Chapter 40: The Sun Dispels Evil, the Horse Moon

"To save you!" He turned around and spoke with a cold indifference.

However, judging by the voice and her build, I sensed she might be a woman, so I cautiously asked, "Are you a woman?"

"Yes," she replied, and then prepared to leave.

It was only then that Lin Chuan seemed to realize something. "Xiao Bei, I thought I just heard something approaching us."

"The market is about to open. The ghost soldiers are clearing the way," the woman in the black cloak said as she looked back.

Her words piqued my curiosity—how did she know? Could she see them? I hurried after her and asked, "How do you know? Can you see them?"

"No, but I can judge by the sound," she answered.

"I see. So what do you do? Why are you here in the ghost market?" I asked.

"I catch ghosts and exorcise evil," she replied, still with that cold tone.

The mention of ghost-catching intrigued me, so I asked, "Do you catch all kinds of ghosts?"

"Of course not. Why, do you need something?" She turned to look at me.

I shook my head. "Just curious. But what brings you here?"

"I'm here for business," she said, then continued walking.

She must be a merchant in this ghost market, I thought. But as a woman running a stall here, could she really do business? Unable to contain my curiosity, I asked, "What's your name?"

"You're asking a bit much. If you don't have business with me, go mind your own affairs. Don't bother me," she said coldly.

"...So proud and standoffish?" Since she seemed annoyed, I didn't follow her any further. But since she had saved us, I still said, "Thanks for your help just now."

She stopped, turned to me, and said, "I was mainly saving him."

"...What do you mean?" I asked, looking at her.

But she gave no answer, turning away and leaving.

Yet her words seemed to carry a hidden meaning—she said she was mainly saving Lin Chuan. What about me? Did she know I could see these things? Or was she aware those ghost soldiers couldn't harm me?

Suddenly, my curiosity about this mysterious stranger grew, so I asked Xiao Fang to follow her and find out where her stall was.

After Xiao Fang left, Lin Chuan, Xiao Yuan, and I continued to wander the market, seeing all sorts of strange things. There were even stalls for "earning money from the dead," like the Bewitchment House—a place for ghosts of both sexes to indulge in pleasures. The living could visit as well, if interested, to experience otherworldly delights.

But I wasn't interested in such places and planned to walk straight past. Unexpectedly, Lin Chuan caught the eye of a female ghost—perhaps it was his mature male charm—and she came right over and hugged him.

Lin Chuan couldn't see her and only felt something restraining him. "Xiao Bei, what's happening to me? I feel like I can't move my legs properly," he asked.

I glanced at him, then at the female ghost now clinging to him, and gave Xiao Yuan a look, signaling him to help remove her.

Xiao Yuan grabbed the female ghost and said, "Let go. Can't you see he can't even walk because of you?"

"What business is it of yours, you stray ghost? How dare you speak to me like that!" the female ghost snapped, glaring at Xiao Yuan.

Annoyed, Xiao Yuan was about to get rough with her.

But I stopped him, having thought of a better way. I shook my head at Xiao Yuan, telling him not to get angry, then said to Lin Chuan, "Brother Lin, I’m not sure what’s going on. How about we go up ahead and find a professional to take a look?"

Lin Chuan looked at me strangely, as if to say, Aren’t you the professional? But seeing my expression, he realized I was up to something and nodded.

We walked a little further, and Xiao Fang returned. When I saw him, I signaled him not to say anything. Then, while the female ghost was distracted, I pulled Xiao Fang aside and asked, "How did it go? Did you find the ghost hunter's stall?"

"Yes, it's just ahead—take the first left, and you'll see a stall called Tianyang Exorcism. That's hers," Xiao Fang answered.

"All right, don’t say anything on the way!"

"Okay," Xiao Fang replied, and I led Lin Chuan toward the ghost hunter.

Sure enough, when we arrived at the Tianyang Exorcism stall, we saw the ghost hunter woman. She was still as cold as before, sitting with her head lowered. There were only a few woven talismans and two pens on her table—nothing else.

She didn't look like business was booming.

"Hey, we meet again!" I greeted her.

She glanced up at me. "Whatever you need, write it down."

Was she already aware of our purpose? I took a slip of paper and wrote: My friend felt unwell after passing by the Bewitchment House—walking is difficult. Could he have run into something?

