However, if the little fox were left in the strange market, and something were to happen to her, Ye Tiancheng would not be able to react or know what happened upon his return.
Therefore, from a safety perspective, this distribution would be more appropriate.
Soon, Ye Tiancheng personally witnessed that as the little fox led Ah Zi through the entrance, Ah Zi did not seem to be trapped by any barrier. It was unlike the barrier formed by formations and Nuwa Stone's illusions; if something were to collide with it, it should feel like hitting an invisible wall. However, Ah Zi was not in such a state.
His state when passing through the entrance, to be precise, was that at that instant, upon touching the entrance, the part of Ah Zi's body that passed through it became ethereal, and then until his entire being disappeared, he reappeared completely in front of the entrance.
After completing the process of becoming ethereal and then re-coalescing, Ah Zi stood at the entrance and waited for a while. It was only when the little fox returned from the entrance that Ah Zi and the little fox walked back to Ye Tiancheng's side together.
The two of them looked up at Ye Tiancheng, and Ah Zi said, "How is it? Have you seen clearly enough now? Do you need me to do it again?"
Ye Tiancheng thought for a moment and shook his head, saying, "Not for now. At present, no matter how many times it's repeated, it's meaningless."
"How about this, let's go back first. The little fox and I have booked rooms at the Qingju Inn. You can come with us. This is not a good place to talk. If someone with particularly sharp eyes notices that our concealment items are not effective enough, it could easily cause trouble."
Ah Zi had no objections and followed Ye Tiancheng and the little fox back to the Qingju Inn.
Before entering the inn, Ye Tiancheng knew that he couldn't have Ah Zi appear out of thin air in the inn, as it would be a violation. Inn check-ins were counted by heads, not by rooms, and an extra Ah Zi couldn't just appear. Moreover, the entities within the inn should not have the impression that Ye Tiancheng and the little fox had left.
Therefore, Ye Tiancheng took Ah Zi to a relatively hidden corner near the inn.
Ye Tiancheng said to Ah Zi, "Because the little fox and I used props and talismans, the entities in the inn have no impression of us leaving. However, inns count guests by heads, so I can't directly bring you in or take you to book a room.
"So, you wait here for the little fox and me. We'll go in first, then come out openly, and then pick you up to book a room for you."
This meant that Ah Zi would act with them from then on. Ah Zi understood and obediently stayed in place, awaiting their news.
Ye Tiancheng and the little fox left in a hurry, and soon returned hand in hand to pick up Ah Zi. Ye Tiancheng took Ah Zi to the counter to book a room, extending the remaining days of Ye Tiancheng and the little fox's rooms.
Ye Tiancheng now had currency circulating in the strange market, so handling these matters precisely was very convenient.
The currency circulating in the strange market, once Ye Tiancheng and the little fox got their hands on it, they roughly understood why many evil spirits were willing to accept this currency.
Firstly, these things could not be worthless paper notes, because such things could not guarantee value. Just like in chaotic times, regardless of the era, the value of paper money would plummet. Only hard currencies like gold and silver could always retain their value.
Therefore, the currency circulating in the strange market was a type of coin that looked like it was carved from transparent crystals. These coins contained rich energy, and the energy contained within coins of different denominations varied greatly.
So, even if the Qian Tang were to go bankrupt one day and the strange market were to close, holding these coins would not cause them to depreciate. They inherently had value, which was why many evil spirits were willing to accept them. After all, no one is foolish; they would naturally care about their own interests. If it were not so, this currency could not have been promoted in the strange market.
Ye Tiancheng said he would take Ah Zi to book a room. Ah Zi couldn't use his original face because his face was too similar to the little fox's. If he brought him back directly, it would definitely cause a lot of trouble. So Ye Tiancheng asked Ah Zi if he could disguise himself, but not with a fox mask.
It was at this time that Ah Zi transformed into another appearance, which looked ordinary and unremarkable.
When taking Ah Zi to book a room, no one recognized Ah Zi's true identity. The scholar behind the counter originally thought Ah Zi was similar to Zhang Liushun. Unexpectedly, Ye Tiancheng wanted to book a superior room for Ah Zi and his adjacent room.
The scholar was surprised. Ye Tiancheng explained that he was a friend, and the scholar didn't ask further, knowing it was not good to inquire about guests' privacy and that it was enough to book the room for the guests.
After Ah Zi went upstairs with Ye Tiancheng and the little fox, he curiously asked the little fox, "Which rooms are yours and Big Brother's?"
