At that time, Xie Bai was thin and small, barely reaching the waist of an adult, and when he looked up, he could only see Yin Wushu's thin chin.

Most of the vendors in the demon market had eccentric appearances, and the things they sold were even more diverse. They liked to pick out various eye-catching items and string them together into a long chain, supporting them on tall flags at their stalls as a live signboard.

The first "signboard" that Xie Bai saw was a string of eyeballs, dug out from who knows what, with blood vessels still sticking to them. The string of eyeballs swayed in the wind, and the one at the end just brushed against Xie Bai's face. The cold and slippery touch startled Xie Bai, who grabbed Yin Wushu's clothes tightly around his waist with one hand and held onto his fingers with the other, burying his head behind Yin Wushu's back, too scared to come out.

Young Xie Bai couldn't eat anything normal. He was naturally thinner than ordinary children, with hands so small and slender. Yin Wushu's palms, on the other hand, were large, with long and slim fingers. Xie Bai couldn't hold Yin Wushu's whole hand, so every time they went out, Yin Wushu always held out four fingers and extended his little finger for Xie Bai to hold.

Especially before entering the demon market, a crowded place, Yin Wushu would always smile and ask, "Are you holding on tight?"

For children of that age, the North Sea Demon Market was both exciting and novel. The first time Xie Bai went there, he was both afraid and curious, torn between the two.

Fortunately, there was Yin Wushu. He always loved to talk nonsense, pointing out all sorts of interesting things to Xie Bai along the way, earnestly telling him stories that were half true and half false. He would deliberately describe ordinary things as frightening, leaving Xie Bai stunned, and then tell interesting and funny stories to coax and tease Xie Bai into coming out from behind him when he was truly scared.

In addition to the bustling vendors in the demon market, there were also various restaurants and taverns on both sides, some even setting up canopies at the door to sell hot snacks.

At that time, Yin Wushu was very indulgent towards him, and he always bought whatever Xie Bai showed a little interest in. In the middle of the market, there was a food stall stewing soup called "Ink Spot White Jade," which was actually fish soup with various exotic ingredients added. It was stewed for a long time until the fish meat dissolved into it, leaving only the black fish head bones faintly visible in the milky white thick soup, exuding a delicious aroma, making it an excellent choice for driving away the cold on such a freezing day.

The aroma from that stall made Xie Bai feel a bit unable to walk properly, and Yin Wushu, without saying a word, bought two bowls and led Xie Bai to sit down and eat one each.

Just after eating, there were no abnormalities. However, not long after they walked, Xie Bai vomited against the wall, almost spewing out his life.

Yin Wushu squatted down, holding him and injecting him with spiritual energy while frowning and clicking his tongue, shaking his head. "You still can't eat normal food..."

*

The black cat wrapped around Xie Bai's small arm lightly called out, raised its paw to pat Xie Bai's wrist, then curled its tail around, seeming a bit restless.

Xie Bai opened his eyes from resting and the scent of "Ink Spot White Jade" still lingered in front of his nose. He was stunned for a moment before he came to his senses, lowered his head to look at his right hand, which was being pressed down by the cat's paw.

Unlike before, Xie Bai's hand was now tinged with a bluish-gray color. The veins that could faintly be seen through the skin had suddenly disappeared, replaced by some loose blood spots, as if blood stasis had just dissolved.

He squinted and remained silent for a while, then suddenly lifted his finger to scratch the cat's chin, saying, "Looks like you're hungry again. Do you need to eat?"

The kitten, which had originally wrapped around his arm and looked somewhat anxious, immediately loosened its tail and jumped onto his shoulder, sitting obediently, as if waiting for Xie Bai to give the order to hunt for food, showing a dignified appearance.

Xie Bai suddenly turned his head, looked at the ready black cat, and raised the corner of his mouth, saying, "Don't regret it." The smile seemed inexplicably chilling, giving off a creepy feeling.

The black cat: "...?!"

Once you board the thief ship, you cannot get off, and if you encounter a lunatic, even if you want to run, you can't escape.

The little black cat, under the pretext of "heavy Yin energy, don't run off," had its four paws firmly bound to Xie Bai's arm with spiritual restraints, half embraced in his arms. It was deprived of its freedom, its tail tip gripped and its mouth sealed shut, unable to even cry for help.

Little black cat: "..."

If it were an ordinary cat, it probably wouldn't understand why there was such a thing as "heavy Yin energy" when looking for food. Isn't it just going out to buy something to eat?

Several minutes later, there was suddenly a tall, thin figure in the neighboring town of Huangtou, quietly walking along a dirty road leading to Huangtou Mountain.

The dirty road connected to an old village at the edge of Huangtou Town, with vast and quiet fields on both sides. The road was bumpy and uneven, narrow enough for only one car to barely pass through; with two more people needing to squeeze, one of them would risk falling into the slightly lower fields.

The houses in the village were already sparse, and in the middle of the night, there was not a single light, everything pitch-black, with only the looming shadow of the mountain peak quietly lying ahead, giving off a somewhat eerie atmosphere.

Xie Bai rubbed the tip of the little black cat's tail with one hand, and with a snap of his fingers with the other hand, a bean-sized flame shot out. He spread his palm, and two dark yellow slips of paper appeared in his hand, each recording a line of words —

One slip read: "Three willow trees at the head of the nameless grave on Huangtou Mountain."

The other slip: "Yin fish in the west of the river at the Fisherman's Crossing."

The little black cat stared solemnly with its round eyes, looking at the two long strips of yellow paper for a moment, then seemed to lose interest, turning its head away with an expression of disdain.

The words on these two slips were written by Xie Bai, recording not someone else but the four rather suspicious demon corpses.

The situation of these demon corpses had not been clarified yet, and he happened to be hungry and needed to find something to eat. Going elsewhere was also an option, but he might as well follow the information from the demon corpses and see where they originated.

This seemingly long dirt road took only a moment to walk to the end. He looked up at the dimly visible two stars at the top of Huangtou Mountain, roughly determined the direction, and stepped up towards the mountain.

The wind in the mountain was cold and gloomy, whether it was because he was hungry or for some other reason, Xie Bai coughed much more severely than before. It started off as a dull cough, but later, almost every few steps would trigger a coughing fit.

He frowned and raised his hand to stroke the little black cat's head, saying, "It is indeed troublesome not to know the way... Finding something to eat is such a hassle."

 

Translator : DarNan