the comb from the corpse's grip. Strangely, the comb wouldn't budge, as if fused with the body.
"It won't work. We tried before - unless we cut off the hands," Dreaming Nun stated.
Hearing this, I stopped. I couldn't actually sever the corpse's hands - that would be profoundly disrespectful.
"Stein, notice anything unusual about the body?" I asked.
Stein, seemingly unsatisfied with his initial inspection, circled the coffin repeatedly in silence.
"Are you admiring a beautiful woman or examining a corpse? Hurry up!" I chided.
Kongqing was indeed stunning - no wonder so many men, including wealthy heirs, had pursued her.
Finally, Stein spoke: "There's something peculiar about this body."
"Obviously! It hasn't decomposed after years underground - of course it's peculiar," I retorted.
"No," Stein insisted. "Don't you think it's too white? Almost...translucent?"
Now that he mentioned it, the corpse wasn't just pale - it had an unnaturally uniform, almost artificial whiteness.
Gathering courage, I poked the body...and made a shocking discovery.
The flesh yielded to my touch, but...it felt hollow inside.
"Damn it! It's a zombie-like spirit human skin! Is there a snake beneath?" Stein exclaimed.
He carefully turned the corpse, revealing exactly what he'd suspected - a large black snake pressed underneath. The serpent's body was wrapped in a black talisman, its tongue severed, eye sockets empty and terrifying. It lay coiled beneath the corpse, motionless.
No, this wasn't a real body at all - just an empty human skin shell.
The Black Charm again! This was a talisman only used by witches. Nuwa's Forsaken Shade had employed it before. Could a witch be behind this?
"What's zombie-like spirit human skin?" Dreaming Nun asked.
Stein explained that zombie-like spirit human skin was a form of dark witchcraft. It involved using venomous snakes combined with talismans to plant an evil spirit on a corpse. Once the coffin was opened, the corpse would shed its skin, and the real zombie - a blood-covered zombie - would emerge.
No wonder the body hadn't decomposed. Someone had cast this dark witchcraft, causing the corpse to periodically shed its skin like a snake until the coffin was opened.
Looking at the coffin's base, I noticed numerous layers of old skin - remnants from previous shedding cycles.
The concept was bizarre. How could a corpse, not a living being, grow new skin and shed repeatedly?
"Little Boss, we've fallen into someone's trap," Stein said. "Whoever placed this spell knew someone would eventually open this coffin. I never expected we'd be the ones to trigger it."
"But what happens now? It turns into a blood-covered zombie? There's no body left in this coffin," I said, confused. Upon closer inspection, the coffin indeed contained only the empty skin shell and some revolting old skin layers.
Stein shrank back nervously, scanning our surroundings. "Perhaps...we didn't notice when the body...jumped out earlier. It...it might be nearby right now."
His words sent chills through us all. A blood-covered zombie lurking nearby?
What exactly was a blood-covered zombie? Something far worse than a regular jiangshi, apparently.
Stein's earlier analysis seemed correct - Kongqing's body had indeed been tampered with. Someone had preemptively placed dark witchcraft here, ensuring the corpse would transform into a blood-covered zombie upon the coffin's opening.
Someone didn't want this coffin opened. By rigging it to kill intruders, they clearly aimed to protect certain secrets from being discovered.
"Kongqing's been doubly cursed," Stein said. "Her body became a blood-covered zombie, though I'm unsure about her ghost's current state."
How vicious - not even letting the dead rest in peace, tormenting both body and soul.
Kongqing already carried powerful ghostly resentment. After this dark magic interference, her vengeful spirit would become even more terrifying - explaining how it could haunt even sacred Buddhist grounds.
But now we faced a more immediate problem: dealing with this blood-covered zombie, or we'd all end up as its meal.
But strangely, we still hadn't seen the blood-covered zombie. I had no idea where it was hiding.
By this time, it had grown much darker. Though it was already night, a large dark cloud now gathered overhead - something that hadn't been there before.
The eerie wind grew stronger, howling creepily around us. With no vegetation but plenty of rocks in the area, we couldn't rule out the possibility of it hiding behind them.
"Hehehe..."
Just then, an unnatural laugh came from nowhere, sending chills down our spines. Between the rocks, something seemed to flash and disappear from view.
"Let's retreat, Little Boss. This blood-covered zombie is too dangerous," Stein urged, ready to flee again.
I shook my head. "No. A blood-covered zombie is several times more ferocious than a regular jiangshi. Even if we somehow escape, it'll just descend the mountain and kill more people. We have to destroy it here tonight!"
I tried reassuring Stein - unlike ghosts, we could treat this like an extremely dangerous wild beast. But he still trembled with fear, legs wobbling.
"Stay here. I'll check behind the rocks," Antonio said, drawing the small steel knife from his waist and stepping toward the rock formation.
"Be careful - remember to aim for the head," I reminded him.
For zombies, fire or decapitation were the most effective methods.
Antonio nodded and disappeared into the darkness. Even with my phone's flashlight, the light seemed swallowed up - I could only see dark shadows flickering among the rocks.
"Nothing. There's nothing here," Antonio suddenly announced as he emerged from the rocks, startling us.
But at that exact moment, his eyes suddenly widened in horror as he looked back at the three of us. I gasped, immediately realizing what must be happening.