Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, but Thunderbolt Taoist Sect

"The Great Rakshasa Kingdom?"

Ma Ji wandered around the city, living a comfortable life, but wherever he went, there was only howling and wailing, and there was no one to talk to. Thinking that this land was not small, there should be other places to explore, so he began to walk towards the less populated areas, until he left the town and went to the outskirts of the village.

As he walked, Ma Ji discovered a peculiar village. It was a very dilapidated little mountain village. If he hadn't seen figures moving around on the road in the distance, he would have thought it was an abandoned village that had long been abandoned.

With nothing else to do, Ma Ji walked over and was surprised to find that although the residents here were not good-looking, at least they all looked like human beings. However, not only were their living places extremely dilapidated, but their clothes were also tattered, and they all looked no different from beggars.

Ma Ji wanted to ask these people why they lived like this, but as soon as he got close, these ragged residents reacted the same way as the people in the city: they screamed and ran away, as if they had seen some terrifying monster.

When he finally saw some decent-looking people, they still regarded him as a monster. Ma Ji did not give up. He walked to this small mountain village every day and even brought back a lot of good wine and food from the city. He found a big rock at the entrance of the village and ate and drank against the rock.

They're all treated like monsters, but at least the people here are still identifiable, unlike those in the city whose features are all grotesque. I really don't know which one, him or the other, is the monster.

At first, the villagers gathered at the village entrance because of the aroma of food, but because they were afraid of Ma Ji, they only dared to take a few glances from afar. After a few days, the villagers saw that Ma Ji was just eating and drinking at the village entrance and did not look like a monster that would eat people. Finally, some of them came out and took the initiative to talk to Ma Ji.

Once someone started, others became bolder and gradually approached Ma Ji. Those who looked more human were the most daring to approach him, and those who dared to speak to Ma Ji were basically the ones with the most human-like appearance.

With some people talking to him, Ma Ji finally had a chance to ask where he was and why the residents, from top to bottom, were behaving so strangely. He learned a name he had never heard of before: the Great Rakshasa Kingdom.

Ma Ji had been a merchant for so long, yet he had never known that there was a country with such a name in the East China Sea.

"When I arrived here, everyone who saw me scattered and fled. Why are you so afraid of me? And why are you begging here?"

It's not unusual to have beggars in villages and towns; there are even beggar gangs on larger islands. What's strange to Ma Ji is that these beggars are not only the most human-looking people he's ever seen here, but they also all live in this small mountain village and don't go near towns. To Ma Ji, they seem more like exiles than beggars.

“We heard from the elders that there is a Celestial Empire 26,000 li to the west overseas, and the people there are all extremely ugly. That’s what we’re afraid of.”

"...The Celestial Empire? Utterly hideous?"

"The Celestial Empire is a superior nation," is a common term used by neighboring smaller countries to refer to their Central Plains dynasties, indirectly illustrating the disparity in national power. But is "extremely ugly" for real? The people in this area clearly don't even look human... Wait a minute!

Ma Ji put down his wine cup. He looked at the beggar in front of him, who looked somewhat human but wasn't particularly good-looking, and was even in the category of unremarkable. Then he thought about the strange and shockingly ugly residents of the city, and the scene when he first arrived, the residents called him a monster and fled in panic. He seemed to understand a little.

The people speaking didn't notice what Ma Ji was muttering to himself. In their eyes, Ma Ji looked too frightening. Even though they were talking to him, they avoided looking at him and continued talking.

"When we hire people here, we don't look at their talent or their character, we only look at their appearance. We distinguish between high and low status based on beauty and ugliness. The more beautiful they are, the more important they are. The most beautiful ones are the king's right-hand men."

Immediately afterwards, Ma Ji felt that the other person had given him a special look; this was the first time he had ever seen someone dare to look him in the eye.

This was supposed to be a good thing, but Ma Ji couldn't be happy about what the other party said next.

"As for us, who are similar to you and extremely ugly, we were abandoned at birth. No one wanted to use us, so we could only be beggars."

"..."

