Chapter 104: The Entrance

Seeing that the little creature was no longer struggling, Ye Feng felt uneasy. He picked it up, placed it in his palm, and pressed on its belly. The creature showed no reaction at all.
“Did I accidentally hurt it just now? Or is it because it can’t digest the lotus seed?” Ye Feng asked Long Tian and Hu Die anxiously for help.
“Let’s see if artificial respiration works!” Long Tian tentatively offered his suggestion, as he knew nothing about raising spiritual beasts either.
“Let me take a look!” Hu Die took the creature from Ye Feng’s hands, gently pressed her finger on its belly, and after a while, handed it back to Ye Feng. “It’s fine. It’s just that the lotus seed contains too much energy, and it needs time to digest it. Its internal energy is stable—there’s no sign of chaos, which means its body can handle the power of the lotus seed.”
“I see. I was scared for a moment!” Ye Feng took the creature back and put it in his pocket again.
“Actually, even before you entered, I sensed something strange about your aura. It was only when I saw the creature that I realized it was because of you,” Hu Die said, pointing at Ye Feng’s jacket pocket.
“You said you only infused it with spiritual energy three times? Does that mean it was born just three days ago?” Hu Die asked curiously.
“That’s right. Today is the third day. Before coming here this morning, I just infused it with spiritual energy,” Ye Feng nodded.
“In that case, this little creature isn’t an ordinary spiritual beast! A ten-thousand-year lotus seed can only be tolerated by those at the Yuan Ying stage or above. Yet it ate it without any problem! Normally, a newly born spiritual beast is only at the Ning Dan stage, and eating such a lotus seed would kill it on the spot!” Hu Die became somewhat interested in the creature.
“I’m sorry for eating one of your lotus seeds,” Ye Feng said apologetically.
“It’s okay. It’s just one lotus seed!” Hu Die said, taking out another lotus seed from her ring, making six in total, and handing them to Long Tian.
Long Tian picked up five of them from her hand and smiled, “The one just now belongs to Ye Feng! Don’t waste your lotus seeds!” Then he threw two of the five lotus seeds to Ye Feng. “The one the creature ate just now also belongs to you. Keep it well this time—don’t feed it to birds again!”
“Got it!” Although Ye Feng already knew Long Tian would share half of the lotus seeds with him, he still felt grateful. He smiled at Hu Die and said, “Thank you for the lotus seeds!”

“No need to thank me. Meeting each other is fate! It’s like a gift from Xiao Tian to welcome you!” Hu Die said with a smile, covering her mouth. “I never thought that with Xiao Tian’s domineering nature, he would give you half of the lotus seeds without hesitation.”
“Uh, let’s not talk about those old times. Back then, we were young and competitive, always trying to outdo each other. Xiao Feng is my good brother—someone I’d be buried with even in death!” Long Tian said, slapping his chest.
“What’s the use of being buried together? The cemetery usage rights are only valid for twenty years. Who knows if no one pays the fee by then, we might get dug up and dumped in some remote corner!” Ye Feng touched his nose.
“It’s fine. It’s just the cemetery management fee, right? My brother has plenty of money. We can deposit it in the bank so it renews automatically when the time comes! Let their descendants pay the fee for me! It definitely won’t be a problem to pay for ten thousand or eighty thousand years.” Long Tian was also quite angry about this topic that had come up recently.
“You’re really ruthless!” Ye Feng gave him a thumbs up.
“Uh, human cultivators at the Yuan Ying stage already have a lifespan of three thousand years, right? If they don’t die from accidents.” Hu Die couldn’t help but remind them.
“Ah, only three thousand years?” Long Tian seemed dissatisfied.
“That’s right. Humans are like this: those at the Ning Dan stage have a lifespan of three hundred years. If they don’t make progress within that time, they die due to natural decline. Cultivators at the Jin Dan stage have a lifespan of a thousand years. If they don’t reach the Yuan Ying stage within that time, the energy in their Jin Dan will dissipate quickly, and they’ll die. The same goes for the Yuan Ying stage—if they don’t make progress within three thousand years, their Yuan Ying will dissipate and they’ll die. In comparison, demons have much longer lifespans! Generally, at the same level, their lifespan is five to ten times longer than humans. From this, it can be seen that the Creator is actually fair.” Hu Die explained these basic facts because she saw that Long Tian and Ye Feng seemed to have no concept of cultivators’ lifespans.
“Are you two still going to the Ghost Market?” Hu Die suddenly remembered the purpose of their visit.
“We already have two treasures with immense energy. Do you still want to go?” Long Tian asked Ye Feng for his opinion, as he himself wasn’t very interested in going.
“Let’s go take a look! Who knows what else we might find? It seems we’re having good luck today!” Ye Feng smiled.

“As for the Ghost Market, we have to wait until after 9 p.m. At this time, there are very few people around. One of the main reasons it’s called the Ghost Market is that the transactions take place in secrecy. Such deals are best kept hidden from others, which is why it’s held at night. Besides, during the day everyone is busy with their own affairs, so only at night do people have time to set up stalls.” As an experienced figure in the cultivation world, Hu Die answered these basic questions effortlessly and explained them clearly.

“I see! Then let’s wait until night?” Long Tian glanced at Ye Feng beside him, as he was eager to see the effects of those lotus seeds.

“Mm, wait until night, and head back right after we’ve explored!” Ye Feng had made up his mind.

“Alright then!” Seeing Ye Feng’s insistence, Long Tian didn’t say much more. Instead, he turned to Hu Die, “Where exactly is the entrance to the Ghost Market? Is it far from here?”

Hu Die pushed open a window and pointed to a large mountain to the north. “If you go out from here, there’s a large mountain about less than a kilometer away to the north—that’s the mountain. At the foot of the mountain is a stone door. Only those who can open that stone door are qualified to enter! The path leading to the door is narrow enough for just one person to pass through, and it closes automatically after each use, to prevent people from outside the cultivation world from sneaking in. After walking along a long and winding path, you’ll enter a valley. That’s where the Ghost Market is!”

“You can have dinner here first, then rest for a while before going. It’s not too late to set off around 9 p.m.!” Hu Die suggested. “Though the food here might be a bit simple—just some vegetarian dishes—but my cooking skills are quite good!”

“Then we’ll trouble you!” Long Tian nodded in agreement. After all, going to the Ghost Market at this time would find it deserted anyway. It was better to wait until 9 p.m. here with Hu Die, at least there would be a place to sit…