Stranger Danger

Chapter 351: The Yin Token of Forgettance

In a dark, secluded alleyway, Ye Qing was shambling behind an old woman with glassy, unfocused eyes.

The old woman was carrying a dim oil lamp, its flame swaying hypnotically in the darkness. There was an ancient face behind her skull that was staring fixatedly at Ye Qing with murky eyes.

Crackle!

Suddenly, the oil lamp in the old woman’s hands crackled audibly and scattered a ton of sparks. Sparks burst out of the flame and bounced everywhere within the glass.

The spark flickered unnaturally like it was alive. In fact, a translucent silhouette was reflected within each spark. Ye Qing’s voice could be heard from one of the sparks.

“I’ll sell you the Yin Token, Granny Lampflower!”

“Is that so? But I don’t feel like buying anymore.” Granny Lampflower stopped in her tracks and looked down on the oil lamp.

“No, I mean I’m going to give it to you for free! All I ask is that you let me go!” Ye Qing’s panicked voice echoed inside the lamp.

“It’s fine. I prefer taking what I want with my own hands,” Granny Lampflower replied unhurriedly.

“I... I... I’ll do anything as long as you let me go. Please!” Ye Qing’s voice grew increasingly fearful.

Instead of answering, Granny Lampflower slowly bent down until she was staring directly into the sparks. Her lips slowly split open into a kind smile as she answered, “You’re welcome, but I prefer reaping the fruits of my own labor!”

Ye Qing was silent for a moment before asking in a dejected voice, “At least tell me one thing before you kill me. What on earth is that Yin Token, and why is everyone fighting for it?”

“No.” Granny Lampflower said slowly, “I loathe monologues and the consequences it brings, you see.”

Granny Lampflower slowly extended her thin, withered hand toward Ye Qing. When her fingers made contact with his chest, it actually went right through like her hand was intangible. There was no mistaking the sensation of her hand closing around his heart, however. Granny Lampflower loved eating a person’s insides, but she usually did it without harming their exterior. It was her unique ability. Barring exceptional circumstances, most of her victims looked fine on the outside even though their insides were completely gone.

“You can’t win them all, I suppose.”

Ye Qing suddenly let out a sigh, but it wasn’t one of resignation. It was more like an annoyed, “I cannot believe you don’t appreciate my world class acting” sigh.

A hint of unease suddenly struck Granny Lampflower. She didn’t hesitate to tighten her grip and attempt to pull out Ye Qing’s heart.

Ba-thump!

Ye Qing’s heart beat once, and Granny Lampflower’s hand was struck by a white hot sensation. She felt like she was clutching a chunk of red hot iron, not a human heart.

She was a ghost. She wasn’t supposed to be able to feel anything, but she did. A terrible cry of pain escaped Granny Lampflower’s lips as she hurriedly withdrew her hand, but she failed to do so in time before Ye Qing’s whole body turned into a furnace, and her forearm disintegrated into ash.

At the same time, her oil lamp abruptly exploded into smithereens. Sparks scattered everywhere, and the wails of countless yin souls could be heard from them. They were all trapped within the lamp until now.

“Argh!” Granny Lampflower let out a bloodcurdling scream, though it was impossible to say if it was physical, mental, or both. She immediately glided away from Ye Qing at a speed that didn’t fit her apparent age.

Snap!

Suddenly, she heard a sound that sounded like someone snapping their fingers. Her consciousness abruptly grew disjointed, and she froze in her tracks. By the time she recovered, she saw a fist growing larger and larger while a fiery, unstoppable force spread like wildfire inside her body.

Just like that, she burned away into nothingness like paper.

After killing Granny Lampflower with one punch, Ye Qing took one step to the side and struck a Stranger that had suddenly appeared behind him with his right elbow. When he looked, he saw a face that was contorted in fury.

One look at the face was enough to make him indescribably livid. He felt like the only way he might vent his anger was to slaughter anyone and everyone.

Thankfully, the sudden emotion lasted only an instant. The demonic lotus absorbed it almost as soon as it invaded its headspace.

“The Angry Ghost? No wonder!” Ye Qing exclaimed in realization.

The Angry Ghost didn’t have a body, but its face could draw out the fury in one’s heart. That was most likely why the yin guard had suddenly attacked Loud earlier.

When the yin guard suddenly attacked Loud, Granny Lampflower immediately seized the opportunity to draw his mind into her oil lamp. He could have broken free from the unnatural force, but he wanted to figure out why these ghosts were so intent on getting their hands on his Yin Token. That was why he allowed her to kidnap his mind and lead his body into a secluded alleyway.

He was confident he would be able to trick Granny Lampflower into divulging everything she knew about the Yin Token, but unfortunately, she was a woman of little words. He had no choice but to kill her.

As for why he didn’t leave her half-dead for interrogation, his reasons were simple. One, Granny Lampflower was hardly a weak ghost. If she escaped, he would be in a world of trouble. Two, he was a man of few words as well.