It seems he was right. The aesthetics of this Great Rakshasa Kingdom are different from those of the outside world; they are the opposite. The reason why the people in the city are afraid of him is now clear: simply because in their eyes, he is too ugly and frightening. To use a phrase he has heard most often recently, he is ugly like a monster according to the aesthetics of the Rakshasa Kingdom.

Ma Ji had lived for over twenty years, and from childhood to adulthood, he had been praised countless times for his good looks. He never imagined that Zhao would be called ugly, so ugly that people would run away in fear and no one would dare to approach him.

At this moment, Ma Ji's feelings were very complicated. On the one hand, he told himself that this place was just special. Looking back, no one had ever found fault with his appearance.

On the other hand, being judged as ugly by a bunch of ugly, even grotesque, people made Ma Ji feel really bad. After all, in his eyes, those so-called beautiful residents were also unsightly.

The two have completely opposite aesthetics, so it's no wonder they can't stand each other when they meet. However, what the other said did arouse Ma Ji's curiosity.

Based on what he had seen and heard in the city these past few days, the residents were already quite astonishing in appearance. And these were just ordinary residents; what kind of monsters must the high-ranking officials and nobles look like?

Driven by his curiosity, Ma Ji asked to see it for himself. The others treated him to good food and wine and agreed to take him to the vicinity of the capital. The Great Rakshasa Kingdom was built on an island. Although it seemed very wealthy, it was actually quite small. The journey between the capital and the coastal villages could be completed in a day by donkey cart or oxcart.

Since the beggars were leading the way, Ma Ji only needed to return to town once more to bring more food to eat on the road.

Coincidentally, just as Ma Ji and his companions arrived at the edge of the city, a magnificent procession of carriages emerged from the city. Judging from the luxurious entourage, the people inside the carriages were probably the country's high-ranking officials and nobles.

Ma Ji stared intently, and after clearly seeing the face of the nobleman in the carriage, he was so shocked that he gasped.

"hiss--"

The high-ranking official in the carriage had ears that were upside down and three huge nostrils. He couldn't see the other person's facial features clearly, not because the distance was too far, but because the person's eyelashes were unusually long, covering his face like two curtains, making it impossible for Ma Ji to see any other details on the person's face.

Even so, the strangeness of this person's appearance was enough to give him a nightmare that night. How is it any different from a den of demons if he ends up in such a place?

At this moment, Ma Ji thought of the immortal who had saved him at sea. He was the most handsome person he had ever seen in his life. Especially after experiencing countless strange and bizarre events in the past few days, the immortal's appearance descending from the sky made Ma Ji even more fascinated.

No one knew where that immortal had gone. Although the direction he pointed to led to the Great Rakshasa Kingdom, just by looking at the style of the painting, it was clear that the immortal was not from here. The reason he was pointed in this direction was probably because this was the only land in the surrounding sea. Ma Ji also knew that his ship had been tossed around like a ladle in the sea for so many days, and it wouldn't be long before it arrived.

Ma Ji looked around at the high-ranking officials and nobles who came out of the city. Their appearances were all astonishing. After looking at them for a while, he even began to forget what ordinary people should look like.

Little did he know that while he was looking at the high-ranking officials and nobles on the street, they were also looking at him. The place Ma Ji first arrived at was a small town near the coast, which was not very prosperous and had poor communication.

Now that he has arrived in the capital of a country, he can finally show his face in the Great Rakshasa Kingdom.

"We actually got here."

After bidding farewell to the Third Prince of the East Sea, Tian Shanzi returned to the place where they had fought. The suspicious fellow had been hit by his Dao Wind Heavenly Wave. Although most of the power was neutralized by special means, it still carried a trace of his aura.

He followed the clues and eventually found a piece of land that connected to the Great Rakshasa Kingdom, but was not within its territory. Looking down from above, he saw all sorts of people coming and going, a chaotic mix of all kinds.

This is the Sea Market, a place teeming with rare treasures. The Third Prince of the East Sea initially started his investigation from the Sea Market, but after Tian Shan Zi chased the man away, he returned to the Sea Market.

