The streets and alleys lay hazy and dim, little wine flags hanging outside every household.
Pedestrians hurried through the city, their faces cold and wary. A bleak chill hung in the air, unlike the harmony of old. Now, everyone seemed on guard against strangers. The only things unchanged were the taverns and brothels—the more chaotic things became, the more flourishing their business.
Making money required skill and seizing fleeting business opportunities. This bizarre group knew nothing of sophisticated commerce. Only one snake had experience making money from a street stall, and through half-coercion and half-schemes, she had sold quite a few paper umbrellas.
Outside the wall of a wealthy household at a street corner, the bizarre group was doing business.
"Hereditary Demon Slayer! Selling umbrellas!"
Hui Xian and his disciple squatted before the stall, shouting with all their might. The cobra raised its neck, holding a sign in its mouth without moving. People passed along the street, all turning to look.
Bai Yujun had hung up a sign beside them and was snoring away, hugging a huge lump of salt in her arms.
There were not many who openly hung out a killer's sign. It even read: ten taels of silver to buy a life; a hundred taels to slaughter an entire household, leaving neither chickens nor dogs alive; a thousand taels to level an estate into a deep pit; ten thousand taels to destroy a nation and change the dynasty. So long as the money was right, every skull would be smashed.
"Selling umbrellas... slaying demons..."
Little Stone swayed with sleepiness, then simply leaned against the bamboo basket and began snoring. The sunlight was warm and comfortable.
Hui Xian sat upright selling umbrellas, but he could not bring himself to shout. He had not even gotten any demon-slaying work.