Absolute Destiny Game
Chapter 514 - 82: Searching for Him Among the Crowd

Chapter 514: Chapter 82: Searching for Him Among the Crowd

Xiao Jie listened to Ye Luo’s explanation and grew even more puzzled in his heart.

If it was a Ghost Market, then why did the map that Xia Yi the Unrivaled entered look nothing like it? Instead, there were all sorts of strange flowers and a Heavenly Cave?

But at this point, the only way to know the truth was to enter.

"Can ordinary players like us enter the Ghost Market?"

Ye Luo said, "Under normal circumstances, there would be a certain degree of danger, but don’t forget that I am an Impermanence Walker, come with me."

As Ye Luo spoke, she suddenly drew her sword from the sheath and struck a downward chopping pose.

"Impermanence of Life and Death, One Sword Yin Yang Division, Netherworld Life and Death Road, henceforth not divergent paths—Open!"

Secret Technique—Impermanence Guide!

With one swing of her sword, the air at the entrance beneath the archway suddenly twisted, and a path was cleaved open by the sword.

Outside the archway were ruins and broken walls, but inside was a completely different scene; a stone path leading to a small and peaceful town. The marketplace was bustling, the lights dimmed, with distant sounds of hawking and frolicking audible from within. The streets were filled with overlapping silhouettes, their faces unclear and their costumes ancient and odd. Candles flickered everywhere, casting a warm glow that added to the town’s eerie charm.

The sudden appearance of such a town amidst Ghost Mist Ridge and Burial Mound was truly astonishing.

But in just a moment, the mist rose again and seemed to gradually cover the entrance once more.

"Let’s go, everyone, if we don’t enter now the gateway will close," said Ye Luo as she stepped in.

Xiao Jie, in a grave voice, said, "Ye Luo, if we want to leave later, can you open the exit?"

"No problem."

"Then let’s go in." Xiao Jie stepped through the entrance.

Bai Ze and I Want to Be Immortal exchanged a glance and followed.

The four of them passed through the archway, and the entrance behind them disappeared into the mist, completely transforming into the interior of a small town.

They were about to move forward and explore when a skinny figure, three meters tall with a lantern in hand, blocked their path.

Ru Honghe (Sun Patrol Ghost) Level 30. Life value 1200.

This being vaguely resembled a human, dressed in gray clothes and a black hat, but was lean and abnormally tall, quite eerie.

It approached them, bending down and gazing at the four with a scrutinizing look.

"Halt, travelers, this place is the Ghost Market. You are living beings, why have you come here?"

A dialogue box popped up in front of all four individuals simultaneously.

I Want to Be Immortal and Bai Ze had only two options in their dialogue box.

[Option 1: We have mistakenly entered this place and ask for your forgiveness; we will leave at once.

Option 2: I’ll come if I want—what’s it to you? (Initiate fight)]

However, Xiao Jie’s dialogue box had an additional option.

[Option 3: We have come here with some business to attend to, and bring a small gift, please allow us some convenience (Offer Gift/Social Etiquette).]

Xiao Jie hesitated for a moment, wondering what gift might be good enough for the ghost to let them pass when Ye Luo suddenly said, "Don’t click randomly, I’ll handle the conversation."

Her dialogue box also contained three options.

[Option 3: Walking amidst Yin and Yang, life and death unpredictable, an Impermanence Walker is here on official duties; all miscellaneous ghosts quickly make way (Profession).]

Naturally, Ye Luo chose the third option.

She said indifferently, "Walking amidst Yin and Yang, life and death unpredictable, an Impermanence Walker is here on official duties; all miscellaneous ghosts quickly make way." As she spoke, she flashed a plaque that read "Impermanence."

The Sun Patrol Ghost was taken aback and exclaimed, "Ah, I did not realize that you were Lord Impermanence; my apologies, my apologies. Please, proceed as you wish—I’ll clear the way now—also, since your companions are living beings, carelessly breaking into Youquan Town might disturb the lost souls, here are some Air-sealing Talismans for you."

[System Prompt: You have obtained an Item "Air-sealing Talisman".]

Xiao Jie checked his inventory and indeed found a new talisman there.

[Air-sealing Talisman (Spell)

Use: Makes you emit no breath at all, lasts for 24 hours.

Item Introduction: A talisman used by Corpse Chasing Mages to mask Corpse Qi, it can also be used to cover the breath of living beings.]

Xiao Jie thought to himself that it was not bad at all; he hadn’t expected Ye Luo’s Profession to be so convenient, it really did pay to have connections. He looked back at the archway, which clearly had changed from Qingquan Town to Youquan Town.

The three of them used their talismans, and immediately a BUFF appeared above their heads.

[Air-sealing: Your breath is concealed, undetectable.]

Now they could move freely within the Ghost Market.

As the four walked into the town, I Want to Be Immortal marveled, "Sister Ye Luo, your Impermanence Walker role is quite powerful, isn’t it? But shouldn’t the Black and White Impermanence be ghosts? And since you are an Impermanence Walker, shouldn’t the Netherworld Ghost Generals be your allies? Why do they still attack you?"

Ye Luo chuckled lightly and took a moment to explain to the three of them.

The Netherworld was broadly divided into two factions.

Headed by King Yan, the establishment faction believed in the orderly transition of Yin and Yang, and in the natural cycle of life and death, with the Nine States and the Netherworld each having their own domains.

Led by the Netherworld Emperor, the conquest faction believed the mortal world should be transformed into the Netherworld as well.

Initially, King Yan held power, but since the Heavenly Tribulation, the order of Yin and Yang had become disrupted, the Netherworld Emperor gradually took control and launched an invasion of the mortal world from the Netherworld.

