Cultivating for a hundred lifetimes to ascension-Chapter 526 - 342: Entering the Ghost Market_2

Chapter 526 -342: Entering the Ghost Market_2

The ground of the square was paved with jade white stone slabs, each three feet square, intricately embedded with countless mysterious red runes, strikingly clear.

At this point, the square was crowded, filled with masses of commoners who had come to listen to the sermon.

In the center of the square, a black jade platform stood tall, upon which an emaciated, purple-robed, white-haired elderly Daoist sat. The Daoist held a dragon head wooden stick, preaching to the people below.

“The heavens have twin suns as the gods of yang, the earth has lakes and seas where dragon gods reside, within the Canglang River dwells the old Dragon King, who commands clouds to bring rain for all beings…”

“You common folks, have endured drought for three years due to not heeding the will of the heavens, and must now offer sincerity from all directions…”

“Come, come! Everyone hurry and offer a token of sincerity, and the mage will pray for rain on behalf of all beings,” urged a green-robed Daoist, carrying a wooden plate and quietly coaxing the crowd for money.

Seeing this, many devout believers voluntarily took out silver coins and threw them into the wooden plate, which quickly filled with gold, silver, and copper coins.

Da Bai gritted his teeth and his eyes glowed red as he looked from afar at the purple-robed elder on the platform, appearing eager to act.

Just then, a tall figure suddenly appeared before him, and a hand swiftly grabbed the rat’s fur at the back of its neck, lifting it off the ground.

Startled, Da Bai’s white fur bristled, and tiny flashes of white light gathered at the tips of his fur, ready to launch the Rat Hair Needles.

“Da Bai, you’ve been naughty, running off here secretly. What, don’t feel like eating incense and prefer eating people today?”

The man speaking had a plain face and wasn’t very tall. He wore a gray robe and black boots on his feet.

It was Zhao Sheng, who had changed his appearance.

Squeak, squeak!

Da Bai struggled and squeaked wildly, as if trying to explain something.

Zhao Sheng was indifferent, casually putting Da Bai on his shoulder and then raising his head to look at the Daoist on the platform.

After only a few glances, he turned and walked away.

Diancang Province had faced severe drought for three consecutive years, with virtually no harvests in the fields. Famine had driven tens of millions to become refugees, and several counties within the province had already blocked transportation, creating numerous isolation zones where countless people have starved or trapped to death.

It is often said that when disasters strike, people seek gods. Therefore, whenever there is a great calamity, countless odd and bizarre ghost gods show up.

It was very common in the Great Gu Dynasty for Daoists, like the one on stage, to exploit the pretext of praying for rain to extort money from the people.

This practice was tacitly approved by various powers. The money collected was divided in an eighty-twenty ratio with those on stage playing ghosts and tricks receiving only twenty percent, and the remaining eighty percent going to the major behind-the-scenes families.

Zhao Sheng walked through the streets as an ordinary person, moving unhurriedly, yet surprisingly no one noticed his presence.

Soon, Zhao Sheng reached a busy market street.

By then, daylight was bright, and the market street was bustling with various food stalls and eateries lined up, while small merchants behind the stalls energetically invited customers, their cries non-stop.

Zhao Sheng followed the street westward until he reached a red willow tree at the corner of the street, where he suddenly stopped.

The Ghost Market of Cangmo City was located on this street, with each red willow tree planted along the street serving as an entrance to the Ghost Market.

The reason he had come to Cangmo City instead of the black market under Zhenyun Peak was precisely because of this Ghost Market.

The Ghost Market was the dark market within the black market, largely dealing with the Evil Demons of the Outer Path, full of eerie and bizarre items.

It can be said that whatever Heavenly Dao Sect absolutely forbade to sell, and whatever the black market dared not openly trade, could be found in the Ghost Market.

In other words, the Ghost Market was equally dangerous, with instances of treachery being quite common, and those who dared enter were generally cultivators of extraordinary strength.

Suddenly, the branches of the red willow tree began to sway as if danced by demons.

At that moment, Zhao Sheng frowned upon seeing the branches rustle, ‘swish swish,’ as if in the bright daylight, gaps between the branches and leaves seemed to spawn eerie eyes that stared indifferently at him.

Zhao Sheng scanned the tree with his Divine Sense, feeling somewhat surprised.

The yin energy of the red willow tree was intense, yet it lacked the expected cold sensation.

