Hide in the world of gods and demons

Chapter 5 It's Not Easy to Live There

The morning light was faint, still tinged with a hint of darkness.

In the distance, the mountain peaks are steep and rugged, with ribbon-like white clouds drifting by, carrying a cool beauty, lingering around the strange peaks. Some buildings are vaguely visible among them, appearing and disappearing, like a fairyland.

The area where Fangshi is located is situated in a flat area nestled in a mountain valley surrounded by mountains.

The crisp morning air carried a lingering, faint, musty smell.

Chen Li walked calmly onto the muddy road, his eyes secretly scanning his surroundings. The roadside was overgrown with weeds, and piles of household garbage and human and animal excrement could be seen from time to time.

Numerous self-built huts, some short, some tall, some large, some small, are scattered haphazardly, crammed into every available space.

These houses are hardly antique; they are merely dwellings that barely serve their purpose of habitation. Many are obviously hastily constructed, lacking any aesthetic appeal. Some are poorly built and look dilapidated, as if they could collapse at any moment with a gust of wind.

This isn't some abandoned, dilapidated house; judging from the mountain of household garbage piled up at the entrance, it's clear that people were living inside.

Chen Li admitted that he was short-sighted. Compared to these lazy and complacent "great masters" and rogue cultivators, the original owner of this body was actually the more ambitious one, in comparison to his peers.

Along the way, cultivators would pass by from time to time, some brushing past each other, others bowing in greeting. Chen Li was initially a little nervous, his palms were sweaty, and his hands often couldn't help but reach for the willow-leaf darts.

But after a few times, he became more at ease and more confident.

"Many people here are not as well off as I am."

"Sure enough, the confidence of mediocre people is often built on comparing how bad they are," Chen Li thought to himself with a self-deprecating smile.

The shantytown is attached to the market town, so it is not far from the market town. In fact, before you even leave the shantytown, the city wall of the market town is already in sight. The city wall is not high, about three or four meters high, and various complex formations are engraved on it. There are faint fluctuations of spiritual energy coming from it.

It is clearly not a city wall in the ordinary sense.

The crowd was already growing densely. Chen Li glanced at the city wall a few times, then followed the crowd toward the gate of the market.

Suddenly, there was a slight commotion in the crowd.

Hearing the commotion, Chen Li looked up in the direction of the crowd and saw a young cultivator riding a dazzling flying sword, hurtling towards him.

Many people watched with intense yet complex gazes, joining Chen Li in seeing the cultivator gracefully land at the entrance of the market.

Chen Li couldn't help but touch his willow-leaf dart, and suddenly felt that his treasured magical artifact, which he usually cherished, didn't smell so good anymore.

"I must get my hands on a flying sword in my lifetime."

Chen Li silently made a vow, feeling his mindset had calmed down.

To be honest, it's not that I care about whether he's handsome or not; my main concern is that I can run fast if I encounter danger.

Following the flow of people into the market, Chen Li didn't rush to sell anything. He planned to first take a walk around the area to familiarize himself with the environment and prices.

Putting aside the cultivators coming and going, this place felt similar to a rural market in the 1980s or 90s, with shops and stalls.

They sell all sorts of things; they sell everything imaginable.

It only recognizes most things that Chen Li doesn't recognize, so it's just something new to look at.

He even saw the carcass of an unknown wild animal, about four meters long from head to tail, skinned, being quickly dissected by the stall owner while he shouted out for sale.

Chen Li did see a few stalls selling talismans, but they were all 'high-grade talismans' made of animal hides. Even the lowest grade was a talisman for warding off evil. There were no talismans for 'guiding the way' or 'silencing the sound'.

He had a bad feeling in his heart.

……

"What...what kind of meat is this?"

"Green-headed tiger meat, tender and juicy, just killed last night, very fresh. One tael of gold per pound, want a few pounds?"

……

"Three-year-old Black Dew Fruit, grown in places with spiritual energy, would you like some to try?"

"what price?"

"Three taels of gold each, buy three get one free."

"Hey, fellow Daoist, you can bargain if you think it's too expensive."

……

Chen Li, who was short of money, felt heartbroken, but he had to pretend to be nonchalant and calm on the surface.

After visiting several stalls selling 'ordinary' food, he was astonished by the outrageous prices. Even slightly better food required spirit stones, and gold was practically the cheapest currency here.

