The Ghost Appraiser

Chen Ying felt a power awakening inside him.

That power rose from the depths of his mind, gradually spreading throughout his body.

Like ice, like the sea, deep and boundless.

Like a fierce tiger, like a Rakshasa, swift and silent.

Though he did not know where it came from, Chen Ying could sense that it did not belong to this body, but flowed entirely from himself.

This power had probably lain dormant within him ever since he transmigrated, and was now slowly awakening.

The noodle stall owner noticed nothing. He kept fiddling with his large pot.

Ghostly silhouettes drifted back and forth through the thick fog. Chen Ying looked at the noodle broth before him. Though he was starving, he had no intention of drinking it.

His body was in some kind of equilibrium, and no one knew what would happen if that balance was broken.

The fog stirred, as though a new customer had arrived.

Chen Ying had already grown used to such sights.

This Ghost Market was clearly a bustling spot in Hong Kong-Kowloon City. The many sinister beings coming and going created a kind of prosperity Chen Ying could not comprehend.

The ghosts selected strange goods here, and their methods of payment were even more varied. Some even gouged out their own eyes or severed their own limbs to pay.

Almost none of the ghosts could speak. Most transactions took place through some unspoken understanding. Chen Ying felt that perhaps a higher power enveloped this place, creating a kind of "order."

What was going on with this world?

The newcomer was interesting. He walked straight toward the noodle stall and sat down beside Chen Ying and Hua Shanrong as though he knew the place well.

The noodle stall owner did not even bother to greet him, continuing his work beside the stove.

"Bro... ther..."

The new customer whimpered softly in a cracked voice.

Chen Ying looked up. This was a dead man covered in blood, evidently hacked to death with blades. Wounds covered him from head to toe, leaving him unrecognizable.

"Nice look, brother."

That served as Chen Ying's greeting, and he continued studying everything in the Ghost Market.

The appraiser at the pawnshop kept looking their way, greed showing in the green flames glowing inside his skull.

"Bro..."

The new diner was still struggling to open his mouth and whimper out words.

"...Brother..."

The ghost seemed capable only of repeating that one phrase.

Chen Ying turned to look at the new customer and discovered that he was not speaking to him. He seemed to be addressing Hua Shanrong beside him.

And Hua Shanrong's eyes were already full of tears.

"B... Boss..."

Hua Shanrong seemed to have regained his ability to move with the new ghost's arrival. His hands trembled as he looked at Chen Ying beside him.

"Brother Ying, this... this is my boss..."

Only after that reminder did Chen Ying look him over properly. The fellow before him did indeed resemble Fat Bear in build and what remained of his clothes.

Su Xiong really was ruthless. He had sent one of Wo On Sing's bosses here so quickly. It seemed the entire landscape of Hong Kong-Kowloon City's underworld was about to change.

"Boss, it's me, Hua Shanrong. Boss, don't scare me. Boss..."

But Fat Bear looked at him and spoke haltingly.

"Brothers... brothers entrust..."

Hua Shanrong picked up the words.

"When brothers entrust us with money or belongings, we must do our utmost to deliver them safely. Any who cheat them shall die beneath ten thousand blades!"

Hearing this, Fat Bear seemed finally reassured. He raised an arm that was only half attached to his shoulder, pulled a heavy gold chain from his neck, and placed it on the table.

"...Utmost..."

Leaving that final word behind, he stood and followed the passage through the Ghost Market toward the deepest fog.

His steps were heavy, as though he still had countless attachments, yet there was nothing to be done now, just as no one could stop flowers from falling.

"Boss... Brother Ying... my boss is dead..."

Hua Shanrong grabbed the gold chain from the table. His hands shook, and tears and snot streamed down his face.

"My condolences. Even generals fall on the battlefield..."

Yet Chen Ying was wondering whether this Ghost Market had an end, and what lay in the deepest fog.

Where would Fat Bear go now? The gates of the underworld?

Or a passage to another world?

Why couldn't he continue to exist like the other ghosts?

Chen Ying did not dwell on it for long, because soon another person passed through the thick fog and entered the Ghost Market.

Sha Wei.

The vicious man in a black trench coat had his long saber slung across his back and a yellow talisman stuck to his forehead, twisted symbols drawn on it in cinnabar. Cupping a small compass in both hands, he strode out of the thick fog.

"That bastard..."

Hua Shanrong reacted first, but his first response was to lower his head and hide his face.

"Brother Ying, careful, that bastard..."

Hua Shanrong had finally regained some freedom of movement and murmured under his breath. But Sha Wei paid neither of them any attention. With a clear destination in mind, he headed for the pawnshop in the distance.

Chen Ying pulled Hua Shanrong to his feet.

"Let's go."

"Where?"

"Follow that bastard."

Hua Shanrong was momentarily dumbfounded.

"Sha Wei? That's not a good idea, is it? With so many ghostly masters here, let's not provoke that bastard."

"If he could get in, he must be able to get out."

Chen Ying explained quietly, "Do you want to stay and keep these masters company? Don't make a sound in a moment. Just follow me and stay sharp."

"Brother Ying, I'll do whatever you say."

The two left the noodle stall. The owner cooking the noodles ignored them and continued working at his stove.

They could faintly hear him muttering to himself.

"...Crafty little devil. Wasted a whole bowl of my broth..."

Sha Wei reached the pawnshop entrance. Suppressing his excitement, he put the compass into his pocket.

"Boss, I want to pawn something."

The appraiser standing at the entrance looked him up and down, then nodded.

"It's been a long time since a living person came here. What do you want to pawn?"

"How much spirit money is this heart of mine worth?"

The pawnshop appraiser tucked his hands into his sleeves and swept his green-flame eyes over Sha Wei. Sha Wei felt as though a basin of cold water had been dumped over his head, a chill seeping into his very marrow.

"A martial artist, with vigorous blood and vitality. Though your heart's essence blood cannot yet repel ghosts and gods, that pure innate qi is worth twenty notes."

"The saber on your back would be worth another thirty."

Finally, the appraiser fixed his gaze on Sha Wei's sleeve.

"But the most valuable thing is what's inside your sleeve. I'll offer a hundred notes."

"I'm only pawning this heart of mine. Nothing else."

"Very well. It's still a deal."

The Ghost Appraiser looked at him and said,

"But let me advise you: no one can seize anything inside this Ghost Market. Once you leave, though, plenty will have their eyes on you."

"You needn't concern yourself with that. Are you taking this heart or not?"

"Very well. Follow me inside."

As the Ghost Appraiser spoke, he also glanced toward where Chen Ying stood in the distance.