Chapter 27

Old Daoist Master was unwilling to see him for the last time, and Xuan Kong himself was a man of firm resolve. Since he had made up his mind to achieve something at the foot of the mountain to win the old Daoist Master's favor, he naturally wouldn't linger any longer.

Following the delighted Wang Qi, he walked down the mountain.

Wang Qi had originally planned to beg Xuan Kong to use his wind-riding technique to take him back to the North Sea, but Xuan Kong wanted to see the local customs and scenery along the way, so he persuaded Wang Qi to walk for a while before using magic. Although Wang Qi had only stayed on Mount Laoshan for a few months, it had taken him more than a year to walk from the North Sea to Mount Laoshan.

Though he missed his hometown deeply, seeing Xuan Kong, who was usually gloomy, finally show some interest, he didn't say much more.

After all, it was just a few more months, and he had been away from home for several years, so a little more time didn't matter.

With money in hand, Xuan Kong hired a carriage in the small town at the foot of Mount Laoshan. He didn't know the prices in the mortal world, and the carriage driver deliberately overcharged him, demanding a sky-high price of 500 taels of silver to take them to Ninghai Prefecture.

Since the money was easily obtained by Xuan Kong, he didn't haggle and simply took out a 500-tael silver note from the pile he had robbed from Deng Lizi and handed it over. Seeing the generous payment, the carriage driver smiled and helped the two of them into the carriage, then cracked the whip and set off.

"Senior Brother, you shouldn't have agreed to his terms, and even allowed him to pick up other passengers along the way," Wang Qi complained softly in the carriage once they started moving. Xuan Kong frowned: "Didn't you say this was the going rate?" He had also inquired around the town, and everyone said the carriage driver was the most honest.

Wang Qi, who had experienced much on his way to Mount Laoshan, sneered: "Those townspeople are all his fellow villagers, of course they would speak in his favor. 500 taels of silver to go to the North Sea is already very expensive, and he still wants to pick up other passengers along the way."

500 taels of silver, if converted to copper coins, could bury this carriage, and it was enough for an ordinary family to live on for a lifetime.

But the carriage driver was still greedy.

"Never mind, let it be," Xuan Kong, in a bad mood, waved it off. Since the money was obtained by robbing Deng Lizi, Wang Qi didn't say anything more and changed the topic: "Senior Brother, you seem quite familiar with the North Sea."

Xuan Kong smiled: "I have been to the North Sea before, but I'm not very familiar with it."

Wang Qi was curious: "Then why do you always look thoughtful when I mention the North Sea?"

Xuan Kong was taken aback, not having noticed it himself: "Do I?" Seeing Wang Qi nodding affirmatively, Xuan Kong smiled and said: "Since the journey is long, let me tell you a story." He organized his thoughts and asked: "Your family has lived by the North Sea for a long time. Have you heard of the Roshacha Sea Market?"

This was a place Xuan Kong remembered from Pu Songling's description, and he had specially gone to see it. He didn't think Wang Qi would know about such a divine place.

To his surprise, Wang Qi said with longing: "So Senior Brother knows about the Roshacha Sea Market too."

Xuan Kong was surprised: "You really know about the Roshacha Sea Market?" He had intended to show off a bit in front of Wang Qi, but didn't expect him to know about the Roshacha Sea Market. Pretending to be skeptical, he said: "Tell me what you know about the Roshacha Sea Market. Is it the same place I'm talking about?"

Wang Qi, seeing Senior Brother's surprise, felt quite pleased: "In our Ninghai Prefecture, there was a man named Ma Ji who was very handsome in his youth and was a well-known figure in our prefecture."

Xuan Kong exclaimed: "So Ma Ji is from your hometown!"

He couldn't remember if Pu Songling had written about where Ma Ji was from, but he was familiar with the name. Wang Qi smiled strangely: "The Roshacha Sea Market is quite peculiar. I've seen Ma Ji once, and he was very handsome, but in the Roshacha Sea Market, people thought he was ugly and even considered him a monster."

Xuan Kong laughed and waited for Wang Qi to continue the story.

It was about Ma Ji going out to sea for business, encountering a storm, and his ship capsizing, drifting to a place where ugliness was beauty and beauty was ugliness. Wang Qi laughed: "Isn't it strange? Those people in the Roshacha Sea Market were so ugly themselves, but they thought Ma Ji was a monster."

Xuan Kong laughed: "So Ma Ji had good luck!"

Wang Qi turned and asked: "Why do you say he had good luck?"

Xuan Kong asked Wang Qi: "Have you seen any demons or ghosts since you came to Mount Laoshan?" Wang Qi shook his head. He had only been on the mountain for about two months and, apart from the beautiful Yunluo Princess who looked like a fairy, he hadn't seen any other demons.

Xuan Kong smiled: "But Ma Ji saw demons, and many of them!"

Wang Qi was startled, as if he had thought of something, and exclaimed: "You mean Ma Ji saw demons in the Roshacha Sea Market?" Xuan Kong nodded: "Exactly, but it's not that there are no people in the Roshacha Sea Market. Only those who can go there are divine beings, not the kind of people Ma Ji would see in the market."

Wang Qi was amazed: "Good heavens, so many demons, and they didn't eat Ma Ji?"

Xuan Kong explained: "The demons in the Roshacha Sea Market don't even know they are demons. Their true forms are varied, and their education tells them they are human, so they think Ma Ji's appearance is strange and consider him a monster."

Wang Qi's eyes widened: "There are people who educate demons?"

Xuan Kong said matter-of-factly: "In this world, it's not just humans who form countries; there are many countries formed by demons." Wang Qi, of course, didn't believe it: "Demons can form a country?"

Xuan Kong said: "Do you know about the monk who was the imperial nephew in the previous dynasty?"

Wang Qi nodded: "That's the Tang Emperor Taizong, and you're talking about the Tang Monk Xuanzang who went to the West to fetch the scriptures."

Xuan Kong said: "That's the Tang Monk Xuanzang. He was a real person, and after fetching the scriptures, he was enshrined as the Buddha of Sandalwood Merit and ranked among the Buddhas in the West." Wang Qi muttered to himself: "I thought it was just an ancient myth."

Xuan Kong shook his head: "You've already joined the Laoshan Sect to cultivate, and you have the potential to become a immortal. If you have the right opportunity, you might see these things with your own eyes." He continued: "On the journey to fetch the scriptures, Tang Monk Xuanzang encountered a place called Lion Camel Kingdom, where the entire country was ruled by demons. The Roshacha Sea Market is somewhat similar."

That's why he thought Ma Ji had very good luck; not everyone could roll around in a den of demons and come out unscathed.

Wang Qi asked: "Is there really such a country?"

Xuan Kong said: "Lion Camel Kingdom is one, and the Roshacha Sea Market is another. It's said that there are such countries in other places too." Wang Qi suddenly smiled mischievously: "Senior Brother, it sounds like you know the Roshacha Sea Market quite well."

Xuan Kong, looking out the window, didn't want to say more: "I've been there before. The demons there are not much different from humans."

Compared to the Lion Camel Kingdom, where humans were considered food, the demons in the Roshacha Sea Market, who worked or ran businesses, were much kinder.