Ye Tiancheng used the jade token to open their room. Ah Zi followed him and the little fox inside, looking around.
Then, Ah Zi heard the little fox say, "Big Brother and I both live in this room."
Upon hearing this, Ah Zi's eyes widened. "What? You don't have your own room?"
He then glared at Ye Tiancheng, "You're not even willing to book another room for him? Didn't I hear you were quite generous? Why are you so stingy with your own people?"
The little fox defended Ye Tiancheng, saying, "It's not like that. The reason Big Brother and I share a room isn't because we don't have money, but for safety. In a place that might be full of danger, it would be strange to live separately."
Ah Zi's expression softened slightly, but he still mumbled, "How could there be any danger in the place I manage? The inns under my name are all very safe, extremely safe."
He mumbled loudly, showing no intention of hiding it. However, Ye Tiancheng and the little fox pretended not to hear and had no intention of discussing the issue of safety here.
Ye Tiancheng and the little fox sat by the table. "You sit too. Let's discuss how to get you out."
After coming out with them, Ah Zi didn't put on airs. He casually pulled out a stool and sat next to the little fox. "Okay, I'm ready."
The three of them sat around a table. Ye Tiancheng looked at Ah Zi with a serious expression and said, "I believe that at this point, you wouldn't lie to the little fox and me, would you? Tell me, how much do you understand about not being able to leave this space? How much do you know?"
Ah Zi lowered his gaze and fiddled with his fingers. "Hmm, I, well, I know a little bit. On one hand, this space is closely related to me. As for the other aspect, it might have something to do with my past?"
"Perhaps it's because I'm not complete right now. Although I do know where my other part is, merging it might be more difficult than you taking me out directly?"
Upon hearing this, the first to react was the little fox. "Your other part? Is it that monstrosity lurking around your mansion?"
Ah Zi let out a dry laugh and said, "Ah, you're quite persistent. When we first met, you kept asking if I was a monstrosity, and now you're asking if that monstrosity is my other part."
The little fox then fell silent, his large, watery black eyes fixed on Ah Zi.
Ah Zi seemed unable to bear being looked at by the little fox, so he said, "Alright, I admit, that monstrosity does have something to do with me. Because it is my skin, and I am the soul."
"As for that skin, because it has been separated from me for too long, when it acted independently, it ate many things that wanted to eat it based on instinct. And because it had no soul, it was muddled and had little consciousness, which is why it became like this."
"However, there is still some connection between the skin and the soul, which is why it found its way here through this connection and has been lurking outside my mansion all this time."
When Ye Tiancheng and the little fox heard this, they knew it was inseparable from the "past" Ah Zi mentioned.
However, Ye Tiancheng asked Ah Zi, "Since it is your skin, why didn't you merge with it after it found you? Instead, you let it linger outside your mansion, get bullied, and live in poverty?"
Ah Zi glanced at him and said, "If things were that simple, that would be my skin after all. Why would I do such a thing? What's the difference between that and slapping my own face? Of course, I can't help it, which is why it's like this. Moreover, I can't be entirely sure whether my inability to leave here is directly related to my prolonged separation from my skin and inability to merge."
"It's just that I've been searching for the reason for a long time, and this is the only thing that hasn't been resolved, so it's highly likely."
Ye Tiancheng then asked him, "Then why didn't you say anything when we first talked about trying to take you out at the entrance?"
Ah Zi clapped his hands. "You're so strange. Can't you even understand this? Isn't this a normal psychological reaction?"
"It's not strange that I didn't say anything. Doesn't any existence, to some extent, hold onto avoidance and wishful thinking when facing the worst outcome?"
"If you don't try multiple times and your hopes are completely dashed, how can you willingly accept the fact that you are facing the worst outcome?"
"You humans know self-deception, so why can't I deceive myself?"
Ah Zi said this with righteous indignation. His long speech indirectly revealed a fact: he was not human, otherwise, he wouldn't have used the term "you humans."
Furthermore, Ye Tiancheng thought that Ah Zi said the little monster lurking outside his mansion was his skin, and he himself was the soul. However, Ye Tiancheng still remembered that when he supported Ah Zi at the Grand Governor's mansion, Ah Zi's touch felt like that of a living person, with warm skin.
If Ah Zi were just a soul, how could he have felt that way when he touched him? Did he wear someone else's skin?
Ye Tiancheng thought this in his heart but also felt that things should not be that simple.
Therefore, Ye Tiancheng said to Ah Zi, "Then, do you mind telling me about your past? Why did you separate from your skin?"