From Paper Craftsman to World-Suppressing Immortal

"gate of hell……"

Zhang Zhixuan looked at the three large characters on the archway and muttered them to himself, wondering if the inscription on the archway was just a charade or if there was some real secret behind it.

Lin Shuyao followed closely beside Zhang Zhixuan and Master Zhao, her large eyes scanning the darkness behind the archway warily. She muttered under her breath, "This place feels eerie. Ghost markets in other places aren't like this. This place is so sinister..."

"The name 'Gates of Hell' isn't just for show."

Zhang Zhixuan withdrew his gaze and solemnly reminded, "Once you enter this door, it's hard to distinguish between the real and the fake, between humans and ghosts. It's like having one foot in the realm of Yin and Yang. Don't touch anything you don't recognize. Stay close to us."

Lin Shuyao nodded vigorously.

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Zhixuan took the first step and crossed the stone threshold under the archway.

With each step, it felt like entering another world; the sounds of the wind and insects outside vanished instantly, and the entire street became eerily quiet.

Standing at the entrance of the ghost market, all I could see were a few ghastly red sheepskin lanterns hanging in the distance, I couldn't tell if they were floating or hanging there.

In front of the stalls on both sides of the street, there were small kerosene lamps, their light dim and barely able to illuminate the items on the stalls, not even enough to light up the stall owners' faces. The stall owners seemed to be hidden in the shadows, with only a blurry outline.

The people strolling through the market all wore various masks, none of which revealed their true faces. No one spoke loudly; even conversations were conducted in hushed tones. The whispers of conversation drifted in on the night breeze, indistinct and like the murmurs of ghosts.

Just then, "dong...dong dong...", the sound of a clapper striking three times in quick succession, one slow and two fast, suddenly rang out, the sound long and far-reaching.

Zhang Zhixuan looked up, trying to find where the sound was coming from, but when he looked around, all he could see was darkness.

"Zhixuan, stop looking. Let's hurry up and get out of this archway before dawn. We can't linger even a moment longer," Master Zhao reminded him in a low voice.

Zhang Zhixuan nodded, and without wasting any more time, continued walking forward.

The stalls sell a wide variety of items: porcelain, bronzes, jade, calligraphy and paintings, ancient books, swords, all kinds of old furniture, and even rice, flour, oil, and meat—you name it.

In this eerie atmosphere, the stall owner remained silent at his meat stall, displaying strips of meat cut from who-knows-where, which sent chills down one's spine just by looking at them.

The three of them browsed through several stalls. Zhao Erye lowered his voice and said to the two of them, "See? There are some really good things here, and there are also 'butcher stalls' full of fakes. Whether you can find a bargain depends entirely on your own skills."

"These are all pig slaughtering stalls," Lin Shuyao said in a low voice, gesturing towards the stalls the three of them had just passed.

"Look at this blue and white porcelain vase. The glaze is too pale and the body is too loose. The regular script on the bottom is crooked. It's definitely a new fake, designed to rip off people who don't know anything about porcelain. And those jade bracelets, the patina is from being soaked in chemicals. You don't even need to touch them; just the smell is pungent. They're definitely not genuine. Although the ghost market here always has a weird vibe, the items are pretty much the same."

Master Zhao was taken aback for a moment, then laughed and said, "You little girl, you're not just bragging, you really do know a thing or two."

Zhang Zhixuan smiled but didn't say anything. With a thought, he activated his Treasure Appraisal Eye.

In an instant, the precious energy of all things manifested, and the entire street appeared completely different in his eyes.

Zhang Zhixuan discovered that the vast majority of items on the stalls were covered with a layer of white, precious aura, and were all counterfeit goods. Only a few stalls had a few items that were slightly different.

He followed the direction of several different treasures and soon stopped in front of a stall. There were four blue and white porcelain plates on the stall. The glaze was new and bright, and they did not look like old antiques. However, in Zhang Zhixuan's eyes, these blue and white porcelain plates were enveloped in a faint purple aura, which made them obviously genuine antiques.

Zhang Zhixuan touched the plate, and before he could say anything, the stall owner immediately quoted a price: two silver dollars for a plate. Several other people browsing the stall also took a look, but they all shook their heads. The item was too new, with no trace of antiquity, and was clearly a newly made fake. Therefore, no one was willing to pay for it.

