I Only Want to Lie Flat But Am Forced to Cultivate Immortality-Chapter 260 - 146: Straw Spirit Funeral, Paper-Crafting Skills_2

Chapter 260: Chapter 146: Straw Spirit Funeral, Paper-Crafting Skills_2

Amid the murky, bubbling waters of the river, shadowy ghostly figures waved their skeletal white arms, scrambling for the passage money scattered on the paper boats...

In front of him were six corpses: one of the lowest-tier Heaven class, one barely reaching the lowest-tier Earth class, and the remaining four were all highest-tier Human class.

The Sutra of Salvation rewarded: a Yin Communication Treasure Mirror that can see through the Nine Netherworld and illuminate the Underworld and Celestial Abode, a craft art of making paper people and horses, a bottle of Cyan Essence Pills, and a Gambling Death Technique.

Besides these profound treasures and techniques, there were also some conventional martial arts items, such as Cotton Palm, Breaking Army Fist, Ten-Step Slash Technique, Five Tigers Breaking Gate Spear, Black Jade Ointment, Bone-Enhancing Powder, etc...

The Yin Communication Treasure Mirror is similar to the Demon-Revealing Mirror; holding this item allows one to see some strange things lingering between the Yin and Yang Realms.

Xu Qing shone the treasure mirror on his own face, only to see pitch black in the mirror. When he removed the mirror, the surrounding scenery could again reflect normally in it, almost no different from an ordinary mirror.

Xu Qing studied it for a while but still couldn’t understand it.

This thing shows nothing wrong when reflecting other things, but why does it go black upon seeing me?

Putting away this valuable Heaven-class mirror, Xu Qing turned to learn the paper crafting art.

The paper crafting art he obtained was different from the ordinary funeral paper crafting.

The family of his neighbor Wu Yaohua had been skilled at paper crafting for generations. By his generation, the art had been honed expertly, but they could only create lifeless paper objects.

However, the paper crafting art Xu Qing had obtained could create living paper people and horses.

Xu Qing closed his eyes to comprehend. This technique of making paper puppets was somewhat similar to the refining method he had previously learned for the Five-Colored Steed and the Thousand Gold Fur Coat.

But the Thousand Gold Fur Coat was just a lifeless object cut from two taels of yellow paper, only the Five-Colored Steed was more like a living thing, but that horse was made from white bone clay, not just cut from paper.

Xu Qing closed his eyes and focused, in his mind scissors and talisman paper flew and changed, countless runic patterns formed in his heart.

The Spirit Communication Paper Art is divided into higher and lower categories. The higher ones include Armored Horse, Paper Crane, Paper Donkey, Paper Horse, Paper Tiger, Paper Dragon, Paper Phoenix, and so on.

Among them, the Armored Horse is also a paper horse, but different from an ordinary paper horse in that it is made of gold foil paper. When the Armored Horse manifests, it wears armor, its body glowing with golden light, exuding divine might.

Although Paper Tiger, Paper Dragon, and Paper Phoenix are high-grade paper crafts, they are ranked behind Paper Crane, Paper Donkey, and Paper Horse. Because these objects, while having divine forms, lack corresponding powers, their practical value is also inferior to the former, hence are not highly regarded by Spirit Communication paper crafters.

Xu Qing opened his eyes, flipped out a pair of scissors, and cut effortlessly.

In no time, on the desk in front of Xu Qing, appeared a lifelike big tiger.

He took out a wolf hair brush, dipped it in vermillion ink, and with brush strokes like a dragon’s dance, drew crimson runes resembling tiger stripes, adding a layer of vivid and eerie color to the paper tiger.

Finally, Xu Qing took a bit of zombie blood and dotted the tiger’s eyes.

Strangely enough, after dotting the tiger’s pupils, the paper tiger’s eyes flipped and it closed them on its own.

Seeing this, Xu Qing knew the paper tiger was complete, but it still lacked some driving force.

For paper objects to move like living creatures, they also need some energy to be infused.

For instance, Jianghu exotic techniques often use human spiritual essence as the driving force for paper puppets, which is Yin Qi and Yin Sha.

Xu Qing opened his mouth and blew a mouthful of Yin Sha onto the paper tiger. In the next moment, the grayish white Gale Qi swirled around the tiger’s body, and the paper tiger suddenly opened its tightly closed eyes, the crimson vermillion color captivating the heart.

With a thought from Xu Qing, the paper tiger broke through the window and energetically lunged toward the chicken coop in the backyard.

Outside the chicken coop, the Golden Simurgh was lying in the shade by the wall, taking a dust bath with a dozen hens.