Many simply don't accept them.

Chen Li estimated that the dozen or so kilograms of gold in his hand could only last for half a year at most, even if it was just for the simplest thing like filling his stomach. Fortunately, it was still acceptable, at least he wouldn't go hungry in the short term.

He tried to adapt to the high prices in the cultivation world, but was then dealt another blow when he found the spirit rice shop.

The Lingmi Shop, bearing the sign of the Longevity Sect, enjoys an almost exclusive monopoly here.

In fact, after looking around, Chen Li discovered that five or six out of ten shops here belonged to the Longevity Sect, with the rest belonging to other forces. "Shopkeeper, how much is spirit rice these days?"

The shop assistant glanced at Chen Li discreetly, then turned up his nose and became indifferent.

"Low-grade spirit rice, ten catties for one low-grade spirit stone, this price has always been the same, not sold in smaller quantities."

Chen Li didn't pay attention to the other person's gaze.

It was just a secret pang of heartache.

It's so expensive!

I've consumed half a spirit stone in the last few days.

"Let me take another look!"

After leaving the spirit rice shop in a hurry, Chen Li decided not to shop around anymore. With trepidation, he went to the talisman shop of the Longevity Sect to try to sell the talismans he carried.

Although the purchase price is undoubtedly much lower than setting up a stall, it saves time and effort, and as long as there is a small profit, it's fine.

Unfortunately, he was overthinking it; the low-level talismans he drew were simply not accepted by anyone.

Having no other choice, Chen Li had to follow the example of those rogue cultivators and set up a stall in an open space.

The cleansing talismans that I drew the most are now too ashamed to display in public; I only display the mute talismans and the guiding talismans.

However, after setting up the stall for a long time, no one inquired about the price. Most people glanced at it and walked past the stall, and some even rudely sneered.

Many independent cultivators can draw these low-level talismans, but they're not very useful. Who would waste money buying these common items?

Chen Li waited until the sun was high in the sky, but no one came to buy anything, so he had no choice but to pack up and close his stall.

Before leaving, he bought some cheap fruits, vegetables and meat to eat for the next few days, but returned disappointed.

On the way back, Chen Li felt heavy-hearted and silently pondered his thoughts.

He glanced at the attribute panel.

Name: Chen Li

Life expectancy: 40/98 years

[Realm Level: Qi Refining Level 3: 31/100]

[Technique: Longevity Technique Proficiency: 45/200]

【Skill:】

制符：清洁符熟练：94/200；静音符熟练：32/200；指路符入门：15/100
Spell: Spirit Flick Proficiency: 12/200;
[Supernatural power: none]

"Once I've mastered the wayfinding talisman, I'll start trying the talisman for warding off evil. There are still more than twenty days until next month's rent, so I should still have time."

Despite trying to comfort myself, the heaviness in my heart just wouldn't go away.

"Sigh, why is life so hard? Before I transmigrated, I used to spend most of my salary on the mortgage every month, and it wasn't this hard!"

At this moment, Chen Li vaguely sensed someone watching him. He subconsciously looked up and saw the female cultivator next door.

He couldn't help but feel a sense of bad luck.

They quickly looked away, pretending not to have seen it.

However, the female cultivator clearly had no intention of letting him off so easily.

"Oh, Fellow Daoist Chen, you've changed your taste today. I remember you used to only eat spirit rice." The female cultivator looked at the dishes in Chen Li's hand and greeted him with a teasing expression.

What grudge could there be?

What's wrong with me eating this?
Have you eaten your rice?

"Spirit rice is too expensive, and I'm out of money. I've also failed to draw talismans one after another, so I can only barely make ends meet these next few days." Chen Li forced an awkward smile, and had no choice but to continue lying down and accepting the ridicule.

Laugh if you want, it won't hurt you.

Having finally shaken off the female cultivator's entanglement, Chen Li was covered in sweat.

Since transmigrating, I seem to have developed social anxiety disorder, and I'm afraid to talk to people and interact with them.

Chen Li thought about it carefully.

I think the main reason is the lack of a sense of security.

The loss of memory, the strange and dangerous world, the neighbors whose good and evil are hard to discern, and the strange 'friends' who seem to be possessed by evil spirits—every interaction with them makes him cautious and exhausted.

Why is living so difficult?

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(End of this chapter)