Stranger Danger

Chapter 360: Ghost Tower

Chapter 360: Ghost Tower

“Pawn Shop No. 8?”

Ye Qing’s eyes widened when he heard the familiar name. I thought Fang Xiaoman shot the crap out of Pawn Shop No. 8 and its owner? How the heck does it still exist?

“You know about Pawn Shop No. 8, husband?” Greenlake seemed surprised by this.

Are you looking down on me? Not only do I know about it, I’ve visited it before. And not only have I visited it before, I’m the one who orchestrated its downfall, even though it was by complete accident! Are you impressed?

Of course, Ye Qing didn’t actually voice those thoughts. Instead, he asked, “Are there multiple Pawn Shop No. 8s? I first heard about it at the Strange Market.”

Greenlake didn’t suspect his words. “There is only one true Pawn Shop No. 8, but it has many projections. No one knows where the true Pawn Shop No. 8 is, only that it is eternal and imperishable.”

“Legend says that Pawn Shop No. 8 is born from all the human desires in the world. Unless the world is unified, and humanity has lost its desires completely, or Pawn Shop No. 8 will never go away.”

So, what Fang Xiaoman destroyed was just a projection of Pawn Shop No. 8, Ye Qing thought.

“You seem pretty interested in Pawn Shop No. 8, husband. Would you like to pay it a visit? Supposedly, you can realize any wish in that shop, and I personally haven’t visited it yet.” Greenlake looked at Ye Qing, giggling.

“Haha, forget it. What’s so interesting about that place? Plus, its claims are obviously fake,” Ye Qing hurriedly rejected the suggestion. He was probably on Pawn Shop No. 8’s blacklist due to what he did. It would be suicide to visit the place.

“As you wish, husband.” Greenlake smiled meaningfully almost as if she could see through his thoughts. “So, where would you like to go, husband?”

Ye Qing rubbed his nose. “Er... tell me about the other shops.”

Greenlake answered dutifully, “Yin Lifespan Gambling House is, as the name implies, a gambling house. But instead of waging money, the participants wager their yin lifespan.”

“Ruyi House is a brothel. Yes, it’s no different from a brothel in the yang world.”

“There are brothels in the yin world?” Ye Qing was quite surprised to hear this.

“Of course it has. Lust doesn’t disappear just because you’ve become a ghost.” Greenlake chuckled. “In fact, one might say that a female ghost knows a few tricks that a human woman could never pull off. There are a lot of humans who love female ghosts because of their ability to transform and bend their body beyond human comprehension. Would you like to give it a try, husband?”

“Ahem...” Ye Qing coughed and rubbed his nose furiously. I’m a prim and proper gentleman! Don’t tempt me!

“What’s the price to enter the Ruyi House? I’m just curious, of course. I’m not actually interested in visiting the place. Trust me.”

The corners of Greenlake’s lips slowly turned upward. “You don’t need to pay any yin gold to use the Ruyi House.”

“Really? It’s free?” Ye Qing’s eyes lit up. What are we waiting for? Let’s go!

“I never said it’s free. Instead of yin gold, they accept lifespan.” Greenlake’s smirk grew positively devious. “But you’re a warrior, so a few years off your total lifespan may as well be nothing. Would you like to pay it a visit, husband? I don’t mind.”

Ye Qing immediately declared in a righteous tone, “Do I look like that type of person? I’ve never visited a brothel in my life[1]!” Dammit, I knew it couldn’t be easy to become a ghost rider[2]!

“I know you wouldn’t visit such a place, husband. You’re a moral man after all.” Grenlake giggled before resuming her explanation, “Ghost Tower is said to be the establishment of a bigshot in Fengdu. They mostly trade all kinds of strange items, precious treasures, and unusual ghosts. That is why it is named Ghost Tower.”

“You’ve probably heard of the Bank of Heaven and Earth. It is a bank that you can find and use anywhere, anytime. That is why it is given its name. It’s mainly used to store or exchange money. For example, if you urgently need some yin gold right now, you can trade them certain goods and receive an equal number of yin gold. You can even trade yourself to the Bank of Heaven and Earth if you want to.”

“If you bought some items in the inner market but do not feel safe enough to carry it on your person, then you can store it in the Bank of Heaven and Earth as well. Once you’re safe, you can retrieve them from any branch.”

Ye Qing nodded. He did know about the Bank of Heaven and Earth. It was an immensely powerful bank that could be found throughout the world. Its origins were a mystery, however.

“As for the Feng Park, it is a recreational area where the bigshots of Fengdu went to play and relax. It is said that the Feng Park is filled with incredible and unique flora and fauna, and every step you take shows you a new scenery. The bigshots also love to debate and discuss their understanding of Way in the Feng Park. You are free to listen if you’re lucky enough to happen upon such a debate,” Greenlake explained.

“Really?” No wonder she said that the inner market was where the real opportunities lay. This was exactly the kind of discussion that could enlighten a warrior and put them on the right path.

“I bet it’s not easy to enter the Feng Park though, is it?” Ye Qing asked. There were no free lunches in the world after all.

“You’re wrong, actually. You only need to pay a hundred yin gold to enter the Feng Park,” Greenlake corrected him. “The question is, are you lucky enough to encounter such a discussion while you’re there? It’s not like it’s happening twenty-four seven, and not every champion enjoys such recreational activities.”

“Bah! I knew it was a scam,” Ye Qing’s interest declined drastically as he muttered under his breath. To put it simply, it was up to luck.

