Wasn't This Making Me Make a Mistake?
The Ghost-Crying Market.
This is a market town under the jurisdiction of the Yellow Springs Netherworld.
Ever since the Yellow Springs Netherworld suffered a great loss in the [Peach Garden] Secret Realm, the higher-ups of the sect knew that the Wuji Sacred Sect, with its nature of repaying kindness but avenging wrongs, would never let go of this opportunity to take advantage of the chaos.
They will definitely send people to wipe out the surrounding forces. Therefore, the demonic strongholds such as Ghost-Crying Market have already strengthened their defenses to prevent a surprise attack by the Holy Sect.
Qi Yun quietly made his way to a desolate hillside more than ten miles outside of Ghost-Crying Market. Under the cover of a clump of withered ghost claw locust trees, he looked out at this long-famous demonic market.
In the distance, amidst a gloomy mountain range, Ghost-Crying Market was built against the twisted mountainside.
The towering walls were built from countless pale bones mixed with pitch-black clay, and faint, eerie green will-o'-the-wisps could be seen flickering and leaping between the cracks in the bone walls.
At the entrance to the market, there are two towering stone statues of Yakshas, each several meters tall and carved with an incredibly twisted and contorted expression.
The stone statue's eyes burned with a tangible, emerald-green flame, scanning the flow of people in and out as if it were a living creature.
This is completely different from the style of the Holy Sect, who preferred to hide markets in ordinary towns and pursue a life of seclusion in the city.
The markets of the Yellow Springs Netherworld are extremely flamboyant and bizarre.
A thin, foul-smelling, grayish-black miasma lingers in the air year-round, from which faint, mournful cries can be heard.
The name "Ghost-Crying Market" comes from this.
Despite the terrifying atmosphere outside, the entrance to the Ghost-Crying Market was quite lively.
All sorts of Outer Dao roam freely.
A ghost cultivator draped in a tattered black robe and surrounded by vengeful spirits; a corpse-refining cultivator with a pale face and cracking joints as he walks; and a bewitching woman in revealing clothes whose eyes can devour the life force of others.
There are also many more bizarre and indescribable creatures.
Their voices were hoarse and shrill, mixed with a creepy, unsettling energy.
Qi Yun Aura-Concealing Pearl in his hand, which was warm from his body heat, and gazed at the Ghost-Crying Market in the distance.
He flipped his hand and took out a mission jade talisman, probing it with his Divine Sense. His specific mission was clearly recorded inside:
[Find the precise coordinates of the Xun position in the Yellow Springs Netherworld Fangshi.]
This task is simple in some ways, and difficult in others.
The simplicity lies in the fact that as long as he holds this specially made jade talisman and arrives at the Xun position area of the market, the pre-set Law Technique within the jade talisman will automatically sense and lock onto the earth vein coordinates of that location.
The difficulty lies in the fact that when the jade talisman activates its locking function, it will uncontrollably emit a unique radiance and fluctuation of spiritual energy.
If it's in a secluded place, that's fine, but if it happens to be in front of many people...
That would be like a beacon in the darkness, instantly revealing its true nature.
Even the blind people in the Ghost-Crying Market knew that he had ulterior motives and was up to no good.
"This Ghost-Crying Market is teeming with demons. With my upright appearance, I'm afraid I'll be targeted as soon as I enter." Qi Yun's eyes flickered, and he already had a plan in mind.
He flipped his hand and took out a human skin mask that was as thin as a cicada's wing and had a cold touch, and gently placed it on his face.
Suddenly his face blurred and distorted, transforming into a face as pale as paper, with long, thin, slanted eyebrows, tightly pursed lips, and cold, sinister eyes.
His entire demeanor instantly became chilling and intimidating.
Then, with a thought, a white skull with ghostly green flames burning in its eye sockets appeared out of thin air and obediently floated in his palm.
At the same time, he slightly loosened the suppression of the intense Sha Qi that had accumulated within him from his repeated killings.
A faint, yet palpable, aura of blood and chilling coldness instantly enveloped him.
In the blink of an eye, the Holy Sect cultivator who had just exuded a trace of integrity between his brows had vanished.
Instead, there was a sinister cultivator who held a skull in his hand, exuding a chilling Sha Qi that kept strangers at bay, and who looked like a dangerous person to be trifled with.
"Hmm, it's starting to look good." Qi Yun examined his current appearance with the help of the ghostly fire reflected in the bone eye sockets and nodded in satisfaction.
This disguise was enough for him to blend into the demon's lair ahead without appearing out of place.
Having made all the preparations, he no longer hesitated, and strode towards the eerie, Ghost-Crying Market.
As soon as you step into the market, you see the archway formed by huge ribs.
