As Treasure Fish were successively gutted, quite a few stalls had appeared in the southeastern corner of the market. They claimed to be selling miscellaneous items found in the fishes' stomachs, but that was clearly not the case. The various merchant guilds obviously had other motives.
Yang He noticed the Treasure Fish skins drying along both sides of the street.
Fish skin was relatively less valuable. It could not be used for a Martial Artist's initiation, nor was it suitable for making leather armor, so it was simply laid out for sale among the stalls.
Yang He narrowed his eyes. The abdominal portions of the fish skins all bore obvious damage.
As if...
They had once grown human hands, which the merchant guilds had cut off beforehand.
"Jialiang Water Town has not flooded, yet the merchant guilds somehow caught such a large number of Treasure Fish. Could it be that the school of fish wasn't in the water?"
"But on land?"
Yang He shuddered. He found it difficult to imagine Treasure Fish crawling all over the ground.
"The merchant guilds definitely won't care much about the miscellaneous items in a century-old Treasure Fish stomach, but it won't be easy to get one by taking advantage of the chaos. Sigh..."
"Those two cultivators have plans in Peibai City as well."
Yang He felt deeply troubled. The sounds of century-old Treasure Fish being slaughtered had already risen from the market entrance.
As he pondered, he wandered among the stalls. He saw all kinds of antiques, their authenticity difficult to distinguish, as well as some tattered old books carelessly laid out.
Several constables recognized Yang He as Old Man Yang's youngest son and greeted him one after another.
Yang He responded to each of them, but his attention was focused on observing the tiger ghosts within their bodies.
What the coachman had said was indeed true. The cultivator within the yamen who housed the Tiger Ghost was already on the verge of death, and even the tiger ghosts appeared unusually listless.
Yang He did not know whether it was an illusion, but the number of constables in Peibai City seemed to be decreasing.
"Tiger Ghost, Sun Qi..."
The Head Constable Sun Old Man Yang had mentioned should be Sun Qi.
Yang He suspected that Sun Qi might already have lost all consciousness. In another month or two, he would die completely, which was why the coachman dared to act so recklessly.
"One or two months... even if the Lore World lets me advance to the Hungry Ghost stage, it'll be a struggle."
"Unless I obtain new mundane items."
Seeing Yang He picking through the stalls, the merchant guild clerk revealed a disdainful expression. His eyes had already said everything that should and should not have been said.
Yang He paid him no mind and weighed the little silver he had left in his robes.
He picked up a book.
"How much?"
"Three Liang of Silver."
Yang He then picked up two volumes of folk miscellanies. "Throw in these two as well."
The merchant guild clerk impatiently waved his hand.
After paying, Yang He got to his feet and left. He opened the book titled "Pure Yin Soft Water Strength," and the information revealed already confirmed its authenticity.
Pure Yin Soft Water Strength
Created by a Heavy Water Martial Artist, it required one to consume Treasure Fish flesh to begin. Once mastered, the Hungry Ghost born within one's body would transform into the dantian.
Along the way, Yang He had already noticed that the merchant guilds were deliberately spreading martial arts manuals. Almost every stall had secret manuals for sale.
The martial arts halls within the city had not stopped them, evidently because they had reached an agreement with the merchant guilds over the division of benefits.
Yang He had no intention of becoming a Martial Artist. He was merely collecting it. The drawbacks of housing a Hungry Ghost were far too terrifying; the slightest mistake could cause it to revive.
"With Treasure Fish flooding the market and martial arts inheritances available for just three or four liang, batches of Martial Artists will probably appear before long."
Martial Artists initiated through secret manuals were not truly cultivators in essence.
Without a Ghost Nurturing Method, they were more like vessels that housed Hungry Ghosts.
Yang He forcibly suppressed his distracting thoughts and continued wandering while posing as a curious onlooker. Before long, he found a bargain: a Hungry Ghost Eyeball.
Dried Hungry Ghost Eyeball
A Yin object derived from a Hungry Ghost organ. It could be refined through the Hungry Ghost Path, allowing a Martial Artist to gain extraordinary eyesight.
Ghost Eye required twelve eyeballs to advance to the Hungry Ghost stage. He was still far from advancing, but he could gather the materials in advance.
Yang He had spent nearly all his silver, so he prepared to leave.
