The monk, spinning his prayer beads with a cheerful expression, suddenly spoke. “Miss Sang, Your Excellency Beast King, we’ve been walking for an hour now. How much longer will it take to find Wu Hanshu if we keep wandering aimlessly?”
It had been quite some time since they entered the market. They had already visited many shops, but the person they were looking for was nowhere to be found.
Sang Dai lowered her lashes slightly and said, “Wu Hanshu likely came here for the Chunying Sword. The Chunying Sword appeared in the ghost market, and most people come here to buy or sell things. Perhaps… it’s up for auction?”
Su Xuan asked, “How many shops are there in the ghost market?”
Tan Huai sighed. “This poor monk has no idea. We’ve already visited over thirty auction houses, and I don’t even know how ma—ow!”
Before he could finish his sentence, someone suddenly rushed out from around the corner and collided straight into Tan Huai’s shoulder.
The monk, who had been talking and let his guard down, took the hit squarely.
Sang Dai hurried to check on him. “Master Tan Huai, are you alright?”
The person who had bumped into him tried to flee, but Su Xuan teleported in front of them. The demon’s tall stature towered over the figure, who was small and skinny. Su Xuan’s cold, intimidating expression was enough to frighten the person into dropping to their knees.
“I… I didn’t mean to!”
The monk rubbed his shoulder and lowered his gaze to the person kneeling before him with practiced ease.
It was a half-grown child, no older than their teens. Judging by their fine clothing and good looks, they appeared to be from a wealthy family.
The child bore no killing intent, nor did they have any spiritual energy fluctuations, so they hadn’t been wary earlier, which allowed this child to collide with Tan Huai.
The monk quickly helped the boy up. “Get up, get up, it’s nothing serious.”
As he spoke, he glared at a certain fox. “Why are you so fierce?”
Su Xuan: “?”
The little fox was about to explode, but Sang Dai hurried forward and clung to his arm.
“Don’t be angry, don’t be angry. Smile more, won’t you? You scared the child.”
The sword cultivator spoke as if coaxing a child, her voice soft and gentle. The anger that had just risen in Su Xuan’s heart was extinguished in an instant.
Tan Huai patted the dust off the boy’s knees and asked, “Why are you here in the ghost market by yourself? Why were you running so fast just now? There are plenty of dangerous people here. If you bump into the wrong person, you might not get off so easily.”
The boy replied anxiously, “My father has been suffering from madness for a long time. There are pills in the ghost market that can suppress his condition. I need to bring the medicine home to him immediately. Many people in the ghost market know me, so they won’t harm me. Please, let me go, senior.”
He handed over a wooden token. “This is my family’s emblem. If I’ve caused you any pain, you can take this token to the west of Linglong Town and find the Chen family. But I really have to go now. My family is waiting for the medicine.”
Madness?
Tan Huai’s expression turned cold as he grabbed the boy’s arm before he could leave. “I mean no offense, but someone in my family also suffers from this madness. Young master, where did you buy this medicine?”
The boy pointed toward an alleyway. “Follow this road to the end. The largest shop is there—it’s the biggest auction house in the ghost market.”
He shook off Tan Huai’s hand and ran off quickly.
The three of them turned toward the alley.
The largest auction house in the ghost market was hidden in this alley.
Su Xuan picked up the wooden token from Tan Huai’s hand. The token was finely crafted and smooth, made of the highest-quality sandalwood, even for a simple pass.
The little fox tossed the token back to Tan Huai and said coldly, “If his family is so wealthy, why would they let a young master like him come to the ghost market alone to buy medicine?”
But the boy’s figure had already disappeared.
Tan Huai mused, “…Perhaps the child is just filial?”
Su Xuan and Sang Dai both fell silent.
The little fox gave him a disdainful look. “I’ve heard that Buddhist cultivators are kind-hearted. Now that I see it, I suspect your kindness is about seventy percent foolishness.”