Back to the present, Ye Qing closed his distance with the Angry Ghost in the blink of an eye and locked the space around it with his left palm. Try as the Angry Ghost might, it was unable to break free before Ye Qing grabbed it and burned it into nothing with the Netherflame.

With that done, Ye Qing immediately got ready to leave. Although he wasn’t afraid of trouble, he was hardly a trouble seeker. He didn’t want to run into another ghost or be caught by the yin guard or Loud. The sooner he could get the hell away from here, the better. He could always look into his Yin Token elsewhere.

“Hmm?”

He had just taken a few steps when he suddenly sensed something and looked behind him. He saw a woman sitting on a wall not far away from him.

The woman was dressed in red and wearing an exquisitely crafted black mask. She was twirling a red oil-paper umbrella and kicking her slender legs gently. A pair of bells were tied around her bare feet, and they made crisp, melodious rings as she kicked her legs.

A dark night, a red umbrella, a beautiful woman... She reminded Ye Qing of an other shore flower in hell: demonic, dangerous, and beautiful. Yes, she was wearing a mask, but every fiber in his body told him that she was beautiful beyond imagination and just as dangerous.

She was dangerous because he hadn’t sensed her arrival. Besides that, he couldn’t see her cultivation level. What he was seeing was just the tip of an iceberg. It was impossible to say just how deep her powers went.

Hell, he couldn’t tell if she was human or ghost.

“Who are you? When did you show up?” Ye Qing asked slowly while narrowing his eyes. His body language was relaxed, but he was going to attack the woman the second she showed the slightest opening or hostility.

“When did I show up?” The woman continued to kick her legs while echoing his question with a voice that sounded as ephemeral as smoke. “When you revealed your true strength and killed Granny Lampflower, I suppose.”

“You are a bold man, scion. Not many people would dare to kill a ghost in the Yin Market. The yin guards would throw you in the Eighteen Hells if they discovered your crime.”

“Who are you?” Ye Qing asked grimly while spreading his demonic thought and probing the woman for openings.

The woman replied while toying with her umbrella, “It doesn’t matter who I am. What matters is that you stay where you are. I’m easily frightened, you see. If I don’t like what you’re doing, I might just cry for help from a yin guard or a vile ghost.”

When Ye Qing continued to watch her seriously, the woman suddenly broke into a giggle and said, “Well, I guess I should stop teasing you. I mean you no harm, scion.”

Ye Qing didn’t say anything.

Seeing that Ye Qing was still on guard against her, the woman’s voice turned a little sad. “You don’t believe me? You break my heart, scion. I’m just a weak little woman.”

“Liar,” Ye Qing replied bluntly. She was a woman, sure, but weak? Who was she kidding?

“Hahaha! You’re a funny man, scion.” She giggled. “If you must know why I’m following you, it’s because I saw a cute little idiot foolishly showing off his Yin Token of Forgettance in public. It was so cute I couldn’t help but want to follow him and protect him.”

Cute little idiot? Who’s she talking about? Well, whoever she’s talking about, it can’t possibly be me. The truth will remain a lie as long as I don’t admit the truth, right? Ye Qing thought to himself.

He could believe the first half of her sentence, but the second half? Heh. If he was weak, then he was almost certain that this would be a very different conversation.

“What is the Yin Token of Forgettance, Miss?”

“You really don’t know? You really are a cute little idiot. Are you lucky, or are you foolish?” The woman said teasingly while shaking her head. When she noticed Ye Qing’s cold, unfeeling gaze, she smirked. “I’m going to fall in love with you if you keep staring at me like that.”

Nani? I have no idea I have such electrifying eyes! I must stare at her until she’s hopelessly in love with me!

Ye Qing widened his eyes a little and continued staring at her. A few breaths later, the woman finally sighed. “What a wooden man you are. Fine, I’ll tell you.”

“The Yin Token of Forgettance is the item that allows you to enter the inner market.”

The inner market? Do they do segregation in the yin world too?

“The Yin Market of Fengdu is split into the outer market and the inner market.” The woman explained slowly, “The outer market is set up for the small fries in both the yin world and the yang world. Anything you might find in the outer market is either ordinary or worthless.”

“The inner market is the opposite. The inner market is set up for the big shots. Anyone who possesses the qualifications to enter the inner market is either an official deity in Fengdu, a bigshot in the yang world, or people who are incredibly blessed so to speak. You’ll find that the items featured in Fengdu are incredibly precious and rare as well.”

“In fact, one might say that the inner market is the true Yin Market of Fengdu. The outer market only exists to fool and swindle the ordinary folk.”

I see. Ye Qing rubbed his nose thoughtfully.

The woman continued, “You need the Yin Token of Forgettance to enter the inner market. Naturally, the inner market represents an opportunity of a lifetime for both humans and ghosts.”

“You have no idea about the value of the Yin Token, and yet you’re showing it off in public. On top of that, your strength is average at best. Of course the yin guard, Granny Lamp and more are targeting you.”

“Even if you haven’t drawn their attention, it’s only a matter of time before someone else sets their sight on you.”

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