He did not pass through the market entrance. Instead, he used Spiritual Vision to observe it from afar. Because the century-old Treasure Fish was so enormous, he could see it without approaching.
At present, twelve butchers were removing its scales. Even by conservative estimates, it would take seven or eight days to finish processing it.
After taking only a few steps, Yang He picked up a sheet of paper resembling a flyer.
'Shanhe Martial Arts Hall is recruiting large numbers of martial apprentices. Affordable prices, honest dealing. Temper your body for half a year, and you can become a Martial Artist.'
Yang He's mouth twitched. If this had happened before, he definitely would have been tempted.
He tossed aside the flyer and slipped into an alley. Once home, he took out the miscellanies he had bought and began reading them.
He hoped to uncover a glimpse of the Main World's current state.
The miscellanies were filled from beginning to end with stories resembling Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio.
Yet he truly could discern a few clues from the myths and legends.
It was said that three thousand years ago, Yin and Yang had not yet been separated. Demons and ghosts ran rampant in the mortal realm, until a Divine Person descended into the world, subdued them, and divided Yin from Yang. During the following thousand years, there were no longer any incidents of a hundred ghosts roaming at night.
Then the Great Si Dynasty Court was established, and no great disasters had occurred over the next two thousand years.
By rights, long-divided realms must unite, and long-united realms must divide. Yet the Great Si Dynasty Court had not even experienced internal turmoil, which was utterly baffling.
"Could the Lore World be the Main World from three thousand years ago?"
"Otherwise..."
Yang He raised his head and stared at Old Master Bigan for several breaths.
"There's no use dwelling on that. Planning for the next trip into the Lore World is the better course. I must make Ghost Eye advance to the Hungry Ghost stage as soon as possible."
Ghost Lotus 1/3 (31%)
Yang He suddenly heard footsteps coming from the courtyard.
"A He!"
Old Man Yang's voice carried excitement as he hurried into the earthen house.
"Dad, why did you have time to come back early?"
"Hehe, isn't there good news?"
Old Man Yang clutched a flyer in his hand. "A He, learning martial arts isn't as expensive as it used to be. Why not go to Shanhe Martial Arts Hall and temper your body?"
Yang He was momentarily speechless. He said with a bitter smile, "If they recruit so many martial apprentices, how can the instructors have the energy to manage them all? It'll most likely be a waste of money."
"That's true."
Old Man Yang did not press him. Having gained a son in his old age, he indulged Yang He in every way.
Seeing Old Man Yang preparing to resume his patrol, Yang He hesitated before asking, "Dad, is the Head Constable Sun you mentioned before doing well?"
"Head Constable Sun has a stubborn illness. He only appears briefly once every three or four days."
"Sigh."
"His condition has worsened recently. No one has seen Head Constable Sun for a long time."
Yang He stiffened. A few thoughts vaguely emerged in his mind.
Old Man Yang noticed the miscellanies in Yang He's hands. "There are quite a few books in Head Constable Sun's study too. If I get the chance, I'll ask him whether he can lend you one or two volumes."
"What books?"
"I occasionally saw them when Head Constable Sun taught us martial arts. He rarely read the other books, but there was mainly one called 'Inner Elixir Art.'"
Yang He licked his lips. This really was the best opportunity to infiltrate the yamen.
"Dad, is the yamen still recruiting constables?"
The moment Yang He said this, Yin energy immediately seeped from Old Man Yang. The tiger ghost in his body stirred uneasily. "The yamen recruits constables at Zi Shi in the middle of the night. Remember, it is Zi Shi in the middle of the night."
After saying that, Old Man Yang's tone was no longer stiff, and his expression returned to normal.
"A He, I'm going back to patrol the streets. I only came back while stealing a moment from work. There has been a lot going on at the yamen lately, and the market entrance must be guarded day and night."
Yang He watched Old Man Yang depart, unable to stop his thoughts from churning.
As the cultivator stationed in Peibai City, Head Constable Sun might have left behind cultivation methods. He might even know how to house a second ghost.
As for whether he could begin with the Lore World—
Yang He did not think Grandmaster Taiyi would teach him everything without reservation.
He called him "disciple" at every turn, but in the end, the Daoist acolyte was merely Nezha's spare body.
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