Tan Huai: “…”
Sang Dai shook her head, took the little fox’s hand, and began walking toward the alley. “Regardless of whether there’s something suspicious, let’s check it out. If this really is the largest auction house in the ghost market, Wu Hanshu might actually be there.”
Tan Huai gave an embarrassed smile and followed them into the alley.
The alley was long and narrow, but just as the boy had said, at its deepest point stood a grand pavilion.
While most shops in the ghost market were three or four stories high, this pavilion was seven or eight stories tall. The three of them looked up at the gold-gilded, dazzling auction house, feeling an inexplicable sense of familiarity.
“Manxiang Pavilion.”
Sang Dai remarked, “Why does this look a bit like Chunqiu Tower?”
Su Xuan replied, “It must be Qiu Chengxi’s handiwork.”
Tan Huai sighed. “This… Young Master Qiu sure has a wide range of ventures.”
Qiu Chengxi’s mastery of mechanisms had reached an extraordinary level. Wealthy families and major sects often sought him out for constructing buildings or crafting mechanisms. Though his prices were steep, Qiu Chengxi’s mechanisms and pavilions had become symbols of prestige, renowned across the Four Realms.
Su Xuan pulled Sang Dai along as he said, “Let’s go inside. We’ve already wasted too much time.”
Tan Huai followed behind them.
As they approached the entrance of Manxiang Pavilion, the guards at the door crossed their swords to block their path.
“Halt!”
Su Xuan’s face darkened. In all these years, there were few across the Four Realms who dared to obstruct the Beast King.
“You dare block me?”
“Don’t.” Sang Dai clung to his arm, pulling him behind her while signaling him with her eyes to remain calm.
Tan Huai quickly stepped forward to mediate. “We’re here to shop. We’ve heard that Manxiang Pavilion offers a wide variety of rare treasures. May we ask what your rules are?”
The guard replied coldly, “State what you intend to buy in advance. If Manxiang Pavilion doesn’t have the item today, you may not enter.”
Su Xuan scoffed, “What kind of ridiculous rule is that? Do you expect us to know what you’re selling before coming here? How would anyone know?”
The guard pointed to Manxiang Pavilion and explained, “Each item being auctioned requires a separate room. Those competing for the same item will enter the same room. The list of items for the next day’s auction is published a day in advance. Haven’t you received the catalog?”
Sang Dai immediately covered Su Xuan’s mouth and smiled, her tone warm and gentle. “It’s our first time here. We’re looking to purchase some spiritual pills and… artifacts. Could we take a look at today’s catalog to see what’s available?”
Her polite and soft-spoken demeanor contrasted sharply with the gruffness of the man next to her. With Su Xuan unwittingly serving as a foil, the guard was momentarily disarmed by Sang Dai’s courteous inquiry. Meanwhile, Tan Huai discreetly slipped the guard some money, and the previously stern face of the guard gradually softened.
“Just this once. If you come to Manxiang Pavilion again, you’ll need to collect the catalog a day in advance.”
“Of course, of course. Thank you very much.”
Sang Dai accepted the catalog handed to her and turned away from the others to open it.
Tan Huai leaned over to take a look as well.
The catalog was filled with dozens of pages listing over a hundred items for sale. Most were spiritual pills and artifacts, though there were also some items listed in coded terms that Sang Dai couldn’t decipher. Su Xuan, however, immediately recognized their meanings.
There were forbidden spiritual roots outlawed across the Four Realms, as well as life-threatening poisons. Having frequently mingled with the mortal world, Su Xuan could identify nearly everything.
Sang Dai focused only on what they were looking for, flipping through the catalog page by page. However, she didn’t find the words “Chunying Sword” anywhere.
Unconvinced, she went through the catalog again, but it still wasn’t there.
The sword cultivator’s expression grew cold, the lightness in her brows disappearing completely.
Tan Huai whispered, “Could it be… it’s not here? Should we try somewhere else?”
Sang Dai’s heart sank. The ghost market was vast. Searching one shop at a time could take forever. If Wu Hanshu had come to the ghost market, it was most likely for the Chunying Sword. But if he had already taken it, or if another buyer had purchased it…
“Let me see the catalog.”
