A young man in his twenties remarked, "If we all leave, there won't be anyone left in the village for any major events. We should leave a few people behind, just in case one day you have to go keep my grandfather company! Haha!" All the young people nowadays had a certain roguish air about them.

The elder retorted, "You little rascal, you’re brilliant at saying the wrong thing, but you’re quite the expert at saying that!" A burst of laughter erupted from the crowd!

As they chatted, the time for the burial arrived. After Young Master Liu completed the necessary rites, the coffin was lowered into the earth, and the snow began to fall again, seemingly heavier than usual this year. However, Young Master Liu felt a trace of chilling yin energy, which made him recall the Earth God. Once the burial was complete, he asked the Luo family members to burn several more piles of joss paper by the grave. Young Master Liu stepped before the mound and called out, "Esteemed Great Immortals, what I did last night was unavoidable. You may inquire with the Earth God for the full details. I have already apologized to the Earth God, and now I apologize to you all here. I hope you great beings will not hold a grudge against a petty person like myself."

The crowd gathered around, asking, "Sir, what happened?"

Young Master Liu replied, "Nothing, just a few Great Immortals have approached who seem a bit cross, but I trust they are magnanimous." He then looked toward the sky and added, "Isn't that right? If so, please take the offerings!"

Suddenly, gusts of chilling wind swept by, lifting the piles of burned joss paper outside the grave mound and scattering them everywhere. Feeling the oppressive yin energy, everyone instinctively huddled closer together.

Young Master Liu let out a sigh of relief; at least those minor spirits had forgiven him. But as the saying goes, the great deities are easy to deal with, but the minor spirits are troublesome. He could rest easy once the Earth God accepted the payment, but he dared not be careless with these small spirits, unsure if they were greedy. Thus, he turned to the group and asked, "Who caught the male rooster that was set free just now? Can you give it to me?" The main purposes of the coffin-stepping rooster were twofold: first, to guard the Tianhun (Heavenly Soul) of the corpse inside, preventing it from leaving the coffin; and second, to deter nearby minor spirits and keep them from causing trouble.

A young man around twenty years old approached, carrying a rooster that had just begun to crow. He looked at Young Master Liu and asked, "Sir, you want this chicken? The previous master set them free and said whoever caught one got to keep it! Heh heh." He was unaware that this was merely an entertaining side activity for the Yin-Yang Masters.

Young Master Liu said somewhat awkwardly, "I don't actually want the chicken. It's just that we encountered some trouble today. The issue with the Earth God has been resolved, but now there’s a more complicated matter. As the proverb says, the great deities are easy to appease, but the minor spirits are hard to guard against. Those few minor spirits have left happily now, but there’s no guarantee they won’t stir up trouble later. I need this chicken to perform a ritual."

When the young man heard that a ritual was to be performed, he rushed to hand the rooster over immediately.

Young Master Liu took the rooster and chanted an incantation. The bird suddenly went limp. Young Master Liu placed the rooster on the ground, where it stood motionless for a moment before collapsing entirely. Young Master Liu dug a small pit on the grave mound and buried the chicken inside, then placed a small stone in front of the dirt mound covering the bird. In this manner, the grave of the Old Master, now without its Tianhun, effectively became this rooster’s tomb. He instructed Luo Ping’an, "When you pile up the grave later, just heap the earth right on top. Do not dig up the chicken—you must remember this." Luo Ping'an felt that the situation was somewhat unusual and could only agree wholeheartedly.

Everything was finished by eleven o'clock, and the group started walking back toward the village. Just then, a gust of chilling wind blew by. Young Master Liu knew it was those minor spirits coming to cause trouble again. He stopped, and everyone else halted as well. In the past, they would have dispersed right after the rites, but having witnessed a few interesting events today, they all wanted to stay near Young Master Liu, hoping to see more strange things.

Young Master Liu called out toward the direction of the old man’s grave, "I advise you not to cause trouble. Otherwise, don't blame me for not warning you!" Just as he finished speaking, before the group even understood what was happening or could ask questions, they heard a chilling, mournful shriek coming from the direction of Old Master's tomb. No one dared to ask anything, regardless of how curious they were. However, one thing became clear in their minds: the ghost had been tricked!

