"It has nothing to do with us. Let's just go about our own business," Sun Miaoshu said.
Everyone shook their heads and left.
Then he suggested, "Let's split up and have fun on our own. We'll meet at the restaurant we were at earlier tonight and stay there together. Tomorrow, we'll roam the streets of Peacock City all night, so no need for lodging. The day after tomorrow afternoon, which is the first day of the month, we'll head down."
Everyone agreed and dispersed.
Cheng Xinzhan picked up a map from a roadside pavilion.
The map was exquisitely made.
His eyes casually scanned it, and suddenly four characters caught his attention: "Bohai Sea Market."
He folded the map and headed towards the Bohai Sea Market.
Earlier, the woman in white fur at the restaurant had mentioned that eating sea fish would be good for his third sister's eyes.
He had planned to inquire more about it later, but now that there was a sea market in Peacock City, there must be sea fish available.
The sea market was located in the northeast corner of Peacock City, while he had entered from the west gate, which was quite a distance away.
Flying or galloping at high speeds was prohibited within the city, so he had to rely on his footwork to get there.
He had learned the "Step of the Azure Dragon" from the Azure Dragon Cave and later picked up the "Treading Snow to Find Plum Blossoms" technique from the Stone Forest.
He also incorporated some wind techniques from Mingzhi Mountain, creating his own unique footwork, which he called the "Heavenly Dipper Shifting Step."
This footwork was excellent for maneuvering, easy to adapt, light, and silent.
He was quite satisfied with it.
Carrying his third sister, he moved swiftly with the wind, and even his brother could keep up.
Speaking of which, after the cat and dog had absorbed spiritual energy, he, as their master, discovered that his third sister had an affinity for metal and fire, while his brother had an affinity for earth, metal, and wind.
So, during their usual playtime, he would transfer some corresponding spiritual energy to them, just like he did with "Gao Zhen."
It had become second nature to him.
His brother was naturally good at running, and after absorbing spiritual energy, he gained a wind affinity, making it easy for him to keep up with his master.
At first glance, the sea market looked like a vast paddy field, but the ridges were unusually wide and paved with bricks and stones.
The water was deep, showing a blue hue, and had a slightly fishy smell.
"Sir, are you here for a sea bath or to buy some seafood?"
Cheng Xinzhan had only been standing by the pool for a short while when a servant approached him.
He was surprised that sea baths were even a thing, but he wasn't particularly interested.
He simply said, "I'm here to buy some seafood."
The servant immediately responded, "Then what would you like? Look, this water, these fish, they're all brought directly from the depths of the Bohai Sea every day. Absolutely fresh and diverse."
He then asked, "Do you have six-whiskered loaches and dragon loaches?"
The servant clapped his hands, "Sir, you truly know your stuff. These two are specialties of the Bohai Sea, considered the dragons among fish. They're incredibly delicious, whether stewed or fried. If you want them for display, they look like swimming dragons. But if you're buying them to eat, you should get the smaller ones. If you're keeping them, go for the bigger ones. Which would you prefer?"
"To eat."
"Follow me, please."
As they walked along the ridge, Cheng Xinzhan saw all sorts of fish.
In one particularly large pool, he even spotted a silver-ringed sea snake with a fleshy growth on its head.
Once the horn fully emerged, it could be called a dragon.
Finally, they arrived at a pool filled with various sea loaches.
These loaches weren't very big, about three inches long, and came in all sorts of colors.
"How much are these?" he asked.
The servant smiled, "We sell them by the piece. There are about twenty to thirty types of loaches in this pool, all priced the same. You can specify if you want six-whiskered loaches or dragon loaches, or you can mix them. Fifty loaches for one gold coin. If you buy more, we'll throw in some freebies."
Cheng Xinzhan's eyebrows twitched.
As Brother Miaoshu had said, the minimum purchase here was one gold coin.
The Daoist then asked, "Can I trade items instead?"
The servant's smile didn't waver, "Of course. What do you have to trade? We only accept things we need. We don't take random items."
Cheng Xinzhan thought about it.
The most popular and skilled items he had were talismans and talisman arrows.
However, he hadn't made any new talisman arrows since returning from Miaojiang.
But he had continued making talismans because it helped him understand the essence of magic.
So he said, "I have some talismans. Would those be acceptable?"
The servant nodded.
Talismans were always valuable.
"Please come this way, sir. Let's take a closer look."
After just a few steps, they reached a resting pavilion.
Each pavilion had at least two maidservants waiting inside.
The servant gestured for the Daoist to enter the nearest pavilion and said to the maidservants, "Serve the guest some tea."
Then he turned back to the Daoist, "I'm just a guide. Evaluating talismans is up to our appraisers. Please enjoy your tea and wait a moment."
Cheng Xinzhan had no objections and nodded in agreement.