Many birds have a natural habit of dust bathing. The Golden Simurgh was just accompanying its wives and concubines when suddenly, a menacing white-browed tiger dashed toward them!

The Golden Simurgh’s sparse feathers stood on end in fright. In its eyes, with Xu Qing, such a fearsome deity, in the shop, who would dare to intrude?

But now, there was a terrifying monster tiger intruding.

What kind of extraordinary evil is this?

The Golden Simurgh was terrified, but a rooster’s innate combativeness prevented it from backing down.

With three-inch long spurs like golden hooks, without hesitation, it charged at the ferocious tiger.

The white tiger and the golden rooster each displayed their fierce prowess, the paper tiger bared its fangs and claws, while the golden rooster spread its wings in response.

But in the next moment, the golden rooster’s spurs easily slashed through the paper, making a sound like tearing silk.

The ferocious tiger couldn’t withstand more than two strikes before it turned into a flurry of fragments, fluttering down like snow in June.

Just like that?

The Golden Simurgh was puzzled for a moment, then proudly flapped its wings and let out a victorious crow.

In the side room, Xu Qing’s expression turned peculiar.

No wonder the paper tiger couldn’t earn a place among the refined crafts, and no wonder people would call those who are all bark but no bite a paper tiger.

Isn’t this the quintessential example of something that looks good but is useless?

But despite the disappointing results of the paper tiger, Xu Qing still remained optimistic about the Spirit Communication paper art.

Humans have three souls and seven spirits; souls govern the mind, while spirits govern the body. Because of souls and spirits, human hearts are filled with emotional changes and can easily develop ulterior motives over time.

However, paper puppets have spirit but no soul, form but no spirit. Without soul or spirit, they have no ulterior motives and can be directed entirely by their master.

Moreover, if good materials are used, covered with good wax, and properly maintained, paper crafts can be preserved for hundreds of years. Additionally, there is a technique in paper crafting called the Yin Gold Nourishing Paper Technique.

The reason why Ling Yangzi’s paper people had faces like gold paper and bodies as strong as ironstone was because they were nurtured using the Yin Metal Qi from the Yin Gold burial money.

The paper tiger in Xu Qing’s hands was so fragile not only because of the Golden Simurgh’s inherent ability to ward off evil but also because it hadn’t been nurtured with Yin Gold.

Furthermore, the paper tiger is just a trivial part of the paper crafting art; he still had many practical paper crafts that he hadn’t had the time to make.

Standing at the workbench, Xu Qing replaced straw with paper strips and used drying rods as the framework, soon crafting two more over-sized straw spirit dolls.

Straw spirits are used in funeral processions as human effigies.

The Book of Rites states: "Mud and straw spirits, present since ancient times, define the way of funeral objects."

It also notes: "Straw spirits are bundles of straw formed into human and horse shapes; considered spirits as they are like gods."

Others have said: "Mud and straw spirits are all items for funerals."

As a shopkeeper in the funeral business, Xu Qing held high standards for his professional abilities.

But he had never learned the true art of using straw spirits in funerals. fгeewebnovёl.com

Now, through studying paper crafting, Xu Qing had grasped the method of making straw spirits.

Paper comes from plants, and plants are also paper.

If he had straw at hand, Xu Qing believed he could make the legendary funeral straw spirits!

During Funeral House processions, there are still workers to carry the poles, but when he conducted funerals for the deceased, he could only carry them by himself, which wasn’t proper. Comparing the procession standards, the difference in quality was evident.

Now, with a dozen-foot-tall straw spirit to carry the coffin, the quality was instantly different!

Looking at the tall and slender paper crafts before him, Xu Qing grew increasingly fond of them.

Straw spirits have heads like cauldrons, over a dozen feet tall, the pole carriers wear conical hats and paper veils, draped in paper shrouds, moving as if walking through the wind and mist, noiselessly.

Grave-guarding straw spirits are clad in golden foil armor, holding painted halberds, like divine generals in golden armor, capable of defending against grave robbers.

There are also straw spirits for carrying coffins for dual burials of couples, and night-walking straw spirits for carrying funeral banners and borrowing passage through the Yin Realm...

Xu Qing was extremely pleased. He had thought his funeral service skills had reached a bottleneck and didn’t know when he would surpass it.

Unexpectedly, the path to skilled metaphysical techniques had been inadvertently presented right before him.

With Spirit Communication paper crafts as a foundation, Xu Qing felt much calmer when looking at the other rewards.

The Gambling Death Technique, lowest-tier Earth class, requires two people to lay their birth dates on the table, then use their blood to write a binding curse oath. Whoever loses the gamble will die immediately.

As for the origin of this curse technique reward, it started with Jin Wanshan’s childhood...

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