The mountains were vast, shrouded in the mist of dawn.
A piercing note from a suona broke the tranquility of the mountains.
Then came the sound of weeping.
The funeral procession slowly moved out of Peach Blossom Village.
Among the procession, a young man in a blue robe skillfully played the suona.
He had sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, a face as handsome as jade, with a refined air.
A white banner was slanted behind his neck.
Beside him trotted a half-grown black dog.
The mournful sound of the suona flowed from his lips.
The suona's melody suppressed the other instruments, amplifying the sorrow of the funeral procession.
As the procession advanced, beads of sweat appeared on the young man's forehead.
"Sigh, this body is really too weak."
The young man's name was Bai Yu, a transmigrator who had been in this world for two and a half days.
In his previous life, he was just an ordinary handsome guy.
He died suddenly from staying up late practicing immortality.
Then he transmigrated into this unfortunate soul named Bai Changsheng.
The Bai family had a tradition of playing the suona.(The suona is a traditional Chinese wind instrument traditionally performed in funeral rites.)
A few days ago, his parents were swept away by a flash flood while rushing to a funeral, leaving no remains.
With his parents just dead, their house was seized by the village tyrant, the Chen Family.
Years ago, the Bai family had exchanged two plots of paddy fields with the Chen Family for a piece of land to build their house.
For over a decade, they lived in peace.
Now, with only a child left in the Bai family, the Chen Family immediately turned hostile, seizing the opportunity to take over the Bai family's house.
Bai Changsheng naturally refused, resulting in him being beaten and thrown out.
Bai Changsheng was tough, and he died on the spot.
At that moment, Bai Yu happened to transmigrate over.
He quickly accepted reality, and from then on, he was called Bai Yu, with the courtesy name Changsheng.
Homeless, Bai Yu had no choice but to build a shack on the mountain to live in.
In just a few days of transmigration, Bai Yu understood one thing:
"Being handsome can't fill your stomach."
Just yesterday, he had run out of food at home, his stomach growling with hunger.
Fortunately, Bai Changsheng still had the family skill of playing the suona.
Coincidentally, there was a funeral in the village, so he joined the funeral band.
Uncle Dazhuang, the drummer, was worried if Bai Yu could keep up with the rhythm.
But Bai Yu's performance at the funeral almost sent Uncle Dazhuang off himself.
Rhythm? It didn't exist.
Among all instruments, the suona is king, either sending people off to heaven or celebrating weddings.
Once the suona sounds, I am the rhythm.
Uncle Dazhuang was so impressed that he praised Bai Yu as having the demeanor of a funeral emperor.
"Old Bai's legacy continues, our Peach Blossom Village's brass and percussion band is complete again."
Bai Yu joined the team on the spot, starting to perform at funerals.
If he did well this time, he could establish himself in Peach Blossom Village and officially become a member of the professional team.
So along the way, Bai Yu gave it his all.
He played the suona steadily, firmly controlling the rhythm.
However, as the funeral procession climbed the mountain, sweat the size of soybeans appeared on Bai Yu's forehead, and his face turned a bit pale.
This body was inherently weak, and after dying once, it was even weaker.
Although his suona skills were not bad, his stamina couldn't keep up.
"No matter what, I must hold on."
Bai Yu persevered all the way, not showing a single flaw.
Only Uncle Dazhuang noticed that Bai Yu's back was soaked with sweat.
Finally, the coffin was placed into the grave.
Bai Yu's vision darkened for a moment.
Fortunately, he managed to hold on.
When he recovered, he found a blue screen in front of him.
[Funeral Target: Old Zhao Gen.]
[Identity: Farmer.]
[Cultivation: None.]
[Skills: Planting, Cooking, Logging.]
[Funeral Participation: 10%.]
[Basic Reward: Strength +5, Life Experience +5.]
Bai Yu's hand holding the suona couldn't help but tremble slightly.
But his face remained calm.
In his mind, an ancient scripture appeared.
"Record of World Burials"!
The four ancient characters seemed to contain the truths of the universe.
Below was a line of small characters.
Bury the heavens, bury the earth, bury all worlds!
On the pitch-black cover, a white light occasionally flickered, then quickly dimmed.
