Ghost Market

Ghost Market

The Black Dragon Society's branch headquarters in Qingyang Commandery was a secret.

Only assassins trained by the Black Dragon Society knew where the branch headquarters was located.

But aside from the branch headquarters, the Black Dragon Society established strongholds in every county.

These strongholds were located within the Ghost Markets of each county's jurisdiction.

The so-called Ghost Market was actually a black market, where all sorts of prohibited goods could be bought and sold.

Of course, transactions came with no guarantees. One could be swindled; Martial Arts Manuals, spiritual pills, and the like might all be fakes. Whether one could tell the real from the false depended on one's own skill.

If one flaunted one's wealth, one might even be targeted and lose one's life.

Zhou Shan had been assassinated twice by Black Dragon Society killers, so he had naturally looked into the organization.

The black markets in every region opened only on the first and fifteenth of each month.

"Counting the days, there are still ten days until the fifteenth of this month. I'll wait for now."

Zhou Shan did not leave Wushan. Instead, he waited for the black market to open ten days later.

Time passed.

Ten days quickly went by.

Zhou Shan's Golden Bell Shield cultivation improved by another ten years, reaching two hundred and seventy years.

"Today is the day the Ghost Market opens."

Zhou Shan left Wushan and headed for Luyang County.

He did not know where Wushan County's Ghost Market was, but he had once served as a Black Armored Army Commandant in Luyang County. Though he had never visited the Ghost Market, he had asked around about its location and knew where it was.

Zhou Shan was in no hurry. The Ghost Market was called a Ghost Market because it only opened at night.

On the way, Zhou Shan passed through a small town and bought a Green-faced Fanged Ghost Mask from a roadside stall. By the time he reached the location of Luyang County's Ghost Market, night had already fallen.

It was a desolate wilderness among barren mountains, rarely visited by anyone.

Wearing the Green-faced Fanged Ghost Mask, Zhou Shan entered the wilderness.

He only knew that the Ghost Market was somewhere in these barren mountains. He still needed to spend some time searching for its precise location.

About two hours later, Zhou Shan discovered a valley.

Faint lamplight flickered within the valley.

"The Ghost Market should be ahead."

Zhou Shan immediately headed toward the nearby valley.

"Show your token!"

Just as Zhou Shan was about to approach the valley, two figures suddenly emerged from the darkness and blocked his path.

Both were shrouded from head to toe in black robes. One wore an ox-head mask, while the other wore a horse-face mask.

To enter the Ghost Market, one needed a Ghost Market token.

Ghost Market tokens were not standardized. They were issued by various major forces within the Ghost Market, and came in many different kinds.

For example, the Black Dragon Society Assassin Token in Zhou Shan's hand was one of the tokens that granted entry to the Ghost Market.

Without saying a word, Zhou Shan took out his Black Dragon Society Level 6 Killer Token.

"Go in."

Upon seeing the Black Dragon Society Level 6 Killer Token in Zhou Shan's hand, the two masked men said indifferently before retreating into the darkness.

Zhou Shan continued forward and entered the valley.

Within the valley was a mountain village that appeared to have been abandoned for a long time. It was extremely dilapidated. Dim firelight spilled from some of the rooms, flickering in and out, making the place seem somewhat eerie.

Sparse pedestrians wandered the streets. Most had their faces covered with black gauze, wore masks, or had used disguise techniques to alter their appearances.

The Ghost Market was a motley mix of fish and dragons. Those who knew of its existence were no ordinary people. Some were even renowned philanthropists of an entire county, and there were even people from the Black Armored Army. Liu Jierong, for instance, had once been a Black Dragon Society assassin and naturally frequented the Ghost Market. Thus, everyone was extremely cautious. A single careless mistake could draw unwanted attention, so they naturally had to conceal their identities.

The Ghost Market had only one street.

From one end to the other, it was only about a hundred meters long.

This street was Ghost Street. Stalls lined both sides, and pedestrians and stall owners spoke in hushed voices when they conversed. Some martial artists with deeper internal cultivation even used Internal Force to transmit their voices, making it impossible for outsiders to hear their conversations.

After watching for a while, Zhou Shan headed straight to the end of Ghost Street and walked toward a courtyard bearing the Black Dragon Society's sign.

He was now an Innate Realm Grandmaster. The things sold at these ordinary stalls were of no help to him. Let alone a Ghost Market in a mere large county, even the Ghost Market in Qingyang Commandery City would not dare lay out heavenly treasures and earthly gems at a stall.

That would be like parading gold through the streets, drawing countless demons and monsters.

Zhou Shan entered the Black Dragon Society stronghold at the end of Ghost Street.

Inside the room, lanterns glowing with firelight hung from all four corners, while scrolls covered the walls. Each scroll bore a bounty mission.

Some missions were dedicated assassination jobs, while others sought to purchase special medicinal herbs, ores, or Demonic Beasts.

"This is..."

At that moment, Zhou Shan suddenly spotted a mission.

The contents of the mission were simple, and it concerned him.

It stated that anyone who provided clues about Zhou Shan would receive a reward of ten thousand taels of silver so long as the information was confirmed accurate. There was also a portrait of him, about seventy or eighty percent similar in appearance.

The signature beneath it was Xu Haoran.

Most people chose to remain anonymous when posting missions with the Black Dragon Society, but a small number did not care about such things and simply wrote their names beneath their missions.

The advantage was that it made it easier to find the person who had posted the mission.

Zhou Shan saw that quite a few missions had left specific addresses. For example, the mission seeking medicinal herbs had left the address of Ginseng-Picking Manor. If someone found the medicinal herbs listed in the mission, they could go directly to Ginseng-Picking Manor.

Otherwise, they would have to wait until the Ghost Market opened on the first or fifteenth of the month to receive any news.

Xu Haoran had left his full name and even an address. Anyone with clues could go directly to the listed address to find him.

"Xu Haoran, since you want so badly to reunite with your family, I'll grant you that wish."

Since Xu Haoran had gone so far as to post a mission with the Black Dragon Society to find him, Zhou Shan naturally would not disappoint him. He had to act and send Xu Haoran underground to reunite with his family.

"Is the guest here to post a mission, or accept one?"

At this moment, an Impermanent Masked Man spoke in a low voice.

"Post a mission."

Zhou Shan withdrew his gaze and answered.

"Please take a seat, guest. What mission would you like to post?"

The Impermanent Masked Man asked.

Zhou Shan stepped forward, pulled out a chair before the square table, and sat down. Then he took out a sheet of paper he had prepared long ago and handed it over. "The mission I wish to post is for the items listed above."

"This is..."

Upon seeing what was written on the paper, the Impermanent Masked Man's pupils could not help shrinking slightly.

Every item listed on it was a heavenly treasure and earthly gem, each of immeasurable value.

Thanks to reader 'A Lost Little Bookworm in the Mortal World' for the 500-coin tip.