Lin said in a deep voice, "I'm just worried about Yan Xi's safety."
Shen Qingyun chuckled, "You can rest assured about that, Grand Tutor. I've already instructed my subordinates to only kill men."
Lin grunted in acknowledgment.
Watching Lin's retreating back, Shen Qingyun felt he understood him less and less. After Lin Yan Xi regained her intellect, Lin became increasingly indecisive. All of this was because of Lin Yan Xi.
He stood before a potted plant with a cold laugh, picked up the scissors on the table, and fiercely cut off a small branch.
"When a flower grows crooked, it must be pruned; one cannot be soft-hearted."
"Issue an order: anyone who dares to block the way in Ghost City will be killed without mercy."
The guard hesitated and asked, "What about the Fifth Prince and the Second Miss?"
Shen Qingyun glanced at him, a sinister smile on his face, and asked, "Don't you understand the command?"
The guard shivered under his gaze and quickly replied, "Yes, I spoke too much."
***
As soon as dusk fell, a wooden board on the ground opened, revealing stone steps descending like a cellar, dark and deep. From this ground entrance, the walls were all dark green, and the sound of water dripping onto the ground could be heard intermittently.
Shen Muzhou walked at the front, Shen Yu and Lin Yan Xi in the middle, and Xiao Liu at the rear.
The staircase seemed to stretch endlessly. The only light came from the flint Shen Muzhou held.
The flint flickered in the cellar, its flame leaning backward, indicating a wide exit ahead.
"It's too gloomy here, even more eerie than your old house," Shen Yu mumbled, tightly gripping Shen Muzhou's sleeve.
Lin Yan Xi rolled her eyes at him, "You're a grown man, yet your courage is smaller than a sesame seed."
Shen Yu feigned anger, "You little girl, how dare you disrespect this prince? Believe it or not, I will..."
Shen Muzhou cast a deep gaze back at him, "You will what?"
Shen Yu pouted, "With you protecting me, what can you do?"
Lin Yan Xi made a face at him and walked forward. Shen Yu was left behind and quickly followed, "Wait for me."
The slender bluestone stairs became narrower as they descended. Lin Yan Xi asked, "We've been walking for so long on these stairs, why does it still feel like we haven't reached the bottom?"
Her voice was soft and delicate, echoing with an ethereal quality.
Shen Muzhou looked ahead and said, "We've walked eighty-six steps. Legend has it that one must descend one hundred and eighteen flights of stairs to reach the bottom."
After descending further, the stone steps gradually widened, and a faint light flickered ahead.
They had finally arrived at the legendary – Ghost City.
"So, there really is a Ghost City," Lin Yan Xi was stunned by the scene before her.
Ghost City was truly named as such. Most of the people here wore dark clothes, like specters.
On both sides of the main street were numerous stalls, with candlelight placed on the ground. The dim light only illuminated the items on the ground, but not the faces of the vendors.
Lin Yan Xi asked, "Why can't I see their faces clearly?"
Shen Yu cleared his throat and said, "Little beauty, you wouldn't know this. Most transactions in Ghost City are forbidden above ground, so people only focus on the goods. Neither buyer nor seller can have their faces seen."
Lin Yan Xi's gaze towards him showed a hint of admiration, "Not bad, you know these things."
Since he was a child, apart from his mother's doting, almost everyone looked down on Shen Yu. He liked to research oddities and strange events. When his father discovered this, his father's eyes were filled with disappointment, calling him a useless waste.
From then on, his father's gaze always carried a hint of helplessness and disdain. The people in the palace were skilled at discerning the Emperor's thoughts. Knowing that His Majesty disliked him, they also began to look down on him.
This was the first time someone had praised him, and it was a little beauty.
Squares of cloth were laid on the ground, displaying various peculiar items, many of which were royal artifacts stolen and traded here.
"What are these?" she squatted on the ground.
On one cloth were many glass bottles, each containing a glowing insect.
The vendor's face was buried low, hidden in the darkness. "These are Heart Gu. Once the Gu enters the body, you can see past events that happened to them."
A royal Gu master.
She hadn't expected to encounter a royal Gu master here.
Lin Yan Xi picked up a small bottle and shook it, "So magical?"
"Then what about this one? Why are there two insects?" she asked again.
The vendor said, "This is a Mother-Child Gu. Two people tie the insects to their waists respectively, and they can easily track each other's whereabouts."
Lin Yan Xi found it novel and kept looking. Shen Muzhou directly took out a silver ingot and asked, "Is this enough?"
The vendor held out his hand and took the silver, "If you fancy this Gu, you are fated."
Lin Yan Xi asked in confusion, "Why are you buying this?"
She tentatively asked, "To give to your beloved?"
Shen Muzhou's hand paused, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he remained silent.
She probably intended to take it back for Luo Jingxin, she glanced at Shen Yu at another stall and shook her head.
This foolish boy was still looking at wine pots, only knowing how to eat, drink, and have fun.
Meanwhile, someone was preparing to give Luo Jingxin a Mother-Child Gu.
Shen Muzhou took a small glass bottle, no bigger than half a little finger, from the stall and placed the child Gu inside.
Lin Yan Xi glanced at it and was about to move forward when she was suddenly pulled back. Shen Muzhou directly hung the bottle containing the child Gu on her waist.
