The Essence of the Ghost Market

Shen Yuan's words instantly chilled the breakfast stall owner's smiling expression.

The bustling market fell into dead silence. Pairs of eyes stared fixedly at Shen Yuan, his distorted figure reflected in their hollow gazes.

The Maine Coon cautiously surveyed the figures around them, letting out repeated low, threatening growls. Its fur faintly took on a metallic sheen once more.

Only Shen Yuan seemed utterly unaware of everything before him.

He had not taken this little farce to heart.

There was no doubt that the Ghost Market had a problem.

Perhaps the Ghost Market had displayed no aggression, but both that twilight illusion and the bizarre market before him proved its unusual nature.

It could not be restrained through conventional means. Neither the Southern Pacification Army's blockade nor Shen Yuan's deliberate avoidance had allowed them to escape the Ghost Market's influence.

All this information made the Ghost Market appear incomparably powerful.

Yet Shen Yuan knew very well that at the beginning of the Qi Tide Era's revival, no matter how extraordinary the Ghost Market was, it could not wield much power.

Even an immortal sword like the Dark-Bright Sword had been damaged beyond recognition after weathering the Spirit Tides, much less this Ghost Market before him.

If the Ghost Market were truly as powerful as it appeared, if it were truly strong enough, it could have long ago drawn both the Southern Pacification Army and those evacuating refugees into the Ghost Market.

Yet it could not do so. At most, it could interfere with Shen Yuan's progress and make him voluntarily step into this Ghost Market.

Perhaps, in the Ghost Market's eyes, the moment Shen Yuan entered it of his own accord, he had become a turtle in a jar. But Shen Yuan did not see it that way.

Because Shen Yuan had already sensed that this Ghost Market did not exist in the present world, but lay within an independent space.

The Ghost Market might be able to rely on its peculiar nature to deceive others, but it could not deceive Shen Yuan, who possessed the Pot-Heaven Divine Ability.

All he needed to do was find a weak point in the space and forcibly detonate a storage ring, and Shen Yuan could easily leave this space.

Thus, Shen Yuan had never worried about his own safety. Instead, he was far more interested in the traits the Ghost Market displayed before him.

The seemingly prosperous scenes after entering the Ghost Market, along with those walking-corpse-like beings, were all explaining to Shen Yuan the Ghost Market's most fundamental essence.

Trade!

Since it was a market, its essence was trade.

Yet the things traded in the Ghost Market seemed to be the owners of those shops and stalls, while in truth, they were the entire Ghost Market itself.

Any being that offered up its lifespan or a part of its body for a transaction would merge into the Ghost Market and become a part of it.

Simply put, the core of this Ghost Market was not the ghosts within it, because the Ghost Market itself was an aberrant lifeform.

Shen Yuan calmly looked at the breakfast stall owner's cold expression, a trace of deeper meaning entering his voice.

"The owner seems somewhat dissatisfied. Are you planning to force a sale?"

The moment those words fell, all the cold gazes froze. The pedestrians wandering the streets resumed their hurried appearances.

Even the breakfast stall owner immediately put on a smile.

"You jest, honored guest. In business, if a deal cannot be made, goodwill remains. How could we possibly do something like forcing a sale?"

This sudden change nearly left the Maine Coon unable to react in time.

One moment, swords were drawn and bows taut; the next, they were smiling. Such a shift somewhat exceeded the comprehension of its Demon Race brain.

Still, it keenly caught a crucial phrase in Shen Yuan's words: "forcing a sale."

Vaguely, it seemed to have guessed something.

And just then, Shen Yuan spoke.

"Since this is the Ghost Market, no matter how bizarre it may be, it must abide by the laws of a market.

"It can use trade to assimilate other beings into parts of itself, and it can use trade to beguile others, but there is one point the Ghost Market cannot violate.

"Within the Ghost Market, forced sales are not permitted."

"Because the essence of forcing a sale is not trade, but plunder. Once such a thing occurs, it means shaking the very foundations of the entire Ghost Market.

"Even if these fellows are part of the Ghost Market, they cannot violate its rules."

Shen Yuan's words brought sudden understanding to the Maine Coon. The breakfast stall owner's face darkened slightly, yet he still had to maintain a smile on the surface.

"This honored guest truly has discerning eyes, seeing through the essence of our Ghost Market at a glance.

"Since that is the case, we need not show honored guest those vulgar things."

As he spoke, a slender hand pierced through the breakfast stall owner's bloated body. A graceful figure tore open his chest and stepped out from that shell of flesh.

She was a beautiful woman. Her long, slender figure and every frown and smile brimmed with allure—provided one overlooked the pale yellow fat smeared across her body and the long dress that seemed woven from flesh and human skin.

With a casual motion, she tossed the shell of the bloated body into the wok. It rapidly melted away in the boiling oil as the strange woman slowly spoke.

"My name is Zhi. I will be honored guest's guide through the Ghost Market this time."

As she spoke, Zhi lightly waved her delicate hand. With the scattering of yellow fat, the street before them began to change.

Space turned upside down. The bustling, thriving stalls around them began to vanish, replaced by several empty buildings.

Shen Yuan's gaze swept over the buildings. Upon them were written, in strange script, the words "Divination," "Treasures," "Arts," and "Gambling."

The instant he stepped into this place, Shen Yuan could sense its mixed mortal-world aura. This aura, woven from the resentment, joy, fury, and desire in countless human hearts, seemed to have endured for thousands of years without dispersing even now.

Zhi stood to one side and slowly introduced the place to Shen Yuan.

"During the previous Qi Tide Era, the Ghost Market already wandered the Profound Yellow Realm, becoming a treasured place countless people wished to enter.

"Here, so long as you possess sufficient wealth, you can obtain anything you desire."

"Do you have Celestial Dipper Divine Abilities?"

Zhi's words abruptly stopped, her voice instantly catching in her throat.

After a long silence, Zhi finally spoke.

"You must be joking, honored guest. Celestial Dipper Divine Abilities seize the creation of heaven and earth; they are fundamentally not permitted to appear in the lower realm. How could the Ghost Market possess Celestial Dipper Divine Abilities?

"Though the Ghost Market does contain some top-tier profound divine abilities, that depends on whether honored guest can afford the price."

"You do not even have Celestial Dipper or Earthly Fiend Divine Abilities, yet you dare claim one can obtain everything." Shen Yuan shook his head, disdain showing in his eyes.

At the side, Zhi gritted her teeth, wishing she could demand on the spot whether Shen Yuan even knew what Celestial Dipper and Earthly Fiend Divine Abilities were.

But mindful of the Ghost Market's rules, Zhi still forced out a smile.

"Beyond divine abilities, the Ghost Market also possesses many treasures, spirit pills, and wondrous arts left behind from the previous Qi Tide Era. Might honored guest be interested?"

"The previous Qi Tide Era?"