Greenlake introduced the rest of the shops[3] before asking, “Have you decided where you want to go, husband?”

“Let’s head to the Ghost Tower first,” Ye Qing answered after a moment’s thought. The main reason he entered the Yin Market was to obtain the Duckweed Flower. He couldn’t enter Pawn Shop No. 8 as a matter of course, Ruyi House wouldn’t help him in that regard, the Bank of Heaven and Earth only offered money, and the Feng Park sold a chance to learn from a bigshot. No matter how he thought about it, the Ghost Tower was the best place to look for his item.

If he still had time after he bought his stuff, then he might visit the Feng Park. His luck was better than most after all.

“As you wish, husband,” Greenlake agreed.

Ye Qing couldn’t help but squint at her a little. Greenlake couldn’t have entered the inner market just to act as his tour guide, but so far, she hadn’t displayed any malice. In fact, she had been very helpful on multiple occasions. That was why he couldn’t figure out what her objective was.

On the way, Ye Qing suddenly recalled something he had been wanting to ask about. “Is that stone lion a kind of Stranger?”

“It is a Stranger, or more accurately, a part of a Stranger,” Greenlake answered.

“What do you mean?” Ye Qing’s curiosity was piqued.

Greenlake explained, “It is said that there exists a guest Stranger in the Bank of Heaven and Earth called the Earth Listener. It has a pair of ears that are as big as fans, and it can hear anything that’s happening in the yang world, the yin world, and the heavens. The stone lion we saw is a strand of hair of the Earth Listener, and you can see them in every branch of the Bank of Heaven and Earth. While the stone lion isn’t nearly as omniscient as the Earth Listener is, it is still an excellent eavesdropper and information gatherer.”

“Buying concrete information from the Earth Listener’s avatar saves much more time and effort than walking around aimlessly, is it not?”

“The Earth Listener? I can’t believe it,” Ye Qing exclaimed in shock. He had heard of the legendary Earth Listener, of course. It was said to be the bloodline descendant of the ancient Stranger, Diting, which was why it inherited a portion of its power. The Diting could supposedly listen in on anything and everything that was happening in all three worlds and the Six Paths[4].

However, he heard that the Earth Listener was a proud Stranger that rarely showed itself in the mortal coil. He never imagined that one of its kind would work for a bank and act as its ears, literally. How far have you fallen, Earth Listener?

Meanwhile, the duo finally arrived at the Ghost Tower. The Ghost Tower, as its name implied, was a tower, and Ye Qing had imagined it to be tall, big, glamorous and unique. In reality, it was the opposite. The doors looked like they had seen better days, the windows were mottled, the paint was fading, and there were dust and cobwebs everywhere. Even the signboard was slanted and looked like it could fall at any moment.

Whoosh whoosh!

As if that wasn’t bad enough, cold yin wind would blow across the building from time to time, threatening the signboard’s integrity and causing the doors and windows to creak ominously. He even saw ghosts flitting here and there inside the building and letting out eerie, spine-chilling cackles.

If it wasn’t for the two words “Ghost Tower” etched into the signboard, Ye Qing would never have believed that this was the place that supposedly sold countless treasures and ghosts.

“This is the Ghost Tower?” It looks more like a haunted house that’s been abandoned for decades!

“Yes. It lives up to its name, doesn’t it?” Greenlake smirked.

“Are we going in?” Ye Qing licked his lips nervously. No matter how he looked at it, this was the last place you wanted to conduct any sort of business.

“We’re already here, so why not?” Greenlake grabbed Ye Qing’s arm and gently led him toward the entrance.

As soon as they stepped through the shabby door, a yin wind and a gloomy voice brushed against their bodies. “Do you need anything, customers?”

Ye Qing turned around and saw a man wearing a rotten face and hem garments shooting thema friendly smile. He shouldn’t be able to tell that the ghost was smiling considering that his face was completely rotten, and yet he did for some reason.

“I am Ghost Six. Please tell me if you need anything. I will make sure to perform it up to your satisfaction,” the ghost said humbly while giving them a deep bow.

Oh heavens, your eyeballs are falling off your eye sockets. Pick them up, you maniac! Also, can you stop smiling? Your flesh is literally falling off your face because of the strain. Do you know how disgusting that is?

Ye Qing couldn’t stop ranting inside his head. At the same time, he wondered if the owner of the Ghost Tower had a screw loose. The building was already shabby enough, but the servants looked horrific as well. Surely a pretty female ghost or two would attract more customers than a rotting corpse?

“Why don’t you start by telling us what the Ghost Tower offers?” Greenlake asked normally as if she didn’t notice the abnormalities.

“Of course! For starters, the first floor sells all sorts of ghosts. This way, please.”

Ghost Six led Ye Qing and Greenlake to an antique rack and said, “This is the Hundred Ghosts Rack, and the items are all placed on the rack. Please, have a look.”

Hundred Ghosts Rack? I thought it was someone’s discarded furniture! Ye Qing mentally rolled his eyes when he saw the dusty, cobweb-covered rack. His eyes widened when he saw the goods, however.

1. Lying through his teeth because a LOT of restaurants in ancient China are brothel/restaurants. ?

2. You’ll never see Ghost Rider in the same way again. ?

3. I just realized that the park counts as a shop too since it technically offers a product... just inconsistently... ?

4. The Six Paths in Buddhist cosmology are the six worlds where sentient beings are reincarnated based on their karma, which is linked to their actions in previous lives. ?

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