"You... what is this?"
Shen Muzhou's eyes were somewhat bright. Lin Yan Xi always felt that his pair of peach blossom eyes had a certain seductive quality when they looked at people, making her heart race.
Was it for her?
His gaze briefly and stiffly met hers, his cheeks flushing slightly. "I was afraid you'd get lost here, you little troublemaker."
Lin Yan Xi's rapidly beating heart suddenly turned cold. So, she had been hoping for something for nothing again.
Angrily, she followed him, arguing, "Who's the troublemaker? Don't forget, I'm a Talisman Master, a Talisman Master!!"
Hearing the words "Talisman Master," the vendor looked at her and said, "Little girl, your husband has paid too much. This one is a gift for you."
Lin Yan Xi turned back to look at the bottle of Gu in the vendor's hand, the same Heart Gu she had asked about earlier.
Her face instantly turned red, and the tips of her ears felt hot. "He, he is not my husband."
With that, she grabbed the Heart Gu from the vendor's hand and put it in her sleeve.
Shen Muzhou, standing a few steps ahead, looked at her flushed face, the corners of his lips curling up, and a surge of sweetness filled his heart.
A few more stalls down, there was a stall crowded with people. This vendor was also different from the others.
He had a cloth covering his face and was loudly hawking his wares. "Do you know who I am?"
As he spoke, he placed one leg on a stone, pointed his thumb at himself, and declared, "I am a descendant of the Jiang clan's Talisman Masters, the last Talisman Master of Yue You!"
"You're lucky to meet me today. Buy these yellow talismans and paste them on your door at home to ward off evil, bring prosperity, and cure illnesses."
A man stood before the stall, holding a yellow talisman, and questioned, "Is it that magical?"
The vendor sneered, "You don't believe me? Then I'll show you the skill of a Talisman Master."
He said this while making hand gestures, then pointed at the yellow talisman in the man's hand and said, "Fire Ignition Talisman!"
The next moment, the yellow talisman paper in the man's hand burst into flames.
Shen Muzhou and Lin Yan Xi watched coldly from the side. She stood on tiptoe, straining to lean closer to Shen Muzhou's ear, but even then, she was still short. She clicked her tongue and tugged at his shoulder, "He's a骗子 (piàn zi - swindler)."
"He was just making random gestures; that's not a proper hand seal."
Shen Muzhou nodded, "Mm," signaling her to continue watching.
The surrounding crowd let out exclamations of admiration, "Wow, it seems this is truly a Talisman Master."
Just then, another man rushed into the crowd, knelt before the vendor without a word, and kowtowed several times. "Benefactor, you are my benefactor!"
"How many of these talismans do you have left? I'll take them all, please don't sell them to anyone else."
Lin Yan Xi frowned and cursed internally, "Crude."
"That kneeling man is wearing ragged clothes. How can he afford so many talismans? And he wants them all?"
Shen Muzhou said in a deep voice, "Let's see what trick they're trying to pull."
The vendor glanced at the astonished expressions of the crowd and a sly smile appeared on his face. He pulled the man on the ground up and said, "Get up, let's talk properly."
The man who had been kneeling said, wiping away tears, "My old father has been paralyzed in bed for over ten years. His illness is terminal. I've seen countless doctors, and none could save him."
"But ever since we pasted this yellow talisman at home, my father not only got out of bed but can also plow ten mu of land without effort."
After speaking, he began to snatch the yellow talismans from the ground and clutch them tightly. "Sell them to me, all of them."
Under his emotional incitement, the surrounding people also began to frantically grab the talismans from the ground.
The vendor smiled and said, "Don't rush, don't rush. Ten copper coins each. Come, come, pay up!"
Those people threw copper coins at him and quickly snatched a talisman, stuffing it into their sleeves, fearing they wouldn't get one after paying.
The man who had been kneeling glanced at the vendor, subtly placed the talismans he was holding back onto the cloth, and then withdrew from the crowd.
"Swindler!" Lin Yan Xi cursed fiercely and started to walk towards the stall.
Shen Muzhou stopped her and said, "The rule of Ghost City is that there are no rules. Look at the items sold at other stalls; they all claim to be treasures from the imperial palace. If they were all from the palace, wouldn't it have been emptied by them?"
"Once you enter Ghost City, life and death are your own affair. Clearly, these fake goods and swindles are allowed here. Buying things here tests your discernment."
Lin Yan Xi said with hatred, "Then he shouldn't be using our Jiang clan's name to deceive people. Most importantly, he's only selling them for ten copper coins each! Our Jiang clan's talismans are priceless throughout Yue You!"
Shen Muzhou smiled. Why was this little bunny's focus so strange?
He glanced at the vendor again and said, "No hurry, let's follow him first and see where he goes next. We're not familiar with this place, and rash action might cause trouble."
Her little face was puffed up with anger. She then looked at the surroundings. Ghost City appeared chaotic and lawless, but in reality, a group of people patrolled this street, managing it.
However, it was clear that they did not intervene in fights or swindles. So, what were they patrolling for?
The vendor impersonating a Talisman Master glanced at the patrolling figures and quickly collected his money before leaving.
Shen Muzhou and Lin Yan Xi quietly followed behind him.