Infinite Puzzle City

Chapter 536 East Market
The scroll slowly closed, and Xiao Ran noticed an inconspicuous crack on it.

"It seems that this scroll can only be used three times. It will probably break after it is used up. Plum Blossom Taoist is not giving me any loopholes at all."

After putting away the scroll, Xiao Ran looked up at the second floor in front of him, only to find that it was empty. The table was covered with dust, and there was nothing on the ground except bones.

Those sneaky guys hiding on the second floor had already fled.

"You're running away now?"

Xiao Ran curled his lips and said, "You guys ran fast, otherwise I would have to use you as sacrifices to my sword."

Xiao Ran noticed the seven wooden cups on the ground.

He picked up one at random, and the cup immediately turned into a wisp of green smoke and disappeared without a trace at his fingertips.

Although it was also a tea formation, the Plum Blossom Taoist's tea formation was simply a dimensionality reduction attack, a stealth-like method that really made Xiao Ran deeply feel the horror of this guy.

"Tip!! After completing a tea formation, you can drink a cup of tea on the table, and receive a ghost story blessing. Then drink the fourth cup of tea to complete the side quest battle formation."

"Reminder: Side Quest 2: Battle Array, completed."

The prompt sound surprised Xiao Ran.

But if you think about it carefully, it makes sense.

Just as Taoist Meihua said, the "he" in the scroll is both him and not him.

This sentence can be understood as: the painting is real, and he is fake, just an object.

Therefore, the tea array set up by Taoist Meihua is equivalent to the tea array set up by oneself.

Xiao Ran walked downstairs and saw that the downstairs had also become dilapidated and desolate, as if it had not been taken care of for more than ten years.

Looking at the shopkeeper again, only a pile of loose clothes were left on the ground. Xiao Ran pushed the clothes aside and saw a shriveled centipede lying inside.

This is probably the prototype of the shopkeeper.

"Oh, what a pity! Such a good store was ruined by you."

Liumu said with a sigh, but was hit on the head by Xiao Ran: "Which side are you from?"

Xiao Ran rolled his eyes at Liumu, patted the Yinbing Gourd on his waist, and took the butchers away.

As for Liumu, he was left behind by Xiao Ran. On the one hand, Xiao Ran felt that he was very familiar with this place. On the other hand, he also wanted him to make up the number so that when encountering dangerous curses in the future, this guy could be used.

He walked to the table and only two cups of tea were left.

One cup contained yellowish tea, and the other contained a copper coin.

At Xiao Ran's signal, Xu Yan drank the third cup of tea. After taking a sip of the tea, Xu Yan's eyes widened and his face under the mask turned green.

The veins on his fists were bulging, and his whole body jumped straight as if he had been electrocuted.

Seeing this, Xiao Ran asked, "What's wrong? Isn't it just a little bitter? Just treat it as coffee."

"I drink the sour kind, which is similar to old vinegar."

Wenwen also spoke up.

"Sour?? "

Hearing this, Xu Yan's face became even uglier. It took him a while to recover. He just took out a bottle of mineral water from the space and drank it every day. As for what it tasted like, he was unwilling to say a word.

There was one last cup on the table. Xiao Ran picked it up and drank it. It was just plain water with a little smell of copper. When he finished drinking it, he pinched out the copper coin in the cup.

"Discovered the special cursed item [Blessing Copper Coin], no need to activate it."

【Duofu Copper Coin】：
Privilege: When you are cursed by an irreversible ghost story, consume this money to prevent the curse from causing harm to you.

"Not bad, it can be considered a life-saving talisman."

Xiao Ran put the copper coin away and took out some food and drinks from the space. Anyway, they all had antiques in their hands, so there was no need to rush. They could eat something and drink something first, and then have a good rest.

While eating, Xiao Ran and the other two asked each other about the blessings they had received.

Xiao Ran's blessing is that when you are cursed by a ghost story, you can run to the wellhead on the east side of the market and shout a few times. As long as someone inside responds to you, the curse will be lifted.

Wenwen’s blessing is a bit similar. It is to find an ancient tree and blow a breath into the tree hole. As long as something crawls out of the tree hole, the curse can be lifted.

As for Xu Yan...

I don’t know if it’s because Xiao Ran took action that led to the destruction of the teahouse, but the tea Xu Yan drinks always feels like an expired product.

He was hesitant and unwilling to speak, but finally, unable to avoid Xiao Ran's questions, he expressed his blessings.

For a moment, whether it was Xiao Ran, Wenwen, or even Liu Mu on the side, all silently observed three seconds of silence for Xu Yan.

Xu Yan's blessing is very strange. If you are cursed, you will have diarrhea, and it will be the kind that will flow out quickly. Xu Yan must sing a song related to the food while having diarrhea. The curse can be lifted after he finishes singing it.

This picture...

It's really unimaginable.

"What shall we do next?"

Wenwen asked Xiao Ran carefully while eating to replenish her strength.

"Find a way to complete the main quest first, then find a stall and buy some worthless items. After completing three transactions, wait and see what happens."

The main quest requires them to complete at least three transactions.

Even if the tea formation is included, the three of them have not actually completed the three transactions. This is also the reason why they have not received any notification that the task has been completed.

Xiao Ran planned to complete the task first and then see what the situation would be.

As for the money, Xiao Ran naturally paid for it. No matter whether it was Wenwen or Xu Yan, since they were with him, Xiao Ran would try his best to protect them.

"Liumu, you seem very familiar with this place. Have you been here before?" Xiao Ran suddenly asked Liumu.

Liumu's heart skipped a beat. What he feared was bound to happen. Ever since Xiao Ran found out that he had been slacking off, Xiao Ran had been keeping a tight rein on him.

