Chapter 9: Ghost Market

  Yun Mo sneered and said, "Do you still need to ask? He can't wait to find someone with the same ideals as him to go together. Please add classic book friends new group 9494-7767"

  Shi Yi'an saw that Yun Mo's face didn't look good and didn't dare to say more, dryly laughing twice as he prepared to slip away. But was called back by Yun Mo.

  "Take this thing with you." Yun Mo picked up the jade on the table and threw it to Shi Yi'an.

  Shi Yi An raised his hand to catch the jade and asked, "What's this for?"

  "Do you think going to the Ghost Market is the same as going to the Night Market? Take it first, and we'll talk about the rest when I get back." After finishing speaking, Yun Mo put away the box and returned to her room with a swish of her sleeves. Leaving Shi Yi standing alone in the courtyard, clutching the jade flute and blowing out cold air.

  Every thirtieth day of the lunar month, Xiao Shu would stay out all night, piquing Shi Yi's curiosity to the extreme. After repeated questioning, Xiao Shu finally revealed the truth: every thirtieth day of the lunar month was the opening day of the Ghost Market. This Ghost Market was not like the one in Panjiayuan Antique Market, but a real market where humans, demons, and ghosts interacted.

  The usual location of the Ghost Market is set at a place where yin and yang intersect. The parties involved in buying and selling, may be human or ghost. Here, you can buy anything that cannot be bought outside, as long as you have an exchange of equal value.

  Shi Yi'an had been asking his uncle for a long time, and his uncle finally reluctantly agreed to take Shi Yi'an to experience it, on the condition that he wouldn't tell anyone else. After all, there were all sorts of people in the Ghost Market, and the Shi family was a cold and noble aristocratic family. To put it in a somewhat pretentious way, they didn't have the "status" to mix with them. Moreover, many Tian Shi Dao people had become too greedy in the Ghost Market and ended up straying from the right path in life. Therefore, the old master of the Shi family was extremely opposed to the Ghost Market. If he found out that his uncle had taken his grandson, whom he had high hopes for, to such a place, he would definitely make his uncle regret it.

  At 10 o'clock in the evening, Shi Yi turned off the lights as usual, but instead of going to bed like usual, she sat there fully dressed waiting for her little uncle's arrival. This feeling is hard to describe, it's strange, just like a lady from a big family in ancient times eloping with her lover.

  Before long, Shi Yi'an heard the knocking on the door from her brother-in-law. Yun Mo was very cooperative and did not come out to "catch the adulterer" on the spot, so the lover took the younger sister and left Si Wei's residence smoothly.

  "Little uncle, I told Yunmo today that I wouldn't be coming back tonight, and then Yunmo guessed what we were going to do." Shi Yian thought it was better to report this kind of thing in advance.

  Young uncle waved his hand and said: "It's okay, Yun Mo isn't someone who makes a big deal out of things."

  Two people walked to the entrance of Shi's house, and today the gatekeeper was still that one-eyed old man. Fortunately, it was dark, so Shi Yian couldn't see him clearly. Outside Shi's house was a wide asphalt road, where a familiar Jeep was parked by the side of the road. Old Lin turned his head with a kind smile, if there wasn't that two-finger-wide scar on his neck, Shi Yian would have felt this smile even more intimate. No wonder he always thought Old Lin spoke carelessly and leaked secrets, it turned out his neck had been broken, it was hard not to leak secrets.

  "Uncle Lin." Shi Yu nodded politely.

  "Good evening, Master Sun."

  But there's no time for courtesy now. The younger uncle opened the passenger door and urged in a low voice, "Come on, Moji, get in the car."

  Shi Yi'an hastily got on the car and heavily closed the door. Unexpectedly, this broken-down car actually had air conditioning; although it wasn't very clean inside, at least it was warm. The car drove smoothly along the winding mountain road, Shi Yi'an sat in the car looking at the scenery outside, unknowingly feeling her eyelids getting heavy.

  "Hey, wake up, we're here." Shi Yi'an didn't know how long he had slept, but it felt like he had just closed his eyes and opened them again, and they were already at their destination.

  Young uncle led Shī Yǐ ān along a small dirt road, with modern cars, ancient horse-drawn carriages, and several paper-made vehicles parked on both sides. The pale moonlight made them look eerie. Shī Yǐ also saw two headless horses tied to the trees beside, their hooves moving, splashing blood onto a white sedan nearby. Who knows what the owner of that sedan would think when they came out.

