Stranger Danger

“I’m already here, so I might as well get comfortable,” Ye Qing muttered and walked toward the pawn shop without hesitation. It wasn’t like he could leave even if he had second thoughts. Plus, he wanted to know if this Pawn Shop No. 8 really was the same as the pawn shop of legends; one where a person could even pawn off their soul.

The first thing he saw after stepping through the entrance was a humanoid figure with an ebony rack for a head. The rack was jam-packed with colorful candles of all kinds, and each and every one of them was a Stranger.

The humanoid figure stepped closer. The ebony rack had three levels and was shaped like a triangle. Most of the candles were sat at the bottom rack, and only a handful of them sat at the middle rack. The top rack was occupied by one candle only.

Every candle on the rack had a face and a pair of arms and legs just like a human. They were incredibly active and couldn’t stop chit-chatting among themselves.

“Welcome to Pawn Shop No. 8, dear customer,” greeted the white candle at the top rack. She was shaped like a beautiful woman and had a crisp and sonorous voice. He could even detect a hint of playfulness in her tone.

The child-like candles beneath her immediately hopped on their feet and cried, “Welcome!” as well.

The white candle asked, “Welcome to Pawn Shop No. 8, dear customer. I am Candle Spirit and the manager of this pawn shop. I shall do my best to serve you.”

“Manager? Are you the boss then?” Ye Qing asked curiously.

“Of course not. Like I said, I am just a manager who manages things here and there.”

Candle Spirit smiled and asked a question of her own, “This is your first time at our pawn shop, and you seem very familiar with it. In fact, you don’t seem afraid at all. Why’s that? Some of the customers I’ve served were so scared that they couldn’t even stand straight.”

“Yeah, yeah! I remember one guy whose hands and feet couldn’t stop shaking!”

“I remember a girl who screamed for her parents!”

“And I remember a guy who peed his pants!”

The child-like candles immediately echoed in agreement.

Ye Qing shrugged and replied honestly, “Would you release me if I tell you I’m scared? In that case, I’m so scared I can burst into tears at any moment.”

Candle Spirit burst into a giggle. “You really don’t look like it though. Why don’t you cry for me? Maybe then I’ll believe you.”

Ye Qing simply stared at her in silence. Would you release me if I do that? No? Then why on earth would I do that?

Candle Spirit shot him a cute smile. “There is no need to be afraid, customer. Pawn Shop No. 8 represents the opportunity of a lifetime, and trust me when I say that there are countless people who wish that they were in your position!”

“The opportunity of a lifetime, you say?” Ye Qing said in a doubtful tone, “Can you be a little more specific? Exactly what services does your pawn shop offer?”

Candle Spirit answered smilingly, “You might have figured out our main function from the name of our shop already, but we are a pawn shop where you may pawn off your valuables. However, unlike your ordinary pawn shop, our pawn shop accepts anything of value. Literally, anything. We accept money, Strange Artifacts, spirit materials, martial arts manual and other tangible objects. But we also accept intangible objects such as five senses, love, familial love, friendship, natural gift, talent, and even—”

“Your ambition…” A red candle interrupted and burned as passionately as flames.

“Your future…” A green candle followed and flickered hypnotically.

“Your life…” A blue candle continued while sitting as cold as death.

“And your soul…” A black candle concluded while emanating off a most sinister vibe.

“You have already borne witness to our collection. Trust me when I say that our pawn shop has anything and everything you might desire,” Candle Spirit added.

“Those things are a part of your collection?” Ye Qing immediately recalled the strange, fantastical, and unspeakable things he saw while walking up to the pawn shop. Your pawn shop’s taste is a bit heavier than I expected, girl. In my world, Pawn Shop No. 8 only wants the soul.

“What can I obtain in exchange?” Ye Qing asked.

Candle Spirit replied, “Pawn Shop No. 8 has always adhered by the principles of fair trade. In other words, you will gain something of equal value. Obviously, the more you offer, the more you will get. For example…”

An orange candle took over and whispered seductively, “You may gain unlimited wealth…”

A yellow candle breathed bewitchingly, “You may rule over life and death…”

And a blue candle murmured bewilderingly, “You may become the greatest of all…”

“As I said, you can pawn anything and obtain anything. Whatever it is you desire, Pawn Shop No. 8 can fulfill it!”

Candle Spirit’s voice was unbelievably soft, intoxicating, and seductive. At the same time, innumerable whispers suddenly rang beside his ears and basked him in a cocoon of warmth, comfort, and dreams. Before Ye Qing knew it, he found himself basking in his base desires. Or rather, his desires had drowned out the voice of his mind and left nothing but pure want. He wanted wealth, he wanted power, he wanted strength, he wanted everything…

Ye Qing did not realize that the number 8 had appeared on his forehead as he succumbed little by little. As if responding to his unfettered desires, the number 8 the pawn shop’s sign board burned even brighter and leaked black, sinister qi. All the candles on the rack turned pitch black and began swaying in perfect unison. The innocence, liveliness and child-like cunning they had displayed earlier… all of it had been replaced by pure, unadulterated evil.

It was at this moment the Annon Sutra glowed a little and sent an icy sensation across his whole body. It immediately chased away the paralyzing thoughts and jolted Ye Qing back to wakefulness.

