Chapter 44: The Trading Market
The events of that year were a stroke of terrible misfortune, though it was already a miracle to have survived—but unfortunately, Ying Nanxi had no knowledge of this.
From a young age, everything had gone smoothly for her, but this incident had long since robbed her of her former composure.
Now, she only wanted to quickly find a vessel and transfer the curse on her body to someone else again.
Several days passed.
Knowing that someone from the Cangqiong Realm might have arrived, the Ying family had been discreetly searching throughout Shifang City in recent days.
Yet, they had found nothing, and instead, more and more members of the family were falling victim to trouble.
Many disciples who had already joined other sects or were out on training missions had all returned to the family.
Even though they acted with the utmost caution, trying to conceal the news, the Ying family’s movements were noticed by those with a keen eye, and soon, word of their search spread throughout the city. Even the beggars by the roadside knew that the Ying family was looking for someone.
This was especially true for certain families who had always kept a close watch on the Ying family.
They knew even more than the general public.
It is often said that no one understands you better than your enemies.
When the Ying family had suddenly made a surprising comeback, these families had already suspected something was amiss but had been unable to find any proof.
Now, according to the reports their spies brought back, all the members of the Ying family had contracted a strange illness, their faces and bodies covered in terrifying black lines.
*
Meanwhile, after several days of waiting, Ying Xuejian’s condition had improved considerably.
Most of the cursed lines on her body had disappeared, leaving only a few on her arm, and once she put on clothes, none of them were visible.
Ying Xuejian had undergone a complete transformation compared to before.
The scars on her face were gone, and without the scars and the cursed lines to obscure her appearance, her true face emerged, revealing a striking resemblance to Ying Xuechen.
“Xuejian doesn’t look like someone from the branch family; she seems like she has the bloodline of my main family,” Ying Xuechen remarked teasingly. “Not only do we look alike, but even our names are similar.”
“Is it because you’ve merged with so many bloodlines?”
Hearing this, Ying Xuejian blushed and lowered her head. “This name was given by the Venerable.”
Ying Tong, standing nearby, said calmly, “This was always your name.”
Though they didn’t know who had originally given Ying Xuejian her name, it was certain that in the dream, Ying Xuejian had been acknowledged by the Yíng family.
If she hadn’t been recognized, then she would be using the surname Yīng, not the surname Yíng.
At that moment, Ying Shao’an ran in, his face beaming with excitement. “Venerable, Brother Chen, how about we go out for a stroll? I just heard from someone in Shifang City that there’s a very lively trading market here.”
Ying Xuechen’s eyes lit up. “That sounds interesting. Venerable, shall we go have a look?”
Ying Tong nodded. “That sounds fine.”
On the way, Ying Shao’an shared what he had learned with the others.
“Shifang City is within the jurisdiction of the Kunlun Sect—yes, that’s the sect hailed as the number one sect on Longteng Continent.”
“There are four major families in Shifang City, each occupying a different part of the city: the Yīng family in the east, the Su family in the south, the Lin family in the west, and the Sun family in the north.”
“These four families act like lords within Shifang City, reigning over their respective areas. Meanwhile, the central area is the trading market, jointly managed by all four families.”
Among the three, only Ying Xuejian listened attentively. Ying Tong and Ying Xuechen were dismissive since they had already known this information.
The group of four soon reached the bustling center of the trading market. Since neither Ying Shao’an nor Ying Xuejian had memories of being here before, this was their first time seeing such a lively scene, and both of their eyes sparkled with excitement.
In contrast, Ying Xuechen looked entirely uninterested.
Ying Xuechen had only passed through this place a few times, so he wasn’t particularly interested in it.
On the other hand, Ying Tong seemed to be quite familiar with it, as if she came here often.
“Markets of this scale are indeed rare,” Ying Tong remarked.
Inside the market, crowds surged, and the sounds of vendors calling out were constant, giving the place a lively and bustling atmosphere. Shops of all kinds lined both sides of the street, while in front of the shops were various stalls selling a wide assortment of items.
Most of the items were quite ordinary, though there were a few rare ones that cultivators had brought back from secret realms.
However, among these items, genuine treasures were very rare. After all, who would be willing to sell truly valuable items, right?
Ying Tong thought to herself, wondering if there might be a black market here. True treasures were either well-hidden, sold at high-profile auctions, or circulated solely in black markets.
“Come take a look! Freshly picked spiritual herbs, quality guaranteed, selling cheap!” shouted one vendor.
“Don’t miss out, don’t miss out! Just five spirit stones for a map to the soon-to-open Phoenix Secret Realm. No tricks, no scams!”
…
As they strolled along, Ying Shao’an darted from stall to stall like an untamed horse, stopping to look at nearly every one.
Fortunately, he knew these items weren’t anything special, so he was only looking and had no intention of buying.
Just then, an old man suddenly rushed forward and grabbed hold of Ying Xuejian.
“Could you give me that string of beads around your neck? I’ll trade you this Lingyang Herb for it. This is a rare fifth-level spiritual herb, incredibly valuable. You won’t regret it!”
As he spoke, the old man’s gaze was fixated on the sarira beads around Ying Xuejian’s neck, his eyes filled with greed.
“No,” Ying Xuejian refused firmly, shaking her head.
The old man tightened his grip on Ying Xuejian. “Is it too little? I can offer more. Just name your price.”
But in the next moment, he was sent flying by a powerful kick.
Ying Xuechen hadn’t held back at all with that kick, and the old man was hurled far away. Such a commotion naturally attracted a crowd of onlookers.
However, upon realizing that Ying Xuechen was at the Golden Core stage, they quickly lost interest in watching the drama unfold. After all, the affairs of a Golden Core cultivator were not something they dared to witness casually.
“Trying to trade a worthless herb for these prayer beads? If you don’t want to die, scram!”
Under Ying Xuechen’s intense gaze, the old man shrank back. He had been so excited by the sight of those sarira prayer beads that he hadn’t noticed the girl’s powerful companions.
Now, he realized that while the young girl might not have recognized the beads’ value, the two people beside her certainly did. Filled with resentment yet powerless to act, he could only slink away.
“See? There are still plenty of people who know the value of things in this world,” Ying Tong suddenly commented.
After this incident, Ying Xuejian decided to wrap the prayer beads around her wrist and hide them under her sleeve to avoid attracting further attention.
Though she didn’t understand much, she could tell that the man just now had no good intentions.
**TN
The exiled Ying family uses Yīng/應, while the Cangqiong Realm main family uses Yíng/贏
Btw, Ying Xuechen is the future head of the Ying family, his father is the current patriarch.
Cultivation Levels – Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Deity Transformation…