  In the distance, a gloomy and desolate pavilion stood alone on an empty plot of land.

  An old man stood in front of the pavilion, hunchbacked and carrying a white lantern. The young uncle walked over and pulled out a wooden sign with a red string from his pocket, waving it back and forth in front of him.

  "The road of yin and yang combined," said Xiao Shu.

  The old man raised his eyes and looked at Shiyan standing behind him, and asked in a hoarse voice: "Who is that?"

  "The person I brought." Young uncle put his arm around Shi Yian's shoulder and led him into the pavilion.

  Shi Yian took a step into the archway, and before his eyes, a world of changes unfolded. Behind the archway was no longer a desolate land, but a bustling small street. The street was lined with vendors selling things he had never seen before. Shi Yian looked like Liu Lao Lao who had just entered the Grand View Garden, everything seemed new and interesting to him, and he wanted to ask questions and touch everything. He saw an exquisitely crafted vase on a vendor's stall, which didn't seem to be any kind of tool, but rather an antique piece with some age to it. He thought about picking it up for a closer look, but was suddenly grabbed by the young uncle beside him.

  "Don't touch anything, that thing is called a blood bowl, it's an extremely evil object. In the ghost market, it's best not to touch things you don't recognize." Little Shu dragged Shi Yi'an forward.

  However, after a few steps, Shī Yǐ ān saw a girl wearing a flower skirt kneeling by the side of the road. Shī Yǐ ān stopped to take a look at the wooden sign in front of her and only then did he understand what had happened. The girl was killed by a group of second-generation officials, but those people didn't even know how they had done it, and were eventually released without being punished. Her father also died from anger because of this matter, so under the guidance of some old ghosts, she came to the Ghost Market with the purpose of finding someone to take revenge for her.

  "Master, as long as you can avenge me, even if it means using my soul to refine the elixir." The young lady bowed her head twice to Master Shi, looking at him with expectant eyes.

  "Sorry, I can't help you." After saying that, Shi Yi'an slipped away with some embarrassment.

  Young Shu saw Shi Yian like this and said: "As a heavenly master, you will encounter more such things in the future. First, you must learn to distinguish between true and false, know whether the other party is deceiving you or taking advantage of your sympathy. Secondly, you should understand that you are a heavenly master, what is your duty, what are your rights? Don't let ability blind your heart."

  Shi Yi'an was pondering his younger uncle's words with his head down, but before he could figure out the reason, he was interrupted by a loud hawking voice from beside him.

  "Zhang family ancestral divine talisman, don't miss it when you pass by the road, 1,000 yuan each, first come first served." A middle-aged man selling talismans stood by the roadside, lean and sharp-eyed, with a pair of small whiskers, his voice loud and clear. He set up a small stall, on which were spread various colored talismans. Those colorful talismans were intricately and complexly painted, obviously different from those used by Shi Yifan in ordinary times.

  "Also selling fake talismans here." Xiao Shu squatted down at the stall opposite, his tone familiar, picked up a stack of red talismans in his hand and flipped through them saying: "Still ancestral divine talismans, can't you have some professional ethics? The talismans for warding off evil spirits that you're selling are all drawn incorrectly."

  As soon as the young uncle spoke, the man was furious, like his tail had been stepped on: "Shi Lao Si, don't talk nonsense and ruin my reputation. I won't guarantee other talismans, but this one, you haven't even looked at it carefully."

  Young uncle chuckled and picked up the talisman paper, while looking at him with a still mischievous expression, continued to say: "I didn't know you before, last time those few talismans even got the colors wrong, you this..."

  The little uncle's words stopped abruptly, and he stuffed the paper into his pocket, saying: "Name a price."

  The man hehe smiled and finally sang a song of turning over the peasant slave, couldn't help but jump up and down while singing "Bazahei", cleared his throat and said: "One hundred thousand."

  "Zhang Ke, I think you're not planning to do business in Ghost City again." Little Shu patted his hands and stood up. Being willing to spend money for good talismans was one thing, but being treated as a scapegoat was another matter altogether.

  "Come on, let's not talk about money between us brothers, it's too hurtful. Take it, take it." Zhang Ke said with a wave of his hand, but he didn't seem to be joking.

  My younger uncle isn't that kind of person who likes to take advantage of his friends, so he said: "I don't have that much cash on hand right now, I'll transfer the money to you from the bank when I get back, and I won't let you lose out."

  After the two left, Shi Yi An couldn't help but curiously ask: "What was that talisman paper?"

