Free Web NovelNot long after night fell, on the outskirts of Hua City.
Today, Amber House still exuded an air of strangeness everywhere.
Within the vast mansion, only the study on the top floor had its lights on.
Jiang Li sat in front of the old-fashioned desk, seriously flipping through the piled-up dossiers under the light, occasionally picking up a fountain pen to record something in the notebook beside her.
“Rustle—!”
【urban legend Incident Number 1624
urban legend Alias: Unknown
Spiritual Energy Residue Level: C-
First Incident Date: July 5th. fгeewebnovёl.com
Case Summary: Hua City Qing Shikou Tunnel, late-returning workers from nearby construction sites, multiple sightings of mysterious ghost shadows.
...】
After roughly reading a dossier, Jiang Li picked up the fountain pen on the desk and wrote a line of delicate, neat small characters in the notebook.
【1624 urban legend is suspected to be an evil spirit type, specific strength unknown, danger level too high, excluded.】
After writing, she put down the dossier numbered 1624, then randomly picked up another dossier from the desk, opened it, and began to study it carefully.
“Rustle—!”
【urban legend Incident Number 0784
urban legend Alias: Moving Blood House
Spiritual Energy Residue Level: B-~B+
First Incident Date: January 1st, 1999
Case Summary: A strange building that randomly appears in Hua City and surrounding cities, rumored to be a Lived house, it asks for help from passersby...】
Jiang Li only read the beginning of this dossier before putting it away and turning to make a note in the notebook beside her.
【0784 Long-term unresolved cold case, not suitable for newcomers.】
“Rustle—!”
【urban legend Incident Number 1105
urban legend Alias: Female Body Coin Box
Spiritual Energy Residue Level: B-
...】
“Rustle—!”
【urban legend Incident Number 0994
urban legend Alias: Villa Bandaged Monster Group
Spiritual Energy Residue Level: C+
...】
...
After flipping through seven or eight more dossiers, Jiang Li stopped, leaned back in her chair, and rubbed her slightly throbbing temples with one hand. Just as she was about to bury herself in the research again, the study door suddenly opened, and A Hua walked in with tea and snacks.
Seeing the small mountain of dossiers piled on the desk and Jiang Li's tired face, A Hua pouted.
“Miss, why are You still reading? It's been seven or eight hours, is Lu Yibei really worth You putting in so much effort?”
Jiang Li looked at A Hua and gently shook her head, saying, “A Hua, You don't understand. Since he has become my subordinate agent, ensuring his safety is my duty. You should also know how high the mortality rate is for new agents in the early stages of performing tasks.”
Lu Yibei's situation is different from Du Sixian's. Du Sixian's Spirit Mark has no special ability; after obtaining the Spirit Mark, she will have a long period of learning.
However, Lu Yibei's Spirit Mark has now been confirmed. According to the records in the Night Watch internal data, drawing a Spirit Mark with an energy-type urban legend can grant special abilities, almost certainly one of the following three: body energy transformation, attribute Spell amplification, or innate Spirit Mark Spell.
Of course, a small number of lucky individuals will gain more than one.
Therefore, according to convention, after Lu Yibei finishes drawing his Spirit Mark, he will only have about a week of adaptation before being thrown into the investigation of simple urban legend incidents.
Continuously fighting urban legend to eliminate fear of them and gradually mastering one's special abilities is the best method for training newcomers that the Night Watch has summarized over the years.
However, while this method allows newcomers to grow faster and more comprehensively, it also comes with relatively high risks.
A small part of this risk comes from the newcomer's fear when facing urban legend for the first time, but more comes from their superior's misjudgment when selecting early missions for them.
Pursuing urban legend has always been a very cruel undertaking.
In fact, within the Night Watch, many new Psychic die or are injured every year during the first three missions due to their superior's misjudgment.
Although based on Jiang Li's understanding of that timid guy Lu Yibei, if he encountered life-threatening danger during a mission, he would definitely abandon the mission without hesitation and run away.
But what if the opponent is too strong to escape? She doesn't want Lu Yibei to encounter too much danger in the early stages of performing tasks due to her own misjudgment.
“Alright A Hua, put the things down and go rest early, okay?”
“But Miss...” A Hua hesitated.
Jiang Li gently shook her head at A Hua and said softly, “Go.”
“Yes, Miss.”
A Hua responded, put down the tea and snacks she was holding, and left the study. Jiang Li's attention once again returned to the dossiers on the desk.
