Chapter 166: Second Ghost Market

After leaving the Three Fork Herb Valley, Hua Changxi went straight back to the capital and sent a message to Lin Sheng using a transmission talisman. Soon, she received a reply saying they would meet tomorrow at the temple to the southeast of the capital.

"The temple?"

Remembering that the entrance to the ghost market last time was also next to a temple, Hua Changxi guessed that the passages connecting to the Nine Nether were located at various temples.

On the first day of the eleventh month, early in the morning, when Hua Changxi arrived at the temple designated by Eunuch Lin, the Eastern Depot personnel were already there.

Not only were there Eastern Depot people, but also over twenty other cultivators.

Hua Changxi's gaze swept over those cultivators, a flicker of emotion in her eyes.

The eunuchs of the Eastern Depot were all quite thin, while the cultivators accompanying them were tall and burly, with well-developed muscles. The contrast between the two groups standing together was too obvious to ignore.

Hua Changxi noticed that those cultivators had very sturdy arms and thick calluses on their hands, very much like blacksmiths who forge iron.

"Guild Master Hua."

Seeing Hua Changxi appear, Eunuch Lin's anxious heart finally settled back down. Although they had issued quite a few ghost market tokens, if a cultivator's cultivation was too low, they wouldn't be able to break the restrictions.

Hua Changxi's cultivation was not low; when seizing the divine hammer, she and a few other high-level cultivators could be used to resist the sealing power.

The previous attempts to enter Soul-Severing Mountain had all failed; hopefully, this time would succeed.

"Wait a moment, there are still people who haven't arrived."

Hearing that there were more people, Hua Changxi asked in surprise, "So many people going to the ghost market?"

Eunuch Lin laughed and said, "The more people, the safer."

Hua Changxi said nothing and stood to the side, waiting.

Soon, three more groups of cultivators arrived, each group consisting of five or six people.

Hua Changxi looked at the newcomers. As she activated her Observation, Inquiry, Auscultation, and Palpation Art, she not only saw through everyone's spiritual roots but also clearly perceived their dantian and qi seas.

Noticing that each group actually included Core Formation cultivators, with one group even having two, Hua Changxi was somewhat surprised.

She had limited contact with cultivators and didn't know much about the average cultivation level these days. Since the Eastern Depot had five Core Formation cultivators, she had now seen a total of nine Core Formation cultivators this time.

Were there already that many Core Formation cultivators?

And what about Nascent Soul cultivators?

Hua Changxi had always felt that her own cultivation speed was very fast, but now she wasn't so sure. Especially when she thought about how there were others who had started on the path of cultivation before her, she felt a sense of urgency.

She urgently needed to solve the problem of her realm points being stuck at one billion!

Suppressing her inner anxiety, Hua Changxi began to survey the people at the scene once more.

Deploying nine Core Formation cultivators at once was no small fighting force. Moreover, these cultivators all carried ghost market tokens identical to the one she had been given earlier. Seeing this, Hua Changxi's wariness toward Eunuch Lin increased severalfold.

"Everyone's here. Let's go."

Eunuch Lin called for the Eastern Depot people to follow and walked straight into the alley next to the temple. In the blink of an eye, they vanished.

The others, seeing this, followed one after another.

As soon as Hua Changxi sensed the spatial shift, she quickly donned her black robe. In the next moment, the scene before her transformed into a dark, mist-shrouded, eerie and gloomy long path.

The first time she came, visibility was extremely low, but this time she found she could clearly see the surroundings within a radius of several dozen meters.

Could it be because she had cultivated her divine sense?

Having her line of sight less obstructed made Hua Changxi feel much more at ease.

Eunuch Lin walked at the front of the group, frequently looking back to check if everyone was following. When he saw that the cultivators holding their specially made ghost market tokens had all taken protective measures, he frowned slightly.

This batch of cultivators was clearly more cautious than the previous groups.

But considering that the ghost market tokens had already been enchanted with a puppet curse, he wasn't worried about these people slipping out of control.

Hua Changxi noticed Eunuch Lin's frequent glances back. While remaining on guard, she also carefully observed her surroundings.