Zhang Zhixuan didn't haggle, nor did he even pick up each item to examine it closely. He simply took out his money, placed it on the stall, picked up four plates, and turned to hand them to Master Zhao behind him.

The stall owner was taken aback, not expecting the buyer to be so agreeable. He took it as if he had encountered a complete novice and felt a surge of secret satisfaction.

The very next second after the stall owner took the money, a notification appeared indicating the player's proficiency level in the Hundred Trades Manual...

[Complete a pawn transaction that yields a large profit with a small investment; Pawnbroker Proficiency +10]

This time, Zhang Zhixuan was secretly pleased. He had made a huge profit with a small investment. The simple two sentences in the "Book of Trades" were enough to prove the value of these blue and white porcelain plates.

Master Zhao took the blue-and-white porcelain plate handed to him by Zhang Zhixuan and examined it over and over, trying to figure out if it was real or fake. Lin Shuyao, who was next to him, also came over. She picked up a plate, carefully ran her hand over the glaze and the mark on the bottom, and after looking at it several times, her eyes widened instantly.

"Master...Master, you didn't even pick this up to look at it, you just glanced at it and made your decision?" Lin Shuyao witnessed the whole thing. She herself didn't take these plates seriously at first glance, but now that she had them in her hands and looked at them carefully, she was naturally shocked. She really didn't expect Zhang Zhixuan to have such a sharp and experienced eye.

Her grandfather was a renowned antique collector in Beijing. He had been handling old porcelain for decades since he was a child, so he had a good eye for it. The porcelain body, the color of the blue and white glaze, and the mark on the plate were all correct. It was definitely an authentic piece.

But from the moment Zhang Zhixuan walked to the stall to the moment she paid and took the goods, it was only a blink of an eye. She didn't even have time to examine them closely. She just glanced at them and was able to tell whether they were real or fake. Her eyesight was even more terrifying than that of her grandfather, an old expert who had been playing the game all his life!

Zhang Zhixuan smiled faintly, offered no explanation, and continued walking forward. After a few steps, he stopped in front of a copperware stall.

Zhang Zhixuan's gaze fell on an inconspicuous brass paperweight in the corner. The paperweight looked rusty and plain, and it was very unremarkable when placed there. The stall owner thought it was just scrap copper and asked for one silver dollar. Zhang Zhixuan still didn't say much, paid for it directly, and handed it to Master Zhao.

As expected, the proficiency prompt for the Hundred Trades Book appeared again.

[Complete a pawn transaction that yields a large profit with a small investment; Pawnbroker Proficiency +10]

Lin Shuyao quickly took it and wiped the rust off the brass paperweight. She saw that the side of the paperweight was engraved with the inscription of a famous calligrapher from the previous dynasty. It had a rich patina and was a genuine old stationery item that had been used. However, the stall owner only sold it for one silver dollar. Lin Shuyao felt sorry for the stall owner for losing money.

"Master, you're amazing..." Lin Shuyao leaned close to Zhang Zhixuan and whispered with a grin, but Zhang Zhixuan waved his hand, signaling her to keep a low profile.

At this moment, Lin Shuyao's eyes were overflowing with admiration. She originally thought that Zhang Zhixuan only knew some Taoist arts, but she never expected that he would have such amazing eyesight when it came to appraising antiques.

In just half an hour, Zhang Zhixuan picked up four or five more bargains, all of which were genuine. In the end, the group couldn't carry them all. With no other option, Zhang Zhixuan bought a stall owner's cart and asked for some dry grass to line the bottom before he could put everything away.

Among the group, the happiest was Master Zhao. He had visited the ghost market countless times over the years, but he had never been as happy as he was today. Not only were all the items in this cart genuine, but they were all bought at low prices.

Lin Shuyao followed Zhang Zhixuan closely, calling him "Master is awesome" repeatedly. At this moment, she wished she could call her grandfather over. Wasn't that old guy always boasting that he was the "number one bargain hunter in Beijing"? Let him see what the real number one bargain hunter is.

The three continued walking in. Zhang Zhixuan looked around and realized that there was probably nothing left to pick up, so he was considering going back.

Suddenly, a strange light flashed in Zhang Zhixuan's eyes. He stopped and looked in the direction of the treasure. Not far away, there was a strange stall with items that were out of place with the surroundings.