An intensely cold and damp aura swept over them, mixed with the smells of decay, blood, and various other indescribable and bizarre odors.
The market was dimly lit.
The main source of illumination was the eerie green light emitted from lanterns made of human skin or some kind of organ that hung along the streets.
The streets are lined with stalls and shops selling all sorts of bizarre and unusual things.
There were eyeballs and hearts soaked in unknown liquids; twisted souls sealed by talismans and struggling incessantly; evil magical Law Artifact made from human bones and animal hides; and even some living cultivators in cages with vacant eyes, clearly controlled by evil magic, displayed and sold like livestock.
Whispers, eerie laughter, and painful groans filled the air.
All sorts of demons and Evil Cultivator roamed the streets, trading and arguing, filled with wariness and greed among themselves.
The white skeleton in Qi Yun's palm seemed extremely adapted to the environment, and the will-o'-the-wisps in its eye sockets flickered and brightened excitedly.
With an expressionless face and a cold gaze sweeping over his surroundings, Qi Yun was rapidly calculating his location in his mind, seamlessly blending into the torrent of demons.
Walking through the bizarre and demon-infested streets of Ghost-Crying Market, Qi Yun remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he was silently calculating with his fingers.
The "Blood-Guided Profound Mysteries" technique he possessed was a secret art that focused on using one's own Qi and Blood and qi as a guide to discern good fortune and misfortune.
It differs from orthodox geomancy and astrological calculations.
However, it is more than sufficient for calculating the basic Bagua directions.
The faint flow of Qi and Blood at the fingertips resonates with the mysterious energy of the Unseen.
He quickly pinpointed the exact direction of the southeast (巽) position within this vast and chaotic market.
This is it.
His fingers, which had been pinching, suddenly stopped, and Qi Yun's lips curled up slightly.
But when he looked up in the direction he had calculated, the smile on his face froze instantly, replaced by a look of mistake and helplessness.
Not far ahead, a building stood that blended in with the gloomy surroundings yet appeared somewhat out of place.
The pavilion was about three stories high, with upturned eaves, but it was not painted in vermilion; instead, it was built with a dark, blood-red wood.
A string of pale, delicate bone bells hangs from the eaves, tinkling softly in the wind, their ethereal sound carrying a hint of chill.
Above the door, a black plaque bears three large, alluring yet eerie characters written in a pale white pigment.
[Ten Thousand Beauties Pavilion]
The windows of the pavilion were half-open, and faint sounds of string and wind instruments drifted out. The melodies were gentle and lingering, but at each turn, they revealed an indescribable sense of sorrow.
There were no ostentatious solicitors like in Chang Qing at the entrance; only two lanterns, shaped like the heads of beauties with pink eerie flames flickering in their eye sockets, quietly emitted a warm yet chilling light.
A rich, cloyingly sweet fragrance filled the air, making one's heart flutter slightly, yet one could vaguely sense a hint of decay hidden deep within the aroma.
Qi Yun's eyelids twitched, and his heart skipped a beat.
Holy crap, this place doesn't look like a respectable place at all.
How could the Xun position be such a place?
This... isn't this forcing me to make a mistake?
However, the quest token must be activated here, and the coordinates cannot be lost.
With a resolute expression, Qi Yun secretly clenched his fist.
Enough! The sect's mission is paramount; personal innocence can wait!
For the sake of the Holy Sect, for the sake of the Dao Path, we must brave even the most dangerous and dangerous places!
Taking a deep breath and suppressing his distracting thoughts, Qi Yun tried his best to maintain Yin Lu's cold and aloof facade as he strode towards the Ten Thousand Beauties Pavilion, which exuded an eerie allure.
As soon as I stepped near the entrance, the pink flames in the two lanterns shaped like the heads of beauties seemed to flicker even more vigorously.
It takes time; there seems to be an invisible connection within the building.
A fragrant breeze wafted over him, and several soft, cool, yet fair and delicate arms emerged from the shadows inside the door, gently and irresistibly taking his arm.
"Oh my, sir, this is a new face. Is this your first time visiting Ten Thousand Beauties Pavilion? Please come in!"
"What a handsome young man! He exudes such Sha Qi, but we ladies love someone like you!"
The soft, sweet voices of birds, accompanied by seductive giggles, rang in his ears.
These sounds were melodious and pleasant, as if they could seep into one's bones. Surrounded by this fragrant breeze and alluring shadows, Qi Yun's originally gloomy expression involuntarily melted away, and he forced out a bright smile that seemed to be enjoying himself but was actually somewhat stiff and helpless.
"Heh--. Hehe, easy, easy--"
He was half-pushed and half-forced into stepping through the dimly lit, warmly intimate gates of the Ten Thousand Beauties Pavilion.
The mission has only just begun.