Chapter 595

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Chapter 595: Sailing Through the Sea of Hardship

"This famous thief named Gray Cat was well-known five hundred years ago. Nobody knew where they came from, what they looked like, or how they managed to steal so many treasures."

"But they did indeed steal a large number of riches, sneaking into heavily guarded treasure vaults countless times and taking what they valued."

"There were rumors that she was a woman."

"There were rumors that she came from Europe."

"There were rumors that she found the Sakura tree."

"If we look at the historical records, the wealth she stole was enough to buy an entire country. That’s why she had a nickname, ‘The Thief of Nations’…"

"Naturally, Gray Cat’s vast wealth caught everyone’s attention over the centuries. But for a whole five hundred years, nobody could find her treasure vault, and nobody knew what happened to her riches."

"Just like the treasure of those legendary pirates, it surely piqued the curiosity and fascination of many people. But in these five hundred years, there hasn’t been a single clue, making people doubt if such a thief ever existed." The merchant paused for a moment.

"Treasure, thief." The hoodie-wearing youth sneered. "Finding treasure left behind by predecessors and getting rich? I’ve seen stories like this before. Have you watched One Piece? Are you waiting to find nothing but disappointment?"

The merchant laughed loudly and said. How could that be? Stories like this should be about tomb raiding in the Ming Country. They are all about finding treasures left by previous people.

He raised his finger and said. But I can tell you for sure that Gray Cat does exist. She was a person from five hundred years ago, but what does five hundred years mean to the dragon clan?

The hoodie man asked. Is it related to the dragon clan?

"As I said, Gray Cat stole a large amount of treasure, including…the Dragon Palace," said the merchant in a low voice.

"It seems she has some skill. The Dragon Palace is underwater, but it can still be stolen."

"Being stolen is not a big deal, but the stolen item is a priceless treasure," the merchant shrugged. "This treasure is a precious pearl."

"Dragons love pearls, after all."

"Its full name is…Memories of the Past," the merchant said solemnly. "It is the most treasured possession of the dragon clan."

The hoodie youth said calmly, "I’ve never heard of it. What does it do?"

"It’s not that amazing, it just helps people remember their past memories."

"What?" The young man in the hoodie was stunned. "There are treasures like this?"

"That’s why it’s called the Dream Orb. Of course, its effects are not limited to just that. According to records, the Dragon Clan’s ultimate treasure has many wonderful abilities related to the soul and memories." The merchant tapped his knee. "So, are you interested?"

The young man in the hoodie reluctantly replied. A little… I don’t really have any thoughts about my past life. The past is the past, and I am me. So, are you trying to find the treasure left by Gray Cat? Well, sorry to disappoint you, but I have no idea about that.

"Of course, you wouldn’t know. If you did, I wouldn’t be asking you to cooperate," the merchant shrugged. "Who wouldn’t want to have it all to themselves?"

"So?" The young man waited for the merchant to continue.

"We used a certain method, a special method. Following a mysterious guide, we found the Seventh Heaven’s Prison, and the answer points to this prison."

"The prison is the treasure trove?"

"No, it’s a clue that leads to another clue. The answers we need are in the prison, but the Dream Orb isn’t here." The merchant rested his chin on his intertwined fingers. "However, there are ancient traces left by Gray Cat within the prison."

"Hmm?" The young man in a hoodie raised his eyebrows. "Are you all so sure?"

"Other than Gray Cat, it’s hard to imagine anyone being able to freely enter and exit the prison. She seemed to be waiting for someone here, but they never arrived. So she left behind a clue and left the Ninth Prison. But that person never came, so this clue remained until now, five hundred years later." The shopkeeper covered his face and smiled. "Isn’t it strange?"

"What clue?"

"Right now, I can’t tell you for free… After all, we discovered it at a great cost and lost many precious mysteries." The shopkeeper narrowed his eyes. "Now that you know everything you need to know, do you plan on cooperating with us?"

"I’ve listened until now, but I haven’t heard specifically about your ‘way of cooperating.’ If you already have the clue, why do you need us? And why release so many prisoners from the Seventh Prison?"

The young man in the hoodie was not an impulsive youngster who would immediately lose his judgment just because someone said something.

It may sound good, but it may not be as good as it seems. The good that others give you must be repaid tenfold or a hundredfold.

"After talking for so long, you still can’t let go of your guard," the shopkeeper sighed.

"Stop talking nonsense."

"Come on, it’s actually quite simple what you need to do." The merchant grinned and said. Just survive for now.

The young man in the hoodie gave a cold look.

"I’m not kidding. If you can’t even survive, it means you’re not capable enough."