...
2:55 AM.
In a small park near University City, a figure furtively walked quickly from the shadows and stopped in the brightest spot under the street lamp.
Lu Yibei had arranged to meet Bai Kai here at 3 AM and then go to the Ghost Market together.
However, because it was too noisy at home, he saw the agreed time approaching and left early, coming here to wait.
Ju Meng's game recently had a new version update. She also found two patsies from somewhere to help with Krypton Gold (in-game purchases), and her internet addiction was getting worse. She was fighting for over twenty hours a day.
Looking at her like that, Lu Yibei always felt that the records about fallen deities in the si ye book were probably outdated. Besides twisted faith and excessive Devour the core of the ghost story (devouring the core of the urban legend entity), perhaps another point should be added: obsession with the internet.
I need to find a way to help Ju Meng collect enough urban legend entity cores early, and then let her stay at my place. A perfectly good deity is about to be ruined... Lu Yibei muttered inwardly.
As he was thinking, a faint sound of tires rolling over asphalt came from a distance, getting closer and closer, particularly noticeable in the silent night.
Following the sound, he saw a flashy Beetle car approaching from afar and stopping in front of him.
Bai Kai rolled down the window and waved at Lu Yibei, “Xiao Bei, get in! It's almost time, the Ghost Market is about to open.”
“Okay.” Lu Yibei replied, opened the car door, and got in.
Soon, the car drove out of University City and headed towards a corner of Hua City's East District.
...
In the East District of Hua City, there is a street with some history. Before the night began to grow long, it was already famous for its night market.
However, although the night market here is quite well-known in the community, it doesn't have a fixed name, and even its scale is uncertain.
During the off-season, there are only dozens of scattered food stalls, but in midsummer or around the Spring Festival, the scale expands unprecedentedly, stretching for several li with continuous crowds.
However, after the night became long, the scale of the night market had already shrunk considerably, and most stalls would close before twelve o'clock.
Nevertheless, as the saying goes, the night market fades at the third watch, and the Ghost Market reopens at the fifth watch. Like a place of revelry, it never ceases.
After the night market dispersed, some small vendors did not leave. They turned around, packed up their food stalls, changed their signs, and plunged into a new round of business.
And Gu Qianqian was one of these small vendors who were unwilling to leave.
Just after 3 AM, she quickly packed up her poor-quality masks, her figure flashed, and she hid in a dark corner of a deep alley beside her. From her backpack, she pulled out a worn Bamboo Scroll.
As she muttered a few words, a faint light flashed on the Bamboo Scroll, followed by two large rattan boxes appearing out of thin air, slamming heavily onto the ground in front of her.
She picked up the rattan boxes, one in each hand, and ran back to the street. Like a nimble little cat, she darted left and right through the passing crowd, quickly found an empty spot, put down the boxes, set up her stall, placed a small stool, and sat by the roadside.
As soon as she sat down, the system's voice sounded in her ear.
“Gu Qianqian, I solemnly remind You again, the startup capital is already enough, the transformation of the Bamboo Scroll Illusion has entered the next stage, what we need now are materials, do You understand?”
“You act like You've never seen money before! Someone adds a little price, and You sell the stuff. You don't do business like that!”
“But, system...” Gu Qianqian frowned slightly, “I have seen money, but this is the first time I've seen so much money in my life!”
“Like that person yesterday, who brought a whole box of gold bars, I...”
“Stop, stop! Look at Your lack of ambition!” The system interrupted, “Yesterday's situation was barely acceptable, at least it was Alchemy material that could be used to make the lieyang bronze orb...”
“What? You took my gold to refine things?” Gu Qianqian's eyes widened.
“What did You think? You said You wanted to be a farming-style protagonist, I didn't force You!” The system said, “That broken place costs a lot to transform.”
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“In short, remember one sentence: From today onwards, only accept materials, not money, understand?”
“Got it.” Gu Qianqian said dejectedly.
As soon as she finished speaking, she looked up and saw a seductively dressed Miss appear in front of her, a Miss with a pair of rabbit ears. Beside the Miss was a fair-faced man.
“Little Girl, is Your Bamboo Scroll for 《Qing Ling Potion》 real?” The Miss smiled at Gu Qianqian.
"Of course it's real. If you sincerely want to buy it, you can try reading half first," Gu Qianqian nodded and said.
