Stranger Danger

Chapter 890: Six Livestocks Dissolves Into Fog

“It is as miss says,” Tao Chong echoed in agreement. “Not only that, everyone’s appearance and aura will be concealed once they enter the Six Livestocks Market. So long as you don’t reveal yourself, it is impossible for another person to identify you.”

“I see!” Ye Qing nodded. He felt a lot calmer knowing that the Six Livestocks Market had many measures in place to protect its guests’ privacy.

Next, he looked at the restless livestocks behind him and asked, “What about these livestocks? Surely we don’t need to escort them throughout our duration inside the Six Livestocks Market?”

“Of course not.” Tao Chong kept him in suspense. “Patience, young master. You will find out very soon.”

“Fine. Let’s go.”

Ye Qing began walking faster toward the Six Livestocks Market.

From their perspective, the Six Livestocks Market was located in the middle of several mountains. The wisps of lamplight shining through the thick fog was colorful, mysterious, and dreamlike.

Strangely, Ye Qing’s demonic thought told him that the Six Livestocks Market was both in front of him and infinitely away from him. It reminded him of Schr?dinger\'s cat, except that this “cat” simultaneously existed and did not exist even after it entered his observation. It was anomalous to put it mildly.

As they continued forward, the surrounding fog began wobbling as if they were stirred by a cool breeze. It made everyone feel like they were stepping into a celestial realm.

“Meh meh meh...”

“Moo moo moo...”

“Arf arf arf...”

It was at this moment the swarm of livestocks behind them suddenly began crying non-stop. It was as if they sensed danger and couldn’t help but panic.

The next moment, Ye Qing saw an eerie sight. A goat began turning more and more transparent until it was completely gone.

In Ye Qing’s senses, the goat had completely disappeared in aura, body, and soul. It left absolutely nothing behind almost as if it never existed in the first place.

The rest of the livestock panicked as a matter of course. They started scattering in every direction in an attempt to escape from this heaven-forsaken place. Unfortunately, their efforts were futile before the trio’s power.

That said, Ye Qing quickly realized that their restrictions were unnecessary. No matter how hard the livestocks struggled, they could never go beyond the fog’s boundaries. In fact, from his point of view, they were running in circles as if they were trapped in an invisible maze.

Slowly, eventually, all of the animals slowly turned into nothing like the goat at the beginning. It was a stunning and eerie sight.

It was stunning because several hundred animals had literally gone poof right before their eyes, and it was eerie because they never felt a thing throughout the whole process; not even a wisp of energy.

The final destination of this combination of emotions culminated was, of course, fear and anxiety.

“Do you know how they disappeared, Qingyou?” Ye Qing asked.

“It’s probably because of the fog,” Feng Qingyou answered.

“The fog?” Ye Qing frowned. In his senses, the fog was no different from your ordinary fog.

“It is definitely because of the fog,” Feng Qingyou clarified before reaching out to play with the fog in front of her. “Also, the animals technically didn’t ‘disappear’ into nothing. They were assimilated into the fog.”

“Assimilated?” Ye Qing’s eyebrows leaped into his hair. “You’re saying... they turned into the fog?!”

“Yes.” Feng Qingyou’s answer was as indifferent as it was chilling. “Don’t you see? The fog is a little thicker after the animals vanished.”

“You’re... right,” Tao Chong subconsciously blurted.

Ye Qing hadn’t noticed until she mentioned it, but it was a little thicker than normal.

Suddenly, an even more horrifying possibility occurred to Ye Qing. “Say... do you think that this fog—all of it—were previously livestocks?”

As soon as he said this, Tao Chong turned as pale as a sheet. The first time he came here, he was surprised by the livestocks’ sudden disappearance but did not think much about it. Now that they mentioned it, he was starting to think that they were right.

Although they called them “livestock” or “animal”, there was no denying that they were once living, breathing humans!

If Ye Qing was right, and the fog really was transformed from the livestock... How terrifying was that?

Tao Chong turned even paler and subconsciously stepped away from the fog.

For a time, the atmosphere felt stifling, and no one could say a word.

They all knew that the people who transformed into livestocks would not meet a kind fate, but the thought that they had turned into fog and were lingering around them like ghosts... it wasn’t a good feeling for sure.

It was at this moment a foreign thought suddenly occurred to Ye Qing. It informed him that he could practice in the Six Livestocks Market for a little over a month.

At the same time, the name and location of a residence appeared in his mind.

Before they entered the fog, they had split up their horde of livestocks and performed some calculations. They already knew that, assuming that their calculations weren’t too off, Ye Qing and Feng Qingyou would be able to practice for a little over a month, whereas Tao Chong would be able to practice for twenty or so days.

Ye Qing inhaled slightly, and the negative emotions that plagued his mind earlier disappeared all at once. Then, he broke the silence with a chuckle, “It was just a stray thought. There is no need to pay any attention to it. Now come on.”

It did not matter if their victims were turned into fog or a bloody smear on the ground. In the end, they were dead. It was just a different way of death, and he did not regret killing these people who more than deserve their fates. With that in mind, why should he feel uncomfortable about this?

“Mm. Let’s go,” Feng Qingyou too responded with a smile. She seemed completely unperturbed by this.

Seeing that the duo were walking toward the Six Livestocks Market, Tao Chong clenched his teeth and chased after them.

It was strange. They had just taken a step, but the scenery before their eyes abruptly cleared up, and the fog that permeated every corner of the region abruptly vanished. Before they knew it, they found themselves standing in the middle of a traditional town.

It was nighttime in the town. Narrow limestone roads joined the quaint little buildings that littered the town here and there. Despite its somewhat haphazard arrangement, the town gave off a feeling of picturesque disorder. A big red lantern hung on the eaves of every front door, illuminating the town to the point it felt like daytime and giving off a celebratory, warm, and comforting feeling.

“This Six Livestocks Market is quite charming,” Ye Qing praised from the bottom of his heart after scanning his surroundings. This was nothing like the dark and oppressive Anomaly he had envisioned before entering this place.

“It is a little unexpected,” Even Feng Qingyou echoed in agreement.

But of course, this wasn’t the important point. The main point was that the entire market seemed to be surrounded by some sort of mysterious, unfathomable power. It was to the point they would call it the manifestation of Dao or Law.

Dao was as boundless as the earth and the sky. Law was as vast and infinite as the sea. Standing between these two concepts, Ye Qing felt as if his heart was clear, and his spirit was bright. The Dao washed his soul and spirit, whereas the Law refined his muscles and bones. It felt like a celestial was teaching him a lesson directly; like all of his conundrums and questions were resolved in an instant; like the sun and moon were not just within reach, but in his lap already.

“No wonder they say that the Six Livestocks Market is a martial sanctuary for practitioners of the Dark Ways. This is unbelievable.”

Ye Qing had drawn one breath—just one breath!—and he could feel his cultivation growing already. He did not doubt for a second that his cultivation would grow by leaps and bounds even if he just lazed around and did nothing for the whole month.

Feng Qingyou also praised, “The Great Way has taken form, and the Law fills the sky. This is no different from the Dao Domain of ancient celestials and Buddhas.”