"I'm just a mortal with limited knowledge. May I ask what level of talismans you're offering?"
"First level."
The servant nodded and said to the maidservant, "Please summon Appraiser Wang."
One of the maidservants nodded, picked up a strange-looking magical tool, and whispered into it.
Soon, Appraiser Wang arrived.
He was a man in his forties or fifties.
As soon as he entered, Appraiser Wang clasped his hands towards the Daoist, "Sorry to keep you waiting."
The Daoist smiled and waved his hand.
"Are these talismans self-drawn or collected?"
"Self-drawn."
"I see," Appraiser Wang nodded.
At this point, the Daoist took the initiative to ask, "Which elemental talismans do you prefer?"
Appraiser Wang was taken aback.
Usually, he was the one asking the guest which elemental talismans they were selling.
This was the first time a guest had asked him to choose first.
He wasn't sure if this young man was asking because he was weak in all five elements or because he was proficient in all of them.
Looking at the young face before him, he leaned towards the former and smiled, saying, "Our family has many businesses and needs all five elements. Whatever you have, as long as it's suitable, we'll take it."
The Daoist nodded and asked again, "What about offensive, defensive, enhancing, and divine blessing types? Which does your shop prefer?"
Appraiser Wang felt a bit annoyed, thinking this young man was getting carried away, but he kept his smile and repeated, "Our family has many businesses. As long as it's suitable, we'll take it."
The Daoist nodded and began taking out talismans one by one.
"This is the Three Mountains Demon-Suppressing Talisman, an earth-element offensive type; This is the Continuous Earth Mountain-Shielding Talisman, an earth-element defensive type; This is the Treading Earth Rooting Talisman, an earth-element enhancing type; This is the Fertile Soil Bountiful Harvest Talisman, an earth-element divine blessing type; This is the Great River Mountain-Breaking Talisman, a water-element offensive type; This is the Horizontal River Weak Water Talisman, a water-element defensive type; This is the Morning Dew Clear Spirit Talisman, a water-element enhancing type; This is the Small Cloud Light Rain Talisman, a water-element divine blessing type..."
Appraiser Wang remained expressionless as he examined each one.
As he continued, his expression gradually became more animated.
These talismans were made from ordinary yellow vine paper, using the most common cinnabar and pine ink.
Yet, they looked different.
The talisman heads, divine names, talisman bodies, talisman cores, and talisman feet all connected so smoothly.
The magical intent on them was so rich.
The young Daoist noticed the appraiser's furrowed brows and felt a bit puzzled.
He knew his own level was quite good for the first realm.
Unless this shop didn't value first-realm talismans, or perhaps the elemental talismans were too common.
After some thought, he took out a few more, "I've also drawn some wind and thunder talismans, though they might not be as comprehensive as the elemental ones." Take a look at this Silver Light Illusion-Breaking Talisman, a thunder-element enhancing type; this Earth-Shaking Thunder Talisman, a thunder-element offensive type; this Great Cave Thunder-Summoning Talisman, a thunder-element divine blessing type.
I don't have any thunder-element defensive types.
This Spring Breeze Fatigue-Removing Talisman is a wind-element enhancing type; this Golden Wind Summer-Killing Talisman is a wind-element offensive type...
"Appraiser Wang listened and suddenly let out a long breath. He put down the fire talisman in his hand and smiled at the Daoist,"Please wait a bit longer.
"He then turned to the maidservant standing by,"Please summon Appraiser Hu and Appraiser Shen.
"Turning back to the Daoist, he said,"I only have a basic understanding of the five elements, with a slight grasp of fire techniques.
I know nothing about wind and thunder, so I need to ask the other appraisers to take a look.
We'll give you a discount for the delay.
"The Daoist nodded, thinking that this sea market was indeed a large business, but their customer service was quite good. Appraiser Wang then asked the servant,"What does the guest want to trade for?
""He wants to trade for some sea loaches to eat.
"Appraiser Wang nodded and said to the Daoist,"These talismans of yours can trade for quite a few sea loaches.
How many do you plan to get? Actually, our other seafood is also excellent.
Or, we could trade with gold and silver.
"The Daoist was somewhat tempted. He drew talismans mainly to understand the essence of magic, and he couldn't use them all himself, so he usually sold them at the East Heaven Market. In his sect, many disciples hadn't opened their spiritual palaces yet and couldn't store much spiritual energy, making it hard for them to cast spells continuously. They needed first-realm talismans, so he often sold his practice talismans to them at cost, only charging for the paper and ink. Now, many people in Xiaowanshan called him"Cheng the Righteous Talisman.
""How do you value them?
I have quite a few here.
"Appraiser Wang smiled even more,"Let's wait for Appraisers Hu and Shen to arrive.
Don't worry, sir, we won't let you suffer a loss.