Hearing this, the Miss smiled, held the Bamboo Scroll Illusion with both hands, unfolded half of it, and carefully studied it under the dim yellow street lamp.
Her eyes focused on the content on the Bamboo Scroll Illusion, sometimes frowning, sometimes sighing softly. After a moment, she closed the Bamboo Scroll Illusion and winked at the man beside her.
The man glanced at the Bamboo Scroll Illusion and said in a deep voice, "It's real." A surprised smile instantly appeared on the Miss's face.
She didn't expect to find a formula to eliminate side effects in such a dilapidated place. Although it was a bit low-level, still... The Miss thought for a moment, raised the Bamboo Scroll Illusion, and shook it at Gu Qianqian.
"Little Girl, how do you plan to sell this Bamboo Scroll Illusion?"
As she spoke, a Spiritual Energy fluctuation filled with a bloody smell silently enveloped Gu Qianqian.
Feeling the strange Spiritual Energy fluctuation, Gu Qianqian frowned slightly, and with a gentle tremor of her body, she used her own Spiritual Energy fluctuation, which was as heavy as a mountain, to bounce it away.
The two Spiritual Energy fluctuations clashed invisibly for a moment, the Miss's face turned pale, and her body also retreated two steps.
Miss, "..." Why are all the young people so powerful now?
"Gu Qianqian, tell her you want ten Spiritual Light Mushrooms."
Gu Qianqian nodded slightly, raised three fingers at the Miss, and said, "Ten Spiritual Light Mushrooms."
Is this Miss not good at math? The Miss looked at Gu Qianqian's three fingers, frowned slightly, and said, "Isn't this too expensive? Spiritual Light Mushrooms are..."
Before the Miss could finish speaking, the man beside her suddenly said, "We don't have Spiritual Light Mushrooms, but can we trade for the tails of Copper-Shelled Fireflies?"
As soon as the man's voice fell, the system's praising voice echoed in Gu Qianqian's mind.
"This person is an expert! He most likely guessed what we were going to refine, that's why he mentioned a higher-level substitute material. Gu Qianqian, tell him that depending on the quality, we need at least two."
Gu Qianqian nodded slightly and held up five fingers at the man.
"Five? That's reasonable." The man nodded, reached into his trench coat, fumbled for a while, took out a silk pouch, threw it in front of Gu Qianqian, turned around, picked up the Bamboo Scroll Illusion, patted the shoulder of the accompanying Miss, and walked out of the Ghost Market.
Looking at the retreating backs of the man and the Miss, the system fell silent.
"system..."
"Was I tricked? I was just about to say two, but he gave me five directly!"
"Gu Qianqian..."
"Hmm?"
"You are truly a business genius!" the system said in a sarcastic tone.
Unexpectedly, Gu Qianqian's random gestures for so many days actually managed to trick two fools. Is this the legendary meeting of the simple-minded?
The system thought, and continued, "Alright, let's stop here for today! Let's hurry back and refine the 【lieyang bronze orb】. Then we can barely start planting crops in the Bamboo Scroll Illusion."
...
A moment later, in a secluded alley not far from the Ghost Market.
Miss Rabbit looked strangely at the man beside her who was studying the Bamboo Scroll Illusion with his head down, and said in a deep voice, "Why did you help me?"
"Help You?" The man tilted his head at her, "No, I'm just helping the organization collect some useful things, and..."
As he spoke, the man shook the Bamboo Scroll Illusion in his hand at Miss Rabbit, "And, I didn't say I would show it to You immediately. If You want to see it, You have to first win over the urban legend in the Qingshikou Tunnel or obtain its urban legend core."
"..." Miss Rabbit bit her lip and was silent for a few seconds, then nodded, "Okay, I'll solve it within three days."
As long as she could get that formula, the urban legend cores accumulated during this period could be absorbed.
Although this kind of unofficial formula was not as effective as the Night Watch's formula, in order to improve her strength, she could only make do with it. Miss Rabbit thought.
...
Not long after Gu Qianqian packed up and left the Ghost Market, Bai Kai led Lu Yibei to the vicinity of the Ghost Market.
In late autumn, it was already very cold at three in the morning, and the air was filled with a faint mist. freēwēbηovel.c૦m
Along the dilapidated streets, everything was sold, making it dazzling, but those things were limited to some antique items that were not from legitimate sources.