"There are many places like the Devil's Market in the maze city. I used to come here occasionally."

Liumu's words were evasive, but Xiao Ran didn't make a fuss about it. Instead, he followed his words and asked, "Since you are an acquaintance, then you can help guide us in the next transaction."

"Of course, it's an honor."

Liumu bowed slightly to Xiao Ran with a smile on his face.

Liumu cooperated with the three people and talked about the situation in the evil ghost market. After that, his opinion was that they could go to East Street to buy things, as the prices there were the most reasonable and there were the least ghost stories.

"Then let's go to East Street."

Xiao Ran stood up, dusted himself off, and walked out the door with the three of them.

Complete the task as soon as possible and find Lao Ding by the way. This old thief is very cunning. It has been such a long time since he came in but there is still no news about him.

As mentioned before, the layout of this ghost market consists of three vertical streets and a horizontal street in the middle.

Three routes: East, Central and West.

The left side is mostly medicinal materials, the right side is mostly antiques, and the middle road is mostly miscellaneous items.

East Street is on the left, where most of the medicines are sold.

Although the value of this medicine may not be as high as those antiques, it is much less tricky than the ones on West Street. The only thing you have to be careful about is to understand the price.

"Look, ginseng essence is a tonic treasure. Even if the King of Hell comes, he can't take you away if you take a bite."

A roadside vendor grabbed a fat baby from a cage. The baby had a big head and a small body, and looked about one or two years old. It had a high braid on its head tied with a red rope. The vendor held it in his hand and showed it to passers-by.

"Can ginseng become a spirit?"

Xu Yan looked at the chubby, white and tender little baby in the vendor's hand and couldn't help but step forward and ask, "Is this really ginseng spirit?"

"Of course, it will be replaced if it's fake."

The vendor was afraid that Xu Yan would not believe it, so he took out a knife and cut the fat baby's arm. A golden liquid oozed out from the blade, and the aroma of medicine immediately filled the air. Just one sniff made Xu Yan feel refreshed, and he looked as if he was full of energy.

Xiao Ran and Wenwen also came over and were curious when they saw the white and tender doll in the vendor's hand.

"What's the price??"

Xu Yan asked.

"Cheap, 3000 ghost money!"

After hearing the price, Xu Yan immediately began to back off. Three thousand, where would he get so much money? Even if he added up all the allowances he had, he only had a few hundred dollars.

So he could only look at Xiao Ran.

"Brother Xiao, this..."

Xiao Ran didn't mind spending money, but he glanced at the vendor's stall and saw that the cages at the back were all filled with chubby babies.

When I used the power of backtracking to sweep over them, I saw that these so-called fat dolls immediately revealed their original appearance under the power of backtracking. They were clearly a pile of rotten wood, but I didn't know what means were used to process them into this appearance.

After looking around, it seems that the fat doll that the vendor is dealing with is real.

Seeing this, Xiao Ran said, "3000 is not expensive, but is your participation in the insurance real?"

"Hey, what are you talking about? How can a drug dealer like me sell you fake ginseng?"

The vendor curled his lips, and immediately looked unhappy, holding up the fat doll in his hand: "Look, open your eyes, if this ginseng is fake, I... my ancestral grave will be on fire."

"Oh, then your ancestral grave is quite prosperous."

"Brother, are you really buying it?"

"Buy, buy, buy. I just bought a lot." Xiao Ran stepped forward and enthusiastically grabbed the stall owner's arm: "Take out a few of the ones in the back so I can have a look."

The stall owner's eyes moved slightly, and after thinking for a while, he casually took out two fat dolls from the cage at the back: "Look, they are exactly the same, both are real, thousand-year-old ginseng spirits, 3000 ghost money each is not expensive, right?"

"Not expensive." Xiao Ran picked one up and weighed it in his hand: "I bought a lot, can you give me a discount?"

"No, 3000 is the lowest price." The boss was determined not to bargain.

"But why is this ginseng spirit so dull and unwilling to move? Could it be..." Xiao Ran looked at the boss suspiciously while holding the fake product in his hand.

The suspicious look made the boss feel guilty, and he quickly took the dolls from Xiao Ran's hand and said, "I cast a spell to coax these dolls to sleep, and they are like this. It will be fine when they wake up, otherwise they will be too noisy."

"But why does this chubby little guy have a cut on his body? Look at this!!"

Xiao Ran continued to find fault and took a step closer to the boss.

He pointed at the fat baby, and at that moment he unexpectedly bumped into the boss, causing him to lose his balance and almost fall to the ground.

Fortunately, Xiao Ran was quick-witted and grabbed the boss's hand and lifted him up.

The boss looked down at the fat doll in his left hand, then looked at Xiao Ran, and said impatiently, "Are you going to buy it or not? If not, don't delay my business."

"Okay, three thousand is three thousand. Buy one first and let me take a look. If this ginseng is not authentic, I will come back to find you."

As Xiao Ran spoke, he took out three thousand ghost money, slapped it on the boss's hand, grabbed the fat doll in the boss's other hand, stood up and left.

Seeing Xiao Ran and his group leave, the boss sneered and said, "I'm afraid that you won't be able to find me when you come back."

The boss said this, took the money happily, and raised the ginseng spirit in his hand: "Hey, you cheated another one, I'll give you an extra dish tonight."

After he finished speaking, there was no response from the fat kid. The boss was stunned for a moment, reached out and patted the fat kid's face, and suddenly realized something was wrong. He pinched it hard with his fingers, and when he saw the cracks caused by his nails, his eyes widened, and he slapped his thigh, tears came down, and he stood up and looked around, yelling: "Damn, this, this, beast, beast!!!"

(End of this chapter)