Courtyard House: Time Traveler Not Yet a Ghost

He didn't go in. With his current cultivation level, these low-grade spiritual herbs were of little use to him. But he needed to understand the prices of goods in this world, its cultivation system, and the living conditions of ordinary people. He stood at the door, glanced at the price tags of the spiritual herbs in the shop, and memorized them.

Continuing on, they passed a talisman shop. Rows of yellow talismans hung at the entrance, inscribed with various incomprehensible runes in cinnabar ink; some even shimmered with a faint spiritual light. A young Taoist priest in a robe was explaining the talismans' usage to a mortal: "This is a first-tier Fiery Talisman. When you encounter a demonic beast, just throw it on the ground, and it will spew flames. Although its power isn't great, it's enough to deal with some low-level demonic beasts..."

Further on, there was a magic artifact shop. A bronze mirror was displayed at the entrance, and a shop assistant was introducing it to a richly dressed cultivator: "Sir, look at this 'Demon-Revealing Mirror.' Although it's only a low-grade magic artifact, it can reveal the true forms of some low-level demons. It's very useful..."

They strolled around, stopping frequently to look at many shops. Chen Xueru found everything new and exciting, and when she saw a snack stall, she dragged He Damin to buy some to try. She bought a skewer of grilled monster meat and handed it to He Damin: "Brother Damin, try this, it tastes pretty good." He Damin took a bite; the meat was very chewy and carried a faint spiritual energy, indeed tastier than ordinary meat.

After walking for about half an hour, they arrived at a huge building. This building was three stories high, taller than the surrounding shops, with carved beams and painted rafters, and upturned eaves, looking magnificent. A huge black plaque with gold characters hung at the entrance, with the three large characters "Wanbaoge" written on it, the calligraphy powerful and vigorous, clearly not an ordinary piece.

"Wanbaoge?" Chen Xueru read aloud, saying curiously, "It sounds like a place that sells treasures."

He Damin nodded, a hint of interest flashing in his eyes: "Let's go in and take a look."

They entered the Wanbao Pavilion, which was even larger inside than it appeared from the outside. The first floor was a spacious hall with several tables in the center, surrounded by counters and shelves filled with all sorts of goods. There were glittering magical artifacts, elixirs in jade bottles, talismans inscribed with runes, array plates engraved with formations, and various exotic flowers, rare herbs, and materials from demonic beasts... a dazzling array of goods, far more sophisticated than the small shops they had seen before.

Several waiters in uniform walked back and forth in the hall, greeting customers. Seeing He Damin and Chen Xueru enter, a rather quick-witted waiter hurried forward with a professional smile: "Gentlemen, what would you like to buy? Our establishment has excellent magical artifacts and elixirs; whether you are a cultivator below or above the Golden Core stage, you can find something suitable." Seeing that He Damin was only at the Golden Core stage, he emphasized, "We have many magical artifacts suitable for Golden Core cultivators, such as this 'Wind Chasing Sword,' a low-grade spiritual weapon, incredibly sharp and extremely fast, perfect for a young talent like yourself."

He Damin smiled but didn't speak, only scanning the hall with his gaze. Although his divine sense was suppressed, his eyesight remained. The quality of these goods was indeed much better than those in the small shops outside, but most of them were only mid-to-low-grade spiritual weapons and some ordinary pills and talismans, which still held little appeal for him. However, his gaze quickly fell on a sword in the corner.

It was a longsword, entirely cyan in color, with a narrow blade and intricate runes engraved along its spine, from which faint sounds of wind and thunder could be heard. The hilt was made from the bone of some kind of demonic beast, wrapped with cyan ribbons. Although it was only a mid-grade spiritual weapon, its spiritual energy fluctuations were much more concentrated than other magical artifacts of the same grade, clearly indicating that it was crafted by a master.

"How much is this sword?" He Damin asked, pointing to the sword.

The shopkeeper looked in the direction he was pointing, his eyes lighting up. He quickly introduced, "Sir, you have a good eye! This is the 'Azure Edge Sword,' one of our shop's prized possessions. It's a mid-grade spiritual weapon, handcrafted by a master craftsman. The blade is engraved with a 'Wind and Thunder Array,' which can draw upon the power of wind and thunder when used. Its power is 30% stronger than ordinary mid-grade spiritual weapons, making it most suitable for cultivators from the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage to the early Golden Core stage. The price is one thousand mid-grade spirit stones."