"Soon, a few more people entered the pavilion. The first to enter was a woman in white fur, followed by two elderly men, presumably Appraisers Hu and Shen. The Daoist was surprised to see the woman. She was the one who had advised him to buy sea fish at the restaurant. The woman was also surprised to see Cheng Xinzhan and was the first to speak with a smile,"It's you.
Are you here to buy sea fish?
"The Daoist nodded. The woman thought to herself that this young Daoist was quite receptive to advice. She had only mentioned it, and he had come looking. She said,"This sea market belongs to my family.
I don't want you to think I'm just promoting my own business by suggesting you buy sea fish.
How about this: whatever you want to buy, I'll give you a fifty percent discount.
"Cheng Xinzhan smiled,"My third sister loves fish.
Letting her try sea fish is just for fun.
It's not about you promoting your business.
Appraiser Wang here has already offered me a discount.
"The woman nodded and stepped aside to let the two appraisers through, then went to sit at another table. She had come to Peacock City as part of her family's arrangements. From now on, this Bohai Sea Market would be under her name, a coming-of-age gift from her family.
She was currently networking with the market's appraisers. After meeting the sword and water appraisers, she had gone out for a drink and returned to the eye appraiser's shop, only to find that three eye appraisers had been called away. She asked about the reason and followed to see what was happening, also wanting to assess the appraisers' skills.
Unexpectedly, she ran into the person from the restaurant who had been holding a three-flowered cat and sharing two pots of wine with six others.
How interesting.
She watched as Appraisers Hu and Shen examined the talismans one by one. Then she heard the older Appraiser Hu ask the young man,"May I ask if you're from Yuzhang or Jinling?
""From Yuzhang.
"Appraiser Hu stroked his beard and smiled,"Then I dare to guess that you're from Gezao Mountain.
"Unexpectedly, the young Daoist smiled and countered,"How did you guess that?
"Appraiser Hu confidently replied,"You're so young yet have such high talisman skills.
You must be from one of the three major talisman mountains.
Since you're from Yuzhang, that leaves Longhu Mountain and Gezao Mountain.
However, Longhu Mountain is renowned for its thunder talismans.
With all due respect, your thunder talismans, while excellent, aren't as outstanding as your elemental talismans.
So, you must be from Gezao Mountain.
"The woman nodded slightly. Appraiser Hu was indeed knowledgeable. The annual appraisal fees weren't wasted. But then the young Daoist shook his head."
What?
You're not a disciple of Gezao Mountain?
"Appraiser Hu was surprised. He had asked this question to make an impression on the new owner. Had he misjudged? The woman only heard the Daoist say with a smile,"There's another mountain in Yuzhang.
It's not particularly famous for talismans, but it dabbles in a bit of everything.
"What riddle was he speaking? The woman didn't understand. Fortunately, Appraiser Hu quickly realized,"Ah, you must be from Sanqing Mountain.
"This time, the Daoist nodded."
No wonder, no wonder.
My apologies, my apologies.
"Appraiser Hu repeatedly said. The woman, however, was puzzled. She knew of Sanqing Mountain, a top-tier sect. But she hadn't expected a disciple from such a prestigious sect to only drink the cheapest wine in Peacock City. How strange. But how could she know that Sanqing Mountain was unlike Longhu Mountain, which had coin minting furnaces and copper mines, or other major sects that received tributes from subordinate sects? Sanqing Mountain never accepted tributes from subordinate sects and never considered itself superior to other sects that practiced"mutual reference of all methods.
"They believed everyone was a fellow traveler on the same path, with themselves just a few steps ahead. Thus, while Sanqing Mountain held the title of the ancestral court of the myriad methods sect, its practices were more akin to those of a reclusive sect. Seeing Appraiser Hu glance her way, she knew what she had to do. She stood up and walked to the Daoist's side, giving a bow."
Greetings to the guest from Sanqing Mountain.
I am from the Xiao family of Qingcheng in Baiyu City, currently doing business in Peacock City.
I am the eleventh in my family, so people call me Shiniang (Eleventh Lady)."Shiniang noticed the Daoist seemed slightly surprised and quickly returned the bow, holding a hand seal that looked very ancient, unlike her own more mundane bow. Then she heard him say,"I am Cheng Xinzhan from Sanqing Mountain.
Greetings, fellow Daoist.
May your path be boundless.
"She blinked. At this point, Appraiser Hu explained to her,"Owner, the major immortal mountains and sects on earth all speak this way, especially the Daoist sects in the southeast.
They have a long heritage and follow ancient rituals. 'Boundless path' is a wish for the owner to have an infinitely bright future."
Shiniang nodded, thinking that this person not only had a refined way of bowing but also spoke in a refined manner.
It was just that his name was a bit of a mouthful.
Seeking monthly tickets and recommendations! Comments and messages are welcome!
(End of Chapter)