I handed her the note. She looked at it. "One hundred."

"One hundred?" I was surprised it was so cheap.

"That's always my price. If it's too much, find someone else," she replied coldly.

"Not expensive at all!" I quickly handed her the money.

She took the cash and, after rummaging in her drawer, tossed a handful of glutinous rice onto Lin Chuan, saying, "Go on, people and ghosts walk different paths. He can't see you—no matter how much you like him, it's pointless."

The female ghost, pained by her specially treated rice, quickly released Lin Chuan. Though reluctant, she had to admit the woman was right. She glanced at Lin Chuan and then leaned over to plant a kiss on his face.

I was both stunned and amused.

Lin Chuan, for his part, seemed to sense something touch his face. He wiped it off.

The female ghost, annoyed, kissed the other side of his face as well.

Again, Lin Chuan wiped his face, muttering, "What’s this, brushing up against my face?"

Trying not to laugh, I changed the subject and asked the ghost hunter, "Since fate keeps bringing us together, could you tell me your name? That way I know who to look for next time."

She pulled out a business card and handed it to me. "Call me if you need anything."

"Thanks, but are you Ma Tianyang?" I asked, reading the card.

"...Wrong card. That’s my master’s name. Give it back. Here’s mine," she replied, pulling out another card and handing it to me.

I took the new card and returned the old one.

"Ma Yue? You have the same surname as your master?" I asked curiously.

"Is that a problem?" She shot me another cold glance.

"Not at all, just curious," I replied with a laugh.

"Well, the matter is settled. You can go now," she said, lowering her head once more.

I nodded, pocketed the card, and left with Lin Chuan, though I couldn’t help but marvel at how simple Ma Yue’s method for dealing with ghosts was.

Now that business hours were over, we set off for the black market on Republic Street.

That area was tightly controlled, and once we left the ghost market, we saw that every entrance to Republic Street was heavily guarded.

"Let's go. Any entrance will do," Lin Chuan said.

I nodded, but just then, Tan Xiao appeared, grabbed my arm, and said, "Zhang Xiaobei, be careful. The local who brought you into the ghost market has died!"

"Why?" I asked, horrified.

"He broke the rules. It was done by people from the black market, and they used a method that scares its victims to death!" Tan Xiao said grimly.

A wave of guilt washed over me, as if I were responsible, but Tan Xiao assured me it wasn’t because he brought us—he’d brought too many people, and a minor black market boss caught him in the act.

Even so, I felt deeply troubled. "What about his ghost?"

"He’s already crossed into the underworld, so you needn’t worry about that. I’m just here to warn you—be careful when you go in!" Tan Xiao said, deadly serious.

I nodded, then headed for the main gate of Republic Street with Lin Chuan.

"Show your IDs!" a uniformed guard ordered as soon as we approached.

Lin Chuan and I queued up, holding our passes in hand.

Soon it was our turn. They scanned our passes, checked our photos, and searched us for dangerous items.

All was going smoothly—until they searched my bag and found my soul-killing gun. Several security guards immediately surrounded me. "Why do you have this?"

"It’s a misunderstanding—it’s not real, just a toy. Try it if you don’t believe me!" I explained quickly.

The guard holding the gun fired it at the ground. It made a faint sound, and there were no bullets.

"It really is fake? Then why bring a fake one?" the guard asked.

"Just for fun. I bought it on Chang’an Street," I lied.

They seemed like temporary hires, probably unaware that Chang’an Street was now the ghost market, so they didn’t question my story.

Since it was fake, they returned it and let me in.

Once I got in, Lin Chuan breathed a sigh of relief—if I'd been stopped, he would’ve had to complete the mission alone.

"That really scared me—I thought you might not get in," Lin Chuan said, wiping his brow.

I nodded in agreement, still a little shaken, but at least I was safely inside.

"All right, let’s take a look around," Lin Chuan said, pressing a button on his shirt collar. The main purpose of this visit was reconnaissance, so he’d hidden a micro-camera in his button to record everything inside.

As we walked, I noticed the decor on both sides—it was clearly a cut above the ghost market, in a league of its own.

But what I didn’t expect was to run into Su Yao again. She spotted us and came over excitedly, greeting us with delight. "Zhang Xiaobei, Brother Lin Chuan, so you’re here to have fun too!"