A thousand mid-grade spirit stones, converted to low-grade spirit stones, amount to a hundred thousand—no small sum. He Damin nodded, having a rough idea of ​​the amount, but showed no intention of buying. He casually inquired about the prices of a few other items, such as a bottle of Foundation Establishment Pills costing fifty low-grade spirit stones, a second-tier defensive talisman costing twenty low-grade spirit stones, and a low-grade spirit crystal costing one hundred low-grade spirit stones… As he asked, he silently calculated the prices in his mind.

Although the shop assistant was a little puzzled that they were only asking questions and not buying anything, he patiently answered all their questions. He Damin thanked him and then left Wanbaoge with Chen Xueru.

"Brother Damin, you asked so many questions but didn't buy anything. Won't people be unhappy?" Chen Xueru asked softly as they walked out of Wanbaoge. She was a little worried about the shopkeeper's expression.

He Damin laughed: "Don't worry, they're business people, they believe in making money through harmony. Even if we don't buy, it's okay to ask more questions, maybe we'll come back to buy in the future." He paused, then added: "Besides, we need to know the prices of these things, we might need them in the underworld later."

They continued walking, browsing through several more shops. Some sold cultivation techniques, others sold monster eggs, and still others sold all sorts of strange trinkets. Chen Xueru became particularly interested in a jewelry shop, spending a long time looking around before finally settling on a white jade hairpin. The hairpin was carved from white spirit jade, adorned with a lifelike orchid, and looked very elegant.

"How much is this hairpin?" Chen Xueru picked up the hairpin, put it on her head, and asked the shopkeeper.

The shop owner was a middle-aged female cultivator who seemed very kind, and her cultivation level was around the third level of the Foundation Establishment stage. She smiled and said, "Young lady, you have a good eye. This is carved from a hundred-year-old white jade spirit stone, containing a trace of gentle spiritual energy. Wearing it for a long time will have a calming and tranquilizing effect. I'll give you fifty low-grade spirit stones."

Chen Xueru looked at He Damin, a hint of expectation in her eyes. He Damin smiled and nodded: "Buy it if you like it."

Chen Xueru happily paid the spirit stones, put the hairpin in her hair, and looked at herself in the bronze mirror next to her with a smug expression. "Does it look good?" she turned to He Damin and asked.

"You look beautiful." Looking at her radiant smile, He Damin felt a warmth in his heart.

Before they knew it, it was already dark. Lanterns lit up the streets, their dim yellow light illuminating the way and adding a touch of hazy beauty to the city. He Damin found a relatively clean-looking inn to stay in. The inn was called "Yuelai Inn," a two-story wooden structure that looked quite old.

The owner was an ordinary man in his fifties, slightly overweight, with a perpetually smiling and very warm demeanor. He booked a superior room for He Damin and his companions; the room was on the second floor, with windows facing the street and offering a great view.

"What would you like to order, gentlemen?" The owner led them to a room and asked with a smile, "Our shop has the finest spiritual tea and fruits, as well as freshly stewed demon beast meat, which tastes quite good."

He Damin ordered a pot of spiritual tea, several side dishes, and a plate of demon beast meat. The waiter quickly brought the food over. The spiritual tea had a fragrant aroma; one sip and a warm current flowed down his throat and into his stomach, very comforting. The demon beast meat was stewed until very tender, melting in his mouth, and infused with rich spiritual energy.

He Damin and Chen Xueru sat by the window, drinking tea and eating while watching the night view outside. The night in Qingyun City was still lively, the streets brightly lit and bustling with people. In the distance, the sounds of stringed instruments and laughter drifted over, suggesting a celebration. Occasionally, cultivators would ride flying swords, leaving streaks of light in their wake.

"Brother Damin, this world is really big!" Chen Xueru said with emotion, leaning against the window and looking at the starry sky in the distance. "We've only walked a little bit today, and we've already seen so many new things."

