Who isn't disabled or crazy?

As the days of dismemberment passed, the century-old Treasure Fish was gradually reduced to mere remains.

Most of its flesh and blood had been stripped away. The organs, after simple air-drying, were collected by wealthy merchants and families in the city. Only the fish stomach remained intact.

The marketplace bustled with activity as butchers processed the remaining fish meat.

"Blackwater Hall has bid on two pieces of century-old Treasure Fish meat!"

A shop assistant announced loudly. Shopkeeper Chen quickly took the oil-paper-wrapped fish meat, intending to have a Fuyang Merchant Association runner deliver it to Blackwater Hall.

"I'll go."

A woman voluntarily took the oil paper. Her appearance bore a slight resemblance to Chen Baosheng.

"Qian'er, Blackwater Hall doesn't require you to make a special trip."

Chen Qian, Chen Baosheng's only daughter, saw Shopkeeper Chen's current state and was extremely worried. She couldn't help but remind him, "Father, you haven't slept for three days and three nights..."

"I'm fine!"

Shopkeeper Chen's nose was bleeding, and the fatigue in his eyes was evident.

Chen Qian felt her father becoming increasingly unfamiliar, even possessing an indescribable strangeness in his brows, as if... he was no longer human.

"Where did the Treasure Fish come from? Our Fuyang Merchant Association rarely deals with marvels, let alone Treasure Fish appearing in great rivers or lakes."

"Shut up!"

Shopkeeper Chen's eyes widened. Due to his swollen body, his belly was a whole size larger than normal.

"The Fuyang Merchant Association is only responsible for transporting the Treasure Fish. Does its origin matter?!"

Shopkeeper Chen became more agitated as he spoke, but soon, with a look of fear, he began to stroke his abdomen.

Chen Qian said no more, carrying the fish meat out of the marketplace. Just as she was about to disappear into an alley, she took out a bottle of liquid and applied it to her eyelids.

This was Clear Sight Elixir Water, which she had bought at a great price.

It was said that the elixir could help conceal one's yang fire, temporarily... seeing ghosts!

"Hoo."

Chen Qian opened her eyes and cautiously looked at Shopkeeper Chen, her pupils immediately constricting. She saw a scene that overturned her understanding of life.

Inside Shopkeeper Chen's bulging belly, there was indeed a ghost!!

It was a shriveled little ghost covered in copper coins, greedily staring at the various instructors bidding on the fish meat, emitting sharp wails.

Chen Qian's face turned deathly pale with fright, and the shriveled little ghost also noticed her peeking.

The shriveled little ghost turned its head and moved closer to the skin, examining Chen Qian. The latter, in a panic, fled into the alley, sweat already soaking her clothes.

Chen Qian, flustered and confused, wiped away the elixir water, but the ghostly shadow refused to leave her mind.

Although Blackwater Hall was not far away, she felt a sense of exhaustion within moments, and simultaneously felt something wriggling inside her body.

"Miss Chen, how could I let you deliver it personally?"

Master Zhao welcomed Chen Qian and then signaled for the fish meat to be taken to the inner room.

Blackwater Hall was not large and had no support from wealthy merchants behind it. It was already difficult to acquire two pieces of meat from the dismembered century-old Treasure Fish at the end of the process, so they naturally cherished the resources.

Chen Qian's heart was in turmoil, and she managed a weak reply to Master Zhao.

"Cough, cough, cough."

A violent cough erupted, then grew increasingly severe. Chen Qian recognized the weakness in the voice, and a nameless fear surged within her.

"Zhao... Master Zhao, I have something else to attend to. I must leave."

Chen Qian hurried away, nearly colliding with someone.

"I'm truly sorry."

Her peripheral vision swept over the person. Whether it was due to the lingering elixir water, she felt this person's eyes were incredibly deep, and at the same time, she seemed to hear faint murmurs around her.

"It's fine."

Yang He frowned slightly and watched Chen Qian disappear into the crowd.