On her second visit down here, without the nervousness of the first time, she noticed some details she had overlooked before.

The first time she came, she only felt a sense of eerie terror, but this time, she had the feeling of entering an entirely different world.

As the light grew stronger, she looked up but couldn't see the top. Through the gray mist, she could even see white starlight twinkling, giving the scene a profound and vast feeling, like a night sky.

"Nine Netherworlds..."

Is this already another realm?

Before long, the Styx River with its shimmering green light came into view.

Just as seen the first time, an old wooden bridge spanned the Styx, and at the bridgehead, a hunched white-haired old woman was brewing soup.

On the opposite bank, dim yellow lanterns glowed, and behind the dim yellow light lay streets filled with flickering figures.

Soon, the group arrived at the bridgehead of the Styx.

Eunuch Lin led the way, taking the Spirit-Sealing Soup first. After seeing that everyone had drunk the Spirit-Sealing Soup, he smiled and said, "Let's cross the bridge."

The moment she crossed the Styx, Hua Changxi took a Spirit-Unsealing Pill. After confirming she could use spiritual energy, she continued to follow Eunuch Lin's group without showing any reaction.

Before long, they arrived at a trading street crowded with cultivators.

Last time she came, she hadn't even approached the trading street. Seeing not only all kinds of shops but also various stalls selling all sorts of things, she finally felt like she had entered the world of cultivators.

Eunuch Lin smiled and said, "Many things on the stalls are fake. The Eastern Depot has a shop specifically for purchasing cultivation resources. If any of you need something, you can follow me there."

Immediately, a Core Formation cultivator spoke up: "We've already arrived at the Ghost Market. We'd like to wander around a bit and meet up afterward."

Upon hearing this, Eunuch Lin smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist, please don't be impatient. Since you are all first-timers to the Ghost Market, you still need to go to the Ghost Clerk Pavilion to obtain the Yin Wood Token issued by the ghost clerks. Only then will you avoid trouble from the ghost clerks."

As he spoke, he lowered his voice: "Ghost clerks cultivate by absorbing soul power. They show no mercy to cultivators without a Yin Wood Token."

Hearing this, everyone had no choice but to continue following Eunuch Lin.

Hua Changxi didn't know if the 'Yin Wood Token' was a fabrication of Eunuch Lin's. To be safe, as she passed by several cultivators, she quickly applied an Invisibility Talisman and concealed her figure.

After that, she didn't wander off. Wanting to find out what Eunuch Lin was really up to, she followed at a moderate distance behind Eunuch Lin's group.

At the head of every street stood a pavilion, with a plaque hanging above it bearing the three green characters 'Ghost Clerk Pavilion'. Inside the pavilion were two terrifying, burly ghost clerks with ox-like stature.

The first Ghost Clerk Pavilion that Eunuch Lin's group saw had too many people, so he led them toward another street.

"There really is a Yin Wood Token!"

Hua Changxi saw that inside the Ghost Clerk Pavilion, the ghost clerks did indeed issue a wooden token engraved with a number to the cultivators who had registered.

After that, Hua Changxi followed Eunuch Lin's group past several Ghost Clerk Pavilions. Some ghost clerks had bad tempers and wouldn't give out Yin Wood Tokens; others had run out of tokens. As a result, Eunuch Lin could only lead the people into the Ghost Clerk Pavilion on the last street.

"There are Yin Wood Tokens here. Let's go in quickly."

Hua Changxi watched as Eunuch Lin led the people into the Ghost Clerk Pavilion. As soon as they entered, thick fog billowed out from the pavilion, blocking the view of others.

When the fog dissipated, Eunuch Lin led the way, bringing a group of people out of the pavilion.

However, the three groups of cultivators that appeared behind her had all turned into puppets, mechanically following Eunuch Lin toward the thick fog.

Judging by their expressions, they were extremely resistant, but their bodies were no longer under their own control.

Witnessing this scene, Hua Changxi was utterly shocked.

The ghost clerks in the Ghost Clerk Pavilion were actually cooperating with Eunuch Lin to control those cultivators!