He Damin nodded and took a sip of spiritual tea: "Yes, it's huge. So huge that even my divine sense can't reach its edge. There are many powerful sects in this world, and Qingyun Sect is just one of them. There are also Canglang Holy Land, Qinglian Holy Land, Tianyan Sect, and so on, all of which are more powerful than Qingyun Sect. In addition to human cultivators, there are also demonic beasts, demonic cultivators, evil cultivators, and even some ancient races."

"And that Hehuan Sect you mentioned," Chen Xueru suddenly remembered something and asked with a smile, "What kind of sect is that? It sounds so strange."

He Damin laughed as well: "You can tell from the name, it's a sect that specializes in dual cultivation techniques. However, their dual cultivation techniques are different from ours. They use unscrupulous methods to quickly improve their cultivation, so they don't have a good reputation in the cultivation world."

"Oh," Chen Xueru nodded as if she understood, her face slightly flushed, and gently nudged He Damin, "We don't want to be like them."

They talked for a long time, discussing the sects and powers of this world, the cultivation system, and local customs. He Damin selectively shared some information he had gleaned from his divine sense with Chen Xueru. Chen Xueru listened with great interest, occasionally asking some naive questions, which He Damin patiently answered one by one.

"Brother Damin, will we visit those sacred sites in the future?" Chen Xueru asked curiously.

He Damin thought for a moment: "Maybe. But we're not in a hurry now. Let's stay in Qingyun City for a while and get to know this world better. Once we're familiar with it, we can go and see other places."

"What about the underworld?" Chen Xueru asked again.

"The underworld is pretty much stable now. The Ten Kings of Hell and the judges are all very capable, so I don't need to keep an eye on it every day. The Six Paths of Reincarnation can also operate on its own, so I only need to go back and check on it occasionally," He Damin said.

Chen Xueru nodded and stopped talking. She leaned on He Damin's shoulder, looking at the night view outside the window, her eyes filled with longing for the future.

As night deepened, the number of pedestrians on the street gradually decreased, and the noise slowly subsided. He Damin and Chen Xueru washed up and lay down to rest in bed. Chen Xueru quickly fell asleep, her breathing even. He Damin, however, did not sleep. He lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, his mind replaying everything he had witnessed during the day.

This world was far more complex and fascinating than he had imagined. There were bustling cities, and also dangerous forests teeming with demonic beasts; there were righteous and revered sects, and also treacherous and cunning evil cultivators; there were the joys and sorrows of mortals, and also the grudges and affections of cultivators. He established the Underworld to bring order to this chaotic world, ensuring that good deeds were rewarded and evil deeds punished. It was a long and arduous task, but he had confidence, and he had time.

He has plenty of time. The lifespan at the peak of the Tribulation Transcending stage is measured in tens of thousands of years. He can take his time, gradually understanding this world and perfecting the Underworld step by step.

The moon rose outside the window, its silvery light streaming into the room and illuminating Chen Xueru's sleeping face. He Damin reached out and gently stroked her hair, a sense of peace settling over him.

He closed his eyes, and his divine sense uncontrollably spread out slightly, silently covering the entire Qingyun City. He "saw" every corner of the city, the scholars who were still studying by lamplight, the cultivators who were meditating cross-legged, the mortals who were talking in their dreams, the guards who were patrolling in the dead of night... Everything was so peaceful, so real.

Suddenly, his consciousness "saw" several blurry figures drifting in the wilderness outside the city. They were ghosts who had recently died, wandering aimlessly in the wilderness, not knowing where to go, appearing so lonely and helpless.

With a thought from He Damin, the Six Paths of Reincarnation in the underworld trembled slightly. An invisible suction force emanated from the underworld, enveloping the wandering ghosts. The ghosts seemed to sense something, their faces showing confusion. Then, they were involuntarily drawn by a gentle force, slowly disappearing from their original positions and drifting towards the underworld.

They finally found a home.

He Damin's lips curled into a slight smile of relief. He withdrew his divine sense, gently embraced Chen Xueru, closed his eyes, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

Tomorrow, he will continue exploring this world. He'll go to the Treasure Pavilion to buy some truly useful items, check out the auction house for some excitement, and hunt for treasures at the independent cultivator trading market.