The moment he regained his clarity of mind, the murmurs and the number 8 on his forehead abruptly disappeared like it was never there. The oddities inside and outside the pawn shop all returned to normal as well. It was almost as if nothing had ever happened.

One thing was different though. All the candles on Candle Spirit’s head had shrunk a little.

“Did something happen just now?” Ye Qing asked. He was back to normal, but he could not recall what just happened at all. If the Annon Sutra wasn’t giving off a cold sensation, he wouldn’t even realize that something was off.

“It’s nothing. Please, take a seat.”

Candle Spirit led Ye Qing to a table as if nothing had ever happened. She shot him a smile and asked, “Have you figured out what you want, dear customer?”

Ye Qing subconsciously touched his chest. Candle Spirit was acting just the same as before, and he couldn’t spot any oddity in the shop whatsoever, and yet he just couldn’t shake off the feeling that something wasn’t right. He was, for better or worse, on his guard.

Ye Qing thought for a moment before asking, “Can I leave this place?”

It was the truth. From the moment he ended up in this place, his biggest desire was to get out of here.

“...”

Candle Spirit was speechless for a moment. This was the first time she encountered a human who was completely unmoved by an opportunity-of-a-lifetime.

In fact, Ye Qing was moved by the offer, but the strange feeling had caused him to change his mind. Golden opportunities were golden, but what did it matter if you couldn’t live to enjoy it?

“I’m sorry, but one of our rules states that all visitors must pawn at least one item, dear customer. Also, this really is the opportunity-of-a-lifetime. Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider?” Candle Spirit asked.

Wow, I can’t leave until I pawn something? If you have a website, I absolutely would give you a one-star rating!

Ye Qing rubbed his nose in irritation. It was pretty obvious, but now he confirmed that Pawn Shop No. 8 wasn’t a place one could come and go as they pleased.

Ye Qing thought for a little while longer before answering, “I’d like a bottle of Moon Seeing Stone agate!”

Since he couldn’t leave, he might as well take the opportunity to find out more about Pawn Shop No. 8 and their business rules. Second, he did need the agate to accomplish his purpose.

Candle Spirit smiled, “The agate of the Moon Seeing Stone, is it? The Moon Seeing Stone is formed from the essence of the sun and moon and possesses many magical effects, and it so happens that we do have a stock of its agate.”

One of the black cloaked figures immediately walked over up to them. They were carrying a tray with a small porcelain bottle.

“Please verify the goods, customer.”

Ye Qing uncorked the bottle and looked inside. He saw a pool of shiny liquid with what looked like a million stars shining inside it.

“It’s definitely the agate of the Moon Seeing Stone, and its quality is above average,” Ye Qing replied.

Candle Spirit beamed at him. “As I said, our shop adheres closely to the principle of fair trade. We wouldn’t try to cheat you by giving you an inferior product.”

“You said that I can pawn anything, right?” Ye Qing confirmed.

Candle Spirit responded, “That is correct.”

“Very well,” Ye Qing mulled over his options carefully before answering, “In that case, I would like to pawn my laziness and greed.”

Candle Spirit: “...”

An awkward silence stretched for a few seconds before Ye Qing asked, “Is that not enough? What if I chip in my excess anger and desire as well?”

Candle Spirit: “......”

“Still not enough? Fine. I can give you my clumsiness, my indecision, my impulsiveness, my carelessness and, oh! That’s right. My sleep quality has been rather poor as of late, my stomach could stand to be a bit better, and I’ve been plagued by bad luck as of late. Please take all my ailments away from me. I don’t mind even if it exceeds the value of this agate. You’re welcome.”

Candle Spirit: “.........”

Seeing that there was no end to Ye Qing’s rant, Candle Spirit finally let out a sigh, “I told you before that we only accept valuables, dear customer. What you just offered holds no value to us whatsoever.”

Ye Qing abruptly cut himself off and complained, “You were the one who said I could pawn anything. Why didn’t you interrupt me sooner if you’re just going to turn it all down?”

Oh, so it’s my fault now? Candle Spirit barely resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she apologized, “My apologies, dear customer. It’s my fault for not clarifying things.”

“Well, I forgive you,” Ye Qing replied generously.

Like I need your forgiveness, you little shit!

Ye Qing sighed. He was hoping to exploit a loophole or ten, but he supposed that was asking for too much. A few seconds later, he said, “Fine then. I shall give you my handsome, unparalleled, world-shattering looks in exchange for this agate!”

Candle Spirit huffed, “Dear customer, you cannot pawn what you don’t have. Or should I say, your narcissism holds no value to us!”

This time, it was Ye Qing’s turn to fall silent. My looks are my most prized asset, and you’re telling me it has no value whatsoever? Should I show you what gender equality me—wait, I think she’s stronger than me. Oh well. It’s bad form to hit a woman anyway!

“What about my humility, my refinement and my uprightness then? Surely these qualities hold some value to your shop?” Ye Qing challenged. He refused to believe that he was completely lacking in good qualities.

Candle Spirit’s reply was like an arrow through his heart, “My deepest apologies, customer, but you don’t have humility or refinement either. You do have uprightness though, so yes, you can pawn that if you want to!”

“...” You’re lucky you’re a woman. I would’ve punched your face in if you were a man.

Still, the fact that he could pawn his uprightness proved that he wasn’t completely lacking in good qualities. At the very least he wasn’t a total scumbag, right?

Hmm? Why do I feel like I’ve just insulted myself?