If one's eyesight was good enough, they would see that the white light was clearly a vast world.
Bai Yu focused his mind on the Record of World Burials and immediately understood its effects and usage.
First, it granted immortality from the start.
But immortality didn't mean invincibility.
If a person is killed, they will die.
They could also die from hunger, poison, or curses.
Secondly, performing funerals made one stronger.
Every time he performed a funeral, he could gain some abilities from the target.
Such as strength, qi and blood, or even martial arts or cultivation.
However, it must be an intelligent being, and there must be a funeral commission to receive the reward.
Bai Yu calmly waited for the funeral to end.
Finally, the funeral priest finished chanting.
Bai Yu and the brass and percussion band played another piece, "Song of the Clear Sky."
"Dust to dust, earth to earth, the Yellow Springs admit no return.."
[Funeral successful, received basic reward: Strength +5, Life Experience +5.]
[Would you like to claim it?]
Bai Yu didn't claim the reward immediately.
He preferred to be cautious; who knew if there would be any anomalies after claiming the reward?
He followed the procession back to the village for the final meal.
He sat at the table with the professional team.
Uncle Dazhuang and the others had a little drink and entered bragging mode.
Bai Yu, on the other hand, focused on eating.
He appeared slow and steady, but in reality, he was eating quickly.
These past few days, he had been starving.
In the blink of an eye, half of the table's food was gone.
Uncle Dazhuang and the others exclaimed at how terrifying this young man was.
They stopped drinking and bragging, quickly joining in on the meal.
***
Half an hour later, Bai Yu, with a full belly, headed home.
Before leaving, he sneaked a red plum from the fruit plate on the table.
Most importantly, he had ten coins in his pocket.
The brass and percussion band members each received twenty coins.
Since Bai Yu wasn't an adult, he only got half the pay.
This was the rural rule: only adult men were considered full labor.
Children and women were only considered half a person.
With ten coins, he bought over ten pounds of sweet potatoes at the village shop.
This would last him at least a week.
Bai Yu carried the sweet potatoes home, in a good mood, whistling as he went.
A half-grown little black dog came running over from a distance.
"Old Mo, I want to eat fish."
The little black dog seemed to understand human speech and jumped into a stream, splashing around.
When Bai Changsheng died, only this black dog stayed by his side, never leaving.
The Record of World Burials had a slot for a Burial World Divine Beast, which could also achieve immortality, but it was limited to beasts.
Bai Yu didn't hesitate to give this slot to the little black dog.
This way, the journey to immortality wouldn't be so lonely.
***
Half an hour later, it emerged from the water with a small fish the length of a finger.
"Great, tonight we'll have roasted sweet potatoes and fish soup."
Bai Yu cheered.
He carried the sweet potatoes, and Old Mo held the small fish in its mouth.
One man and one dog, relying on each other for survival.
Bai Yu took a plum from his sleeve, took a bite, and bitterness exploded in his mouth.
But after the bitterness, a hint of sweetness lingered on his tongue.
After the bitterness comes sweetness.
The little black dog saw Bai Yu eating alone and jumped around, seemingly accusing Bai Yu of being unfair.
"Woof~ Woof~."
Bai Yu gave the remaining half of the plum to the little black dog.
The little black dog took a bite and jumped even higher.
It can be hard to make great work when its stolen from bit.ly/3iBfjkV.
"Woof woof~ whimper~"
It was too bitter and astringent, too hard to eat.
Bai Yu put the plum pit in his palm and chuckled:
"It's not fully ripe yet; it'll taste better when it is."
The little black dog grumbled as it followed Bai Yu, as if saying:
"Even though I'm not human, you're truly a dog."
One man and one dog returned home.
It was a shack made of branches and straw.
A rusty machete, a suona, and a half-broken pot were all of Bai Yu's possessions.
As for other assets, they were all taken by the Chen Family.
Bai Yu looked at the dilapidated shack and said to the little black dog:
"Old Mo, we're not in a hurry.
If people deceive me, slander me, look down on me, what should I do?
Just endure it, let it be, ignore it.
In a hundred years, dig up their graves, whip their corpses, and wipe out their entire family."
Proofreader & Editor: Peter Pan