Only Young Master Liu knew that those minor spirits intended to cause mischief at the gravesite, unaware that the tomb had already been converted into the resting place for the male rooster. They were the ones who would suffer the consequences. It seemed this whole affair could finally be put to rest.

By the time they reached Luo Ping’an’s house, it was already past midnight. The Suona King and Drummer Chen had packed up and were waiting to leave after breakfast. Breakfast was eaten, but the snow was falling harder and harder, showing no signs of stopping. Since he had duties waiting, Luo Ping’an said goodbye to a few people and instructed Luo Siyu to escort the three masters. At the village entrance, Luo Siyu said, "Young Master Liu, why don't you all stay at my place for a few days before leaving?"

Young Master Liu shook his head. "No, we cannot. For people in our line of work, once the ritual is complete, we must depart immediately. We cannot linger, even if the rain or snow is heavy. It is part of the professional code."

Luo Siyu responded, "Is that so? But the snow is so heavy now, it seems no vehicle would dare travel the roads. Are you planning to walk back?"

Young Master Liu smiled. "If it comes to that, walk we must!"

Luo Siyu laughed softly. "It seems being an Yin-Yang Master isn't easy either! Heh heh."

Young Master Liu nodded. "Indeed, it’s not a profession for just anyone! We are leaving now. Farewell, and may we meet again when fate allows."

Luo Siyu waved goodbye as well. "Goodbye." Watching the three figures move away, Luo Siyu reflected with feeling: Yin-Yang Masters truly have a difficult life. I held too much prejudice against them before.

Halfway down the road, Young Master Liu turned back and asked, "My two elder brothers, can we really not stay the night? Look at this heavy wind and snow."

The Suona King chuckled. "Is the young man perhaps thinking too much about that young girl? Once you choose this path, you must adhere to the professional rules. This is a form of cultivation. We are different from mortals; to gain power greater than mortals, we must endure greater hardship."

Young Master Liu retorted, "Then why are you making me carry the heaviest things? Isn’t that cultivation too? Don't you wish to cultivate?"

Drummer Chen grinned slyly. "Heh heh, we've been cultivating for decades; you’ve only just started. You need more practice. Don't you understand the principle: only by suffering the bitterest of hardships can one rise above ordinary men?"

Young Master Liu was speechless. He couldn't argue since he was the junior in the village! If he didn't carry the heavy things, who would? Once his mind accepted this imbalance, the complaints faded.

"Even so, I still want to know why we absolutely cannot stay overnight at someone's house?"

Drummer Chen explained, "Think about it. When we arrive with our implements, it signifies that the host family has a problem. Who would dare keep us? Furthermore, if we stay there, wouldn't it be tantamount to announcing that some misfortune has befallen their household? So, after the rites are done, we become the most unwelcome guests. Do you understand now?"

"So that's how it is. That makes sense." Young Master Liu finally understood.

"But frankly speaking, it is damn cold today!"

Young Master Liu chuckled. "Haha, are you cold? Want me to give you the suona to carry!"

Drummer Chen quickly waved his hands. "It's fine, you carry it. I can manage!" After receiving a look of disdain, he laughed sheepishly. "Don't look at me like that. I’m doing it for your own good, worried you might catch a cold!"

The three of them trudged through the snow, leaving only their three sets of footprints on the long mountain path. Normally, covering ten kilometers in an hour would be easy, but in this heavy snow, managing three to five kilometers in an hour was considered good progress!

The sky began to darken. In the heavy snow, the three were starting to worry about finding shelter when they remembered that in rural areas, farmers often built simple cattle sheds alongside fields in the mountains. Finding a spacious shed became their immediate goal. They finally reached a flatter area and spotted a reasonably large one. Perhaps the villagers often used it as a resting spot, for it was quite clean, and behind the shed, there was an area meant for resting—though drafty, it was infinitely better than the outside!

The three entered the resting area of the cattle shed, gathered some firewood, and soon had a fire blazing. Young Master Liu only understood the warmth of the fire, but the two funeral professionals were seasoned veterans. They pulled out the three slaughtered chickens and a pig’s head gifted by the Luo family from their bundles and began preparing their dinner for the night.