After reaching the Martial Market, Deng Qing stood on a slope and looked out over it. Beside Emerald-Wave Lake at the foot of Yanping Mountain, a broad stretch of level grassland had been filled with tents of every color.
Paths marked out with wooden stakes and hemp rope crisscrossed the grounds, dividing the Martial Market into several sections.
Powerful trading houses occupied the center. Their large, interconnected tents could hold hundreds of people.
Merchant banners hung outside, while weapons, medicinal herbs, and all kinds of resources were displayed within.
Farther away stood stalls set up by martial arts schools, gangs, and local lineages.
Some martial artists who had no claim to a fixed spot simply spread their wares on the ground.
Deng Qing followed the crowd inside, surrounded by hawkers' cries and the sound of haggling.
An area in the southwest corner of the Martial Market had been set aside for vendors selling food and drink.
Some martial artists who had traveled a long way crouched beside the stalls, eating and drinking heartily. Others traded news from far and wide over wine.
Voices swelled throughout the Martial Market. It might as well have been a vast bazaar.
Once Celebration Hall's group entered, they called out to one another and went their separate ways.
Deng Qing was in no hurry to buy anything. He first walked the paths to get a rough sense of the prices.
After making a circuit, he spotted Fan Sheng collecting money from the owner of a tea stall.
Fan Sheng spotted him too. He pocketed the money, walked over, and said with a smile, "Don't think your Senior Brother has a black heart. This stall is mine, and I can't let a rare chance to earn money pass me by, can I?
"I've partnered with several