Black Myth: Starting from the Destined One
Chapter 111 - 107 Rakshasa Sea Market

Chapter 111: Chapter 107 Rakshasa Sea Market

The once bustling tavern suddenly became quiet, except for Li Ping’an and the three rich merchants, all other patrons had also gone out to kneel and welcome the procession.

"Goodness! Have all these people gone mad? Why have they started engaging in such superstitious nonsense and debasing themselves like this? They’ve even stopped their businesses. In this world, isn’t it hard enough to just make a decent living?"

Li Ping’an muttered quietly to himself upon seeing this.

One of the merchants, stroking his beard with delight, said,

"Young man, don’t be envious, but all the candles and incense the people of Chang’an City use come from my shop!"

"Honestly, I’ve also basked in the Emperor’s glow. In the past few days alone, I’ve made at least ten thousand taels of silver, hahaha!"

Li Ping’an instantly understood, glanced around the tavern that neither closed its doors nor hurried its customers, and immediately said to another merchant,

"I see everybody here is crazy with fanaticism, yet you three remain so calm. Big Brother Wang runs an inn, and that gentleman sells incense sticks. So, you must be the owner of this tavern, right? Otherwise, you would have long closed up shop and gone off to respectfully welcome the Buddha’s Relics."

Another merchant nodded and said,

"Though you’re a foreigner, you’re quite sharp. That’s right, I own eight taverns, and this is one of them. Closing up shop in broad daylight is something only fools would do, hahaha!"

Li Ping’an chuckled. Their conversation only confirmed his guess that these three were indeed profiteering businessmen.

"Welcome, Master Mage!"

All at once, the kneeling people on both sides of the street shouted in unison, and at the end of the street, a multitude of monks with banners and canopies, beating drums and clashing cymbals, escorted a Buddha niche adorned with eight treasures as they made their way.

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The two mages at the front, holding the Buddha niche, were very young. The monk from Buddha Bone Temple had a bruised face, surviving the commotion Li Ping’an had caused at the temple. As for the other monk from Spirit Monkey Temple, he was exceedingly ugly, with turquoise earrings that made him look like some kind of barbarian monk.

The three wealthy merchants peered out the window, immediately puzzled,

"Something’s not right. Isn’t it Master Yongxin, the chief monk of Buddha Bone Temple, who usually welcomes Master Xuanzang’s Buddha’s Relics every year? How did it turn into a young monk with a bruised face this year? Truly bizarre!"

"Maybe there was some kind of issue..."

Li Ping’an’s face flushed when he heard this. If his guess was correct, Master Yongxin must have been casually killed by the Great Sage Lord. Seeing the confused looks on their faces, Li Ping’an quickly changed the subject, pointing at the monk from Spirit Monkey Temple in confusion,

"Brothers, has Great Tang run out of people? Why invite such an unsightly foreign monk to welcome the Great Sage’s Buddha’s Relics?"

"Hahaha, we knew you foreigners would ask."

The three wealthy merchants looked towards the ugly foreign monk,

"This mage is called Master Ding Jia, who comes from the Rakshasa Sea Market and is the number one handsome man there. With those innocent eyes, he’s enchanted countless maidens of Great Tang."

"What? Did I hear that wrong?"

Li Ping’an’s wine cup slipped from his hand in astonishment and he said,

"Anyone with eyes can see how ugly that foreign monk is, so how can he be the number one handsome man of the Rakshasa Sea Market? If he’s the number one handsome man there, then I am Great Tang’s most handsome man! And to say his ’innocent eyes’ have charmed countless maidens of Great Tang, that’s utterly laughable. I find his eyes no more innocent than the stray dogs at the village gate!"

"Hahaha! Keep your voice down, will you? If his devotees hear you, won’t they flay and dismember you?"

The three merchants laughed without care, then added,

"The customs at Rakshasa Sea Market are different from those in Great Tang. There, ugliness is regarded as beauty, and beauty is despised; the Stable Master does not know he’s a donkey, and the bird does not know she’s a chicken. In elaborate halls, pigs and dogs are often presented, shoe horns are compared to Jade Ruyi, the turtle feels noble in the chamber pot, and a donkey in the court’s ball compares itself to a Princess Consort. Indeed, the sun cannot light up the ghosts of the night, and beasts cannot understand the tastes of the Human Realm. The creatures of Rakshasa Sea Market spout nonsense and act blindly; truly, it is the world’s first wonder, the most upside-down place."

"Who would have thought there existed such a place in the world? Bizarre! Bizarre! Bizarre! Today really is the day I’ve seen the world anew."

Li Ping’an shook his head helplessly with a wry smile as he looked at Master Ding Jia.

Three wealthy merchants then teased him again:

"Lad, how do you think you look?"

Li Ping’an replied with pride:

"I am, of course, handsome and outstanding—a Huaxia youth!"

"Your skin may be fine in Great Tang, but if you went to Rakshasa Sea Market, you would certainly be the ugliest man!"

"This..."

"Can you read and write?"

"I have known since I was young!"

"Then you’re no match for Master Ding Jia, who has never recognized a word since he was a child and can’t even speak the language of the Central Plains!"

"What? He can’t even recognize characters or speak the language?"

Li Ping’an seemed to hear the funniest joke in the world, astonished, he said:

"How could he be a monk then? If he can’t understand the scriptures, how did he become the head of Spirit Monkey Temple? Isn’t this the most absurd thing under heaven?"

"You ignorant youth, playing the fool again. Haven’t you been told? This is how the people of Rakshasa Sea Market are: creatures turned upside-down, ugliness revered as beauty, vulgarity seen as elegance, and ignorance regarded as knowledge. Everyone is proud of their illiteracy. You should be less shocked by every small matter."

"Enough, enough. I am becoming more and more confused about the ways of this Great Tang."

Li Ping’an took a sip of wine to calm his shock, then asked in a low voice:

"No, my brothers, I really don’t understand. Master Ding Jia is clearly an unlearned scammer deceiving the world. He even dares to meet the Emperor with Buddha’s Relics. Our Emperor is neither foolish nor stupid; isn’t this death-seeking for him to meet the Emperor?"

Hearing this, the three merchants replied sarcastically:

"Death-seeking? You don’t know shit!"

Then they added in a low voice:

"Let me tell you the truth. Master Ding Jia is the National Protector Monk personally appointed by our current Emperor, and also an ingenious move of the Imperial Court. First, it serves to shift the conflicts between the common people and the Imperial Court. Second, it uses him to spread the topsy-turvy customs of Rakshasa Sea Market. Think about it, if Great Tang adopts the customs of Rakshasa Sea Market, wouldn’t that make it easier for our Emperor to govern the people of the world?"

"If Great Tang becomes as upside-down as Rakshasa Sea Market, there will be more fools and idiots in Great Tang, which is conducive to the rule of the Imperial Court. And we merchants can also take the opportunity to make money, right?"

"Kid, remember this, what the world lacks the least are not scammers, but fools! As long as there are enough fools, the world will be more peaceful."

The other two merchants echoed:

"Exactly, exactly. Now, under the Emperor’s directive, Great Tang is gradually starting to adopt the customs of Rakshasa Sea Market. Just look at the fools at the door; the more fools who are oblivious to their suffering, the fewer who rebel, the more stable the Emperor’s throne, and the more we merchants make. It’s a win-win situation, everyone’s happy. So why are you prattling here?"