“Indeed, it has some tricks,” he thought to himself, reaching out to press his hand against the trunk of the tree.

Following the method he had obtained, he tapped the trunk three short and one long times, simultaneously infusing three strands of Spiritual Power.

Suddenly, a green, oily eye opened on the trunk, blinked, and its pupils flared with a faint green flame.

Zhao Sheng took a step back and stared intently at the green eyes.

Just then, a layer of green light emitted from the eyes and spread out, enveloping Zhao Sheng’s entire body.

As the light and shadows in front of him changed, he suddenly found himself on a narrow, cramped street, lined with various small stalls displaying all kinds of filthy and nauseating organs and bizarre items. Most items on the stalls flickered with dim lights of gray, black, and red.

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All the stall owners wore hooded black robes and various masks on their faces, which surprisingly blocked Divine Sense.

There were quite a few “people” in the Ghost Market, but the sounds on the street were very low, almost like whispers.

The vendors in the Ghost Market often changed; sometimes, within half a year, the owners of the stalls might have switched several times.

However, there were exceptions; about a dozen permanent stalls in the Ghost Market always remained the same and were always in the most conspicuous positions, visible as soon as one entered.

Although it was Zhao Sheng’s first visit to the Ghost Market, he acted as if he were a seasoned visitor.

At this moment, Da Bai seemed to be attracted by something and was squeaking wildly on Zhao Sheng’s shoulder.

He glanced over the many stalls in the Ghost Market, then in a flash, appeared thirty yards away in front of one.

The owner of this stall looked quite ordinary, but was earless, and his body radiated a chilling aura that made one feel a spine-chilling cold upon approach.

Of course, Zhao Sheng was not afraid of this bit of evil aura.

The items on the stall were few, including a black mask, a finger-sized colorless crystal stone, and a headless statue of an Eight-Armed Golden Body.

This statue was not only filled with a strong Power of Incense but also emitted a strange aura.

Pop!

Da Bai jumped to the ground, circling the stall, his gaze fixed on the headless statue.

Zhao Sheng pointed at the headless statue and asked, “What is this?”

“Good stuff, you’ll know once you buy it,” the vendor replied unexpectedly simply.

Zhao Sheng reached out to pick up the statue.

But when his fingers touched the surface of the statue.

A bone-chilling cold suddenly burst from the statue into his mind like lightning.

Black mist steamed up, and within Zhao Sheng’s Soul Sea, a formidable Eight-Armed Demon appeared, towering a thousand yards tall, with eight arms extending in all directions, each arm wrapped with a Demon Dragon, black-scaled with a ram horned, tiger-clawed snake body, entirely pitch-black.

The Demon’s neck rapidly grew a head, its features bearing some resemblance to Zhao Sheng’s, except the expression was ferocious and terrifying, filled with malevolence.

As the Demon appeared, countless brilliant colors emerged in Zhao Sheng’s mind, representing emotions and desires such as joy, anger, sorrow, pleasure, pain, greed, hate, and ignorance.

At that moment, a majestic and holy voice suddenly resonated ceaselessly in his heart.

“Lawless and blissful, the transient world under, my divine might boundless, my divine title: Sovereign Dragon Lord!”

The great bell resounded in Zhao Sheng’s heart, and the Eight-Armed Demon laughed viciously, dancing its arms. The filthy black dragons began to detach from its body, about to fall into the Soul Sea.

“Insolence!”

As the voice sounded, a massive bolt of lightning fell from the sky, striking the Demon on the head.

Instantly, the enormous divine body was torn apart and turned into a wisp of black smoke that dissipated.

Externally,

There was a cracking sound, and the headless statue suddenly developed numerous cracks, revealing a section of bone as translucent as jade, seemingly a Shariputra.

Zhao Sheng came to his senses, sensing the Power of Incense emanating from the bone, thoughtfully.

He somewhat understood the situation; the bone was actually a fragment of the Heart Core of the Flying Sky Netherworld King. Previously, a certain master had refined it into a container for collecting the Power of Incense and placed it inside the statue.

The Eight-Armed Demon was likely the residual spirit of a powerful Ghost God, but he had shattered it.

Just then, the stall owner opposite suddenly grunted, immediately followed by hissing ghost sounds. Large amounts of black smoke evaporated from his robe, and his body deflated rapidly like a punctured balloon, screaming continuously while writhing on the ground.

Zhao Sheng waved his hand, collected the statue, then stepped back and coldly observed from a distance.