"The Jin Yi Wei will be keeping an eye on you. Escaping from the dungeon is just the beginning, you should know that."

"Once you survive until the seventh day, I will come to support you. You’ll have enough time left to seek revenge."

"What about after that? Don’t you want to regain your freedom? We’re the only ones who can help and are willing to help."

The merchant said. Our reputation in the martial arts world is pretty good.

"Reputation?" the young man in the hoodie asked. "Who exactly are you people?"

"Sailing through a sea of hardships."

"Hasn’t this sect already been destroyed? Is it a branch that broke away from Buddhism or a group that distorts Buddhist scriptures?"

"Light and shadow coexist. Just as there are people like you, there will naturally be people like us. The path of magic cannot be completely eradicated. No matter when or where, it will resurface. What is needed is just some patience, a period of time, and an opportunity."

The vendor raised a hand to his lips and whispered. I can’t easily talk about the rest. It would be too bothersome… Although I am just a member of the sea of suffering, I represent more than just myself. It needs to be kept secret. But you should trust us. With your abilities, you qualify to join us. I have high hopes for you, Li Qizong. I hope you can make it through these few days.

Li Qizong raised his hand and tilted his hat, scornfully laughing, "Do you think that tail behind you can kill me? I’m just fishing. If they dare to show their heads, I’ll immediately chop them off."

With that, he turned and left.

The vendor sat in place. Others couldn’t even see his stall. It was an empty, desolate area.

He packed up his stall and was about to leave when he noticed the "tail" not far away.

Bai Chang was using a pager to transmit signals. Since it was a newly researched equipment, he wasn’t familiar with it, so he tapped slowly.

Li Qizong stayed at the empty stall for too long, which definitely meant something was wrong.

Mysteries are of different levels, and higher-level mysteries can block the perception of lower-level mysteries.

Bai Chang wasn’t sure if it was an object or something else, but he had a feeling that he had stumbled upon some secrets. This might be directly related to the case of the prison break-in. Continuing the investigation would be too dangerous, so Bai Chang immediately left the stall and planned to meet up with the rest of the team.

However, as soon as he reached the center of the market, he realized something was wrong. None of the pedestrians seemed to notice, no matter how close they walked. But Bai Chang could somehow sense something unusual about Li Qizong. Although he was carrying charms to dispel illusions and delusions, they didn’t work just now!

Suddenly, someone bumped into Bai Chang’s shoulder from the front.

"Oh, sorry," Bai Chang said instinctively.

The passerby stumbled and gave Bai Chang a curious look. "Why is there a lamppost here?"

Another companion of the passerby laughed and said. Yeah, that’s strange. Never mind, let’s keep going.

A lamppost? But I’m a real person!

Bai Chang desperately wanted to explain, but when he opened his mouth, no one in the crowd could hear him. In the midst of the noisy crowd, he felt isolated, as if he was surrounded by invisible walls, and his presence was being replaced by another object.

Bai Chang felt anxious and quickly pushed through the crowd to run outside. But he realized that he couldn’t leave this market. He walked along a road, reached the end, and still came back to the starting point. He wandered around for more than ten minutes, sweating on his forehead. But there were people everywhere, and he kept ending up back where he started. When he finally stopped, he suddenly realized that he was standing in the same spot as Li Qizong before. And in front of him, there was no longer emptiness, but a stall appeared.

The vendor at the stall wore a black cloak, with a strange aura. He sat on a chair but seemed to have no lower body. There were no legs to be seen, only withered hands emerging from the sleeves.

"You…" Bai Chang clenched his fists and confronted directly, "Who are you?"

Faced with Bai Chang’s vigilance and threat, the peculiar and deep voice vendor laughed, "You… are not bad."

Just as Bai Chang was about to throw a punch, he suddenly felt all his strength being drained away. He collapsed to the ground, while the crowd around him walked by, completely unaware.

Before losing consciousness, he instinctively pressed the unfinished transmission button, sending out a message. It was a struggle to press the button, and he immediately lost consciousness.

The vendor stood up, took out an animal fur from under his robe, and covered the unconscious middle-aged man with it. The fur stuck to his skin, actively starting to wriggle and mold itself to the body. It transformed from a complete human form into a small animal. A yellow dog, with its limbs tied, was thrown into a cage and placed on the back seat of a car.

The vendor quickly tidied up the stall, then got into the car. He played the song "Only the Brave Will Succeed" and left the market, looking like an ordinary small business owner.

…

Luo Shu suddenly felt her heart racing at the Bai Family Mansion. She was cutting fruit but accidentally cut her fingertip, and then hurriedly stood up but ended up falling down.

Looking at her trembling and weak hands and feet, she suddenly realized… he was in trouble.