The little fox’s voice sounded beside her.
Just as Sang Dai was about to hand it over, Su Xuan had already taken the catalog.
Instead of starting from the beginning, he purposefully flipped directly to a specific page.
Sang Dai and Tan Huai leaned over to look.
On the page, there was only one word written: 无 (Wu).
Su Xuan said coldly, “This is coded language. It means ‘priceless treasure.'”
Room Xuan No. 1, Wu.
Sang Dai initially thought it meant the room was empty and nothing was being sold there.
She asked, “Are you sure?”
“Certain,” Su Xuan closed the catalog. “Manxiang Pavilion’s business is thriving, with so many items to sell daily. It’s impossible they’d leave a room empty with nothing to auction.”
Sang Dai nodded. “I trust you. Let’s go in.”
Tan Huai hesitantly asked, “If we’re wrong, we might miss Wu Hanshu. What if the Chunying Sword has already been sold?”
Sang Dai remained silent for a moment. Seeing the hesitation in Tan Huai’s eyes, she still reached out and held Su Xuan’s hand.
“I trust him. If we really miss it, we’ll start looking for clues again.”
Su Xuan met her gaze, and Sang Dai’s eyes were filled with unwavering trust.
She had been willing to entrust her back to him long ago; they were no longer the enemies they once were.
The little fox’s smile grew wider, spreading even to the corners of his brows.
Tan Huai sighed deeply and handed the catalog to the guard.
“We want this item.”
The guard’s face froze, and he asked in return, “Are you sure?”
The guard’s demeanor, full of doubt, made Tan Huai believe even more that this was coded language.
Tan Huai patted his Qiankun pouch. “We have money. Don’t worry. Do you see the man behind me? He’s even wealthier.”
The guard looked up, but the proud little fox didn’t even glance his way.
Su Xuan’s black robe was intricately embroidered with gold thread, each detail painstakingly refined. Just the robe alone could fetch a significant price, not to mention the communication jade token at his waist, made of the finest mutton-fat jade.
“Please enter. The auction across the entire Manxiang Pavilion starts at the same time. You have two incense sticks’ time to take your seats.”
Tan Huai politely nodded and entered Manxiang Pavilion, followed by Sang Dai and Su Xuan.
Outside Manxiang Pavilion, in the vast ghost market, the drizzle continued to intensify.
Meanwhile, far away at an inn, a peacock who couldn’t find peace sat at a table, waiting, his fingers tapping lightly on its surface.
The jade token on the table suddenly lit up.
Liu Lixue quickly picked it up.
He heard a raspy, coarse voice, like a whetstone grinding against a throat.
“Got it.”
Liu Lixue froze for a moment before realizing it was Thirteen speaking. In all the years he had known Thirteen, he had never heard his voice.
But now wasn’t the time to be distracted. He quickly said, “Flip through it and find the page about the ghost market. Read it to me.”
On the other end of the jade token came the sound of pages being turned.
The book wasn’t thick; it had been left behind by Liu Lixue’s master while he was still alive. Liu Lixue had read through it once many years ago but could only vaguely recall its contents now.
Thirteen returned quickly. “Got it.”
“Read it to me.”
“The ghost market, scattered across the Four Realms, often sells prohibited items. The people who come and go—”
“Not that part. Find miasma.”
Thirteen paused briefly, then resumed after a moment.
“Miasma, generated by Jiexin Grass, can conceal auras and create illusions, often used to obscure…”
Liu Lixue couldn’t hear anything else after that.
Two words consumed his thoughts.
Jiexin Grass.
He abruptly cut off the jade token connection and immediately retrieved another spirit imprint, dialing someone else.
The jade token lit up several times before the call was answered. The other side was noisy.
“Liu Lixue, what’s wrong?”
Clenching his fists tightly and breathing heavily, Liu Lixue said urgently:
“Sovereign Lord, come back! You must not go to the ghost market!”