However, remnants of the old cycle still existed, and the Impermanence Walkers were part of this system. The Impermanence Walkers were divided into Black Impermanence—held by ghost messengers—and White Impermanence—or Impermanence Walker—taken by living beings.

Both worked together to guide lost souls.

Since the life span of living beings was limited, Impermanence Walkers were passed down from generation to generation, at times especially appointed by envoys of King Yan, selected from mortals with special qualifications.

As they had the duty of guiding lost souls and apprehending Evil Ghosts, Impermanence Walkers were held in high regard among the ghostly classes.

Xiao Jie marveled, "So these Impermanence Walkers are like undercover cops, huh?"

"Pretty much, which is why when I bring people in, even the Sun Patrol Ghost needs to give some face. But don’t you all mess around too much. Undercover cops might not hold much sway at Golden Mountain Corner."

"Is this Ghost Market considered Golden Mountain Corner?"

"Not exactly, but it’s similar; it’s a lawless place anyway. Now that the connection between yin and yang is severed, these wandering ghosts can’t enter the cycle of reincarnation and can only stay within special domains like the Ghost Market, essentially forming an autonomous town. As long as we don’t make trouble, nobody will bother us, but there are still dangers if we cause a ruckus."

The four strolled down the street of the Ghost Market towards the interior, where they could see many ghost NPCs in the surrounding shops, all marked as neutral units in yellow. This put Xiao Jie somewhat at ease.

Pedestrians on the street all bore bizarre shapes and oddities, some retaining their appearances from their moments of death with decapitated heads, dug-out hearts, missing arms, or shortened legs, while others looked no different from the living, save for their slightly pale complexions. There were even some who were clearly spirits like Fox Demons and Crow Demons wandering among them.

It seems this Ghost Market has even attracted a fair share of demons and evil spirits.

However, likely due to the special nature of the map, these demons were also marked as neutral units.

What surprised Xiao Jie was that the shops in the Ghost Market actually had a variety of goods for sale.

Only that the prices were a bit outrageous.

Xiao Jie entered a weapon shop and asked the owner what weapons were for sale, promptly a list of items popped up.

Sorrow Stick: 600 ingots.

Ghost Beating Whip: 900 ingots.

Soul Piercing Spear: 1200 ingots.

Nether Iron Ingot: 2000 ingots.

Eh? What the heck is this ingot?

Then he found a medicine shop.

Ghost Fire Dust: 300 ingots.

Netherworld Lamp Grass: 400 ingots.

Other Shore Flower: 800 ingots.

Eh? There are even elixirs for sale.

Resurrection Pill: 5000 ingots.

Damn, is this a resurrection item? Xiao Jie hastily clicked to check the attributes.

[Top-Grade Resurrection Pill

Usage: Grants you the "Return Soul" BUFF for 24 hours.

Note: In this state, should you be killed, you will return to the game in ghost form for 24 hours.]

Damn, got excited for nothing...

Obviously, this ghost form isn’t a permanent existence; after 24 hours, it naturally dissipates, serving at most as a chance to settle one’s affairs.

Perhaps there’s even the chance for revenge or something, but it’s unknown if this ghost has any combat capabilities, let alone how strong they might be...

Xiao Jie then found a food stall.

Offering Fruit: steamed bun. 300 ingots.

Offering Fruit: Plow. 500 ingots.

Offering Fruit: flat peach. 1600 ingots.

Burning incense: 5000 ingots.

Eh, both this incense and Offering Fruits are classified as food, and they aren’t cheap, either.

Unfortunately, these ingots must be a special currency, but it’s unclear how to obtain them.

The group wandered around and spotted many novel things – these wandering ghosts sure knew how to enjoy themselves. There were street performances, riddle guessing, street Chess over unfinished games, and a variety of little games.

But there was no sign of fairies, Heavenly Caves, or strange flowers.

Fairies, fairies... Where were any fairies? After circling the streets, they found nothing.

Since they couldn’t find any, they might as well ask someone.

Naturally, Sister Ye Luo took the lead, casually approaching a local merchant to inquire.

"Fairies? Sir, you must be joking. There are plenty of female ghosts in Youquan Town, but no fairies."

"It doesn’t have to be an actual fairy, anything related will do, please help us out."

The shopkeeper pondered for a moment, "There are no fairies, but... some theater troupe came to town a while back, sometimes they perform plays about fairies descending to the mortal realm, or Swordsmen showing mercy."

"Fairies descending, Swordsmen showing mercy? Where can we see this?"

"It’s over at the theater on the east side of the town. You’ll know once you go there."

Xiao Jie thought they could only try their luck.

The four made their way to the theater, and though it was clearly daytime, the surrounding area was pitch-black. In the darkness, many ghost NPCs sat in the stands, exuberantly watching the play on the stage.

Xiao Jie looked towards the stage where, instead of people performing, there was a paper theatre play.

Colorful paper cut into patterns of flowers, plants, and trees, decorated the vibrant stage. There was also a pavilion made of paper, with clouds drawn in ink as the backdrop.

There were about a dozen paper figures cut and folded from white paper, each with a distinct appearance; some had their faces colored with paint, their bodies adorned with paper skirts in pink and green hues, with thin strings attached, manipulating them to perform various actions.

From behind the stage, a shrill voice provided the dubbing.

"Young man, why don’t you drink? This is divine wine from the heavens; surely drinking it will grant you long life."

A paper figure held out a cup made of golden paper, making a toasting gesture.

The paper figure being toasted to looked somewhat familiar, his hands wielding a knife and a sword, dressed in a knight robe, his face inked with an expression of terror as he mimicked avoiding the toast.

Xiao Jie was taken aback, was that—Xia Yi the Unrivaled?