He gazed at the sky for a few moments. A layer of hellish rain seemed to be pouring down, and invisible accumulated water had already reached his calves.

That's right, in a short while, Peibai City in this layer of hell would be submerged.

"Judging by her attire, she must be from the Fuyang Merchant Association."

"There's a ghost inside her."

[Greedy Dao (Merchant)]

[Once mastered, the Greedy Ghost will occupy the intestines and stomach. It can be satisfied through the buying and selling of wealth. Do not engage in losing trades, otherwise, the Greedy Ghost will gradually crawl towards the heart.]

Yang He's heart sank. The Fuyang Merchant Association had actually come into contact with cultivation methods. He hoped that besides the stableman and the Beast Tamer, there wouldn't be a third evil ghost cultivator lurking in Peibai City.

"Not necessarily, but it's wise to be more cautious."

Yang He suppressed his distracting thoughts and pretended to inquire about martial arts training fees as he entered Blackwater Hall.

He had noticed Jin Song's condition earlier at the tea house. If there were no means to prolong his life, he would surely die within a few days.

With a glimmer of hope for survival, Jin Song was unwilling to simply die of old age.

Yang He was about to head to the Lore World and just wanted to see what would happen through Jin Song, so he could find a way to deal with it at that time.

Moreover, he was also unwilling to give up on new mundane items.

"En?"

The moment Yang He stepped into the Martial Arts Hall, he suddenly heard rustling sounds. Immediately, his pupil ghost gave a warning, and the black cat at his feet was scratching his pant leg.

"Jin Song is dead?"

He stood at the entrance, feigning timidity towards the Martial Arts Hall.

The Martial Arts Hall had no time to pay attention to outsiders. Some martial artists were calling Jin Song's name, and the children who followed him to learn martial arts couldn't help but sob.

Not long after, a body covered with a white cloth was carried out from the inner room.

To ordinary eyes, the corpse was just emaciated.

But Spiritual Vision told a different story. The corpse's internal organs were hollowed out, and it was clear that something had crawled out of its mouth before death, likely a Hungry Ghost parasitic in its abdomen.

Plop.

The sound of falling into water suddenly rang out.

Yang He's expression remained unchanged, but goosebumps erupted all over his body.

The Hungry Ghost had already burrowed into the accumulated water of the first layer of hell.

What Yang He found most unbelievable was that everyone in the Martial Arts Hall covered their mouths and noses, and they could actually smell the unique stench of the Hungry Ghost.

Yang He could smell it because his Spiritual Vision enhanced his five senses.

What about them?

Could it be that the rainwater in the first layer of hell was causing the barrier between humans and ghosts to disappear?

Yang He shivered. After feigning a few inquiries about joining the Martial Arts Hall, he immediately returned home to prepare to head to the Lore World.

[Ghost Lotus: 2/3 (2%)]

He held the lotus seed and sat cross-legged in his home's side room.

The carriage stopped at the entrance of the marketplace. The four horses had already disappeared.

"Heh heh, not bad, not bad."

The coachman squatted inside the carriage, puffing on his pipe one mouthful at a time, as if admiring the pouring rain. The smoke he exhaled mixed with a foul odor.

"Zhou Mo, is the plan in Peibai City still going smoothly?"

Although there was only one person in the carriage, a second voice spoke.

"Smoothly! Of course, it's smooth! The only obstacle is the half-dead Sun Qi, and the profits obtained are more than enough for us to divide!!"

"You be careful."

The coachman grinned, his mouth full of rotten teeth that were almost all gone. "Heh heh, Sun Qi isn't dead yet, and besides..."

"There's also a cultivator in the shadows. Song Zhi said before he died that this person has already undergone a second revival. He sensed me the moment I entered the town."

Zhou Mo screamed in response: "Impossible!!!"

The coachman sneered: "Song Zhi died cleanly. Speaking of this person's second revival, he didn't abandon his body, nor did he completely go mad."

"But then again, how can anyone in this world cultivate without any cost?"