After watching for a while, Lu Yibei lost interest, patted Bai Kai's shoulder, and said, "Shui Ge, You're not pulling my leg, are You?"
"This place looks no different from the Ghost Market at the entrance of Peony Street before!"
"What are You in a hurry for? We haven't reached the place yet, have we?" Bai Kai smiled meaningfully at Lu Yibei, raised his hand and pointed to a narrow and deep alley ahead, "Passing through there is considered entering the real Ghost Market."
Lu Yibei looked in the direction Bai Kai pointed, tilted his head, "Over there? I remember that place sold snacks, didn't it?"
And poor quality plastic masks... Lu Yibei added in his mind.
He had found Gu Qianqian setting up a stall there before.
"Just follow me."
...
Walking into the alley, the surroundings quickly became quiet. Under the dim light of the surroundings, in a trance, it felt like traveling through time.
After walking another few dozen meters, the area ahead suddenly opened up, and a bustling street immediately appeared before their eyes, and the noise returned to their ears.
This street looked no different from when they came, but the things sold at those stalls were chilling.
There were human corpses that had died not long ago, lower-level evil spirit type urban legend sealed in glass bottles, Spiritual Energy items with strange and varied shapes, and some stalls even had signs like "Seeking Children", "Spell", and "Gu Poison".
As soon as Lu Yibei walked in, his attention was drawn to a strange stall.
That stall was filled with large jar-like objects, but these jars were carved with strange-looking talismans, which looked quite powerful.
But the most eye-catching thing in the shop was a sign placed on the right side, on which the two red characters "Changing Fate" were particularly eerie.
Behind the stall, a thin Old man was squatting. His pair of dark green eyes met Lu Yibei's, and he grinned.
"Want to change your fate? You can come and take a look."
"This... How to change it?"
To be honest, Lu Yibei felt that he might have bad luck, which was why he encountered so many annoying things. If he could really change it, it would be a good thing.
The thin Old man looked around, walked over, and said mysteriously, "Changing fate is actually very simple, it's just the literal meaning, one life for another, You just need to..."
Before the thin Old man could finish speaking, Bai Kai stepped in and blocked Lu Yibei, "Old man, shut up! Want to change his fate? All these broken jars and your old life combined are not enough!"
After speaking, Bai Kai pulled Lu Yibei towards the depths of the Ghost Market, leaving the thin Old man smiling awkwardly on the spot.
"Shui Ge, I'm a little touched."
"What?"
"I didn't expect that I would be so important in Your heart." Lu Yibei said expressionlessly, "But, don't think You can move me by saying such things."
Bai Kai glanced at Lu Yibei and said angrily, "I'm just telling the truth..."
Because your life is really valuable... Bai Kai added silently in his heart.
...
Bai Kai led Lu Yibei through half of the Ghost Market, and before long, they stopped in front of a shop, which was rare in the Ghost Market with a storefront.
The owner of the shop was an exaggeratedly fat man. Seeing Bai Kai walk in, he immediately greeted him with a smile, but the mountain of accumulated fat on his body made it difficult for him to get up.
Seeing this, Bai Kai walked up in a few steps, pressed him back onto the chair, turned to Lu Yibei, and said, "You go in and look around first, I'll chat with Fat Er Ye."
Lu Yibei glanced at the man who was as fat as a urban legend, ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) nodded, and walked into the depths of the shop.
The fat man squinted at Lu Yibei, then suddenly widened his eyes, leaned forward, and whispered in Bai Kai's ear, "He is... that person's child?"
"Hmm, it's good that You know." Bai Kai patted the fat man's shoulder and said, "So, give us a bigger discount today!"
"Yes, yes..." The fat man said repeatedly, "Twenty percent off, no, no, thirty percent off, thirty percent off!"
...
Deep inside the shop, after walking just a few steps, Lu Yibei suddenly stopped.
As he passed a book shelf, a chill rose in his body without warning, and he couldn't help but shiver. With doubt, his gaze swept over the dusty book shelf, and when he saw the dirty, pot-bellied crystal bottle, his pupils shrank slightly.
Gently brushing away the dust on the crystal bottle, he saw that it was filled with a bottle of black liquid.
And the texture of that liquid was almost exactly the same as the black liquid that seeped out of his body every day.
Could that black liquid have a special use? Lu Yibei thought.
The thought that he had almost found a place to throw away that black liquid made him feel like he had almost missed out on a hundred million.