  "Seal of the Town House." Xiaoshu took out the talisman paper, and with a satisfied look at his spoils of war, he said with great pleasure: "The drawing is really ugly."

  "What's the difference between this talisman and the others?" Shi Yi'an asked.

  "Ha! This is the 'cover within a cover' from the Town House Symbol. One sheet can suppress five, and with one breath, I can subdue dozens of ghosts effortlessly."

  “……”

  "That kid is a collateral member of the Zhang family, not very skilled in catching ghosts and driving out demons. He makes a living by selling talismans at the ghost market all year round. Occasionally, he would sell some good stuff that has been passed down through the Zhang family to those who don't know its value, which is even worse than letting someone like me, an expert in this field, make good use of it." The young uncle carefully put away the talisman paper and pulled Shī Yī ān to continue rummaging for good stuff.

  A person wearing a black hood brushed past Shi Yian, the stench of rotting flesh emanating from under the hood making Shi Yian feel waves of nausea. The hooded figure turned its head towards Shi Yian, revealing a face that had rotted to the point where no features could be discerned. Despite this, Shi Yian still sensed malice coming from the other person.

  Young uncle pulled Shifu Yan behind him, vigilantly staring at the opponent. How could he have forgotten this? Now, Shifu Yan's whole body was emitting a tempting aura, simply like a piece of monk meat. Who knows how many ghosts and monsters were lurking in the dark, drooling over Shifu Yan. If he wasn't careful, Shifu Yan might be snatched away by some jackals or tigers. A sense of mission to escort Tang Monk to the Western Heaven to retrieve scriptures arose spontaneously.

  The zombie with a hood clearly felt that the little uncle was not easy to mess with, and left with three steps back. The little uncle turned his head around and saw the red rope on Shi Yian's neck, saying in a low voice: "It's still Cloud Ink who thinks of it."

  "What?" Shi Yi'an was somewhat bewildered, he hadn't figured out what had just happened.

  "Hang the jade outside, so you can tell others that you are being protected by the Fox Clan. Those small demons and ghosts with insufficient magical powers will naturally not dare to bother you." The young uncle said as he reached out to touch the jade fox, continuing: "I'll add some more obscuring spells on top, which should be able to cover up your spiritual energy to a certain extent."

  Shi Yi An suddenly remembered what his younger uncle had said to him before, "Da Bu Dan Lun", and a feeling of regret surged up. He wondered why he had insisted on coming to see it in the first place, and now he was too late to regret it.

  But with Little Uncle by his side, nothing big would happen. Shi Yian relaxed and continued to stroll around, he saw an old lady sitting a few steps away, in front of her was a low table, on which were placed various colorful and bulging lucky bags. The bright-colored silk lucky bags had embroidered cute chubby babies, some babies wore adorable little aprons, holding small lanterns, some babies hugged bags, and some babies poked out their cute little buttocks to look at people. The embroidery was exquisite and attractive, but it looked out of place in this dark ghost market.

  Shi Yi'an walked over and squatted in front of a small table, picking up a red bag with two embroidered dolls fighting on it. The two childish faces showed an unchildlike ferocity, and although the embroidery thread was bright and vivid, it gave Shi Yi'an a gloomy feeling.

  "Would you like a little devil, young man?" The old lady asked with a wrinkled face and a kind tone.

  "Little devil?" Shi Yi An turned his head towards Xiao Shu.

  The little uncle stood there and said, "These bags contain fetuses that were just formed and then aborted. They make these fetuses into mummies, put them in body bags, and use them to drive away their souls."

  This bag is filled with mummies...

  Shi Yi'an put down the bag in her hand and smiled at the old lady, saying: "Thank you, I don't need it. I thought this was a lucky bag."

  "It doesn't matter. If you want a little ghost in the future, just find me, old lady. I don't dare guarantee anything else, but among all the people on Ghost Street who make little ghosts, there's no one more professional than me."

  "Alright." Shi Yi An almost fled away, and even after leaving the stall for over a dozen meters, he still subconsciously wiped his hand that had grabbed the corpse bag on his clothes.

  "Isn't there anything normal in here?" Shi Yi'an asked with a puzzled expression.

  Young Shu looked at Shi Yian's joke and smiled, saying: "This is a ghost market, the goods sold here are certainly not available outside. Don't think that little ghosts are disgusting things, following their masters, doing good deeds, for those little ghosts it's actually a kind of cultivation."