However, it's understandable. People come from all over the world to Haishi, and even monsters and gods come here to wander around, so it's indeed difficult to find someone mixed in with them.

Having found a clue, Tian Shanzi should have gone down to continue the investigation, but seeing the bustling crowd in the city, he hesitated.

Or maybe we should bring in someone who's good at socializing, with the other party handling the negotiations and him handling the fighting.

In a corner of the city, the guy who had taken a hit from the Heavenly Fan in order to escape returned and, without even tending to his wound, paced anxiously in circles.

"I want to die, I want to die, I want to die..."

"I'm going to kill you! What are you doing?!"

This erratic behavior immediately caught the attention of his companions. The base was usually quiet, but as soon as he returned, he started walking around muttering to himself, which annoyed everyone who saw him.

"I saw a guy who wasn't from the Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio..."

"Oh, is it legitimate or illegitimate?"

The legitimate system finds hosts specifically to deal with these irregular and illegal transmigrators. However, legitimate systems follow a lot of protocols. While the cheat codes are good, only one person can come to each world. These illegal transmigrators are just doing evil and don't care about the world's tolerance. Most of them will stick together in a corner and become parasites.

"It's too far to tell, but that kind of appearance should be normal... That's not the point. The point is that that guy is definitely very strong, and we have no chance of beating him."

"Still can't beat them?"

His companion was extremely dismissive of this, believing that the other person was simply too cowardly.

"Even the Third Prince of the Dragon King couldn't do anything to us... By the way, weren't you going to kill the Third Prince of the East Sea? Where's the stuff?"

"I'm afraid I can't kill the Third Prince. I was about to make my move when that guy appeared."

"And then you cowardly coward ran back?!"

"Do you know who's coming? If I don't run, we'll be next!"

"...Who did you see?"

Since they are all outsiders, they are definitely not gods who have come to settle scores with them. Judging from their reaction, which seems like a sudden shock, you would think they have seen Erlang Shen (a deity in Chinese mythology).

Do you know about puppet shows?

"I don't know, what is it? Is it opera?"

"..."

Oh no, they're in deep trouble now. How exactly should he describe the potential fighting strength of the enemy?

"Alright, if I'm not mistaken, we still have a way to deal with that guy. Find a few stable structures that can withstand strong winds, preferably ones that can be directly fixed to the ground beneath their feet—tree spirits and stone spirits will do. Push them over and surround that guy in a circle..."

"...Are you catching a cat?"

What's the difference between this method and that other thing where you surround a cat with a ring of mineral water bottles? What kind of enemy is on the other side that requires such an abstract tactic to deal with?

The method the other party was suggesting didn't sound like a proper way to fight an enemy. The other person couldn't help but ponder. He saw that his companion had returned with some injuries. Could it be that the other party had hit him in the head and damaged it?

……

After Liu Qingyuan handed the pill to Hongyu, Feng Xiangru returned from his marriage proposal. Although the Feng family was poor, they had a good reputation. The Wei family across the street was just an ordinary family. Apart from asking for a higher dowry, there were no other problems.

The only problem was solved by the forty taels of silver given by Hongyu, and the marriage between the Feng and Wei families was successfully arranged. Seeing that his son had found a proper wife, Feng's father was in a much better mood.

The elders of both families quickly set a wedding date. Hongyu didn't seem to have any other opinions, so Liu Qingyuan didn't say anything either. Tian Shanzi really did find someone overseas who was suspected of being an illegal transmigrator, and there was a new job coming up soon.

After Xiao Cui "experimented" with the pills refined by Gu Chen, it was determined that they could be used to prolong the lives of demons and cultivators. However, ordinary people cannot cultivate and would not absorb the pills they consume, so they would not be very effective for ordinary people.

But Hongyu is a fox spirit, and she knows how to absorb spiritual energy. Giving her the pills is no different from giving them directly to the Feng family. Liu Qingyuan still felt uneasy, so she created another "dream collaboration" by introducing Lianxiang, who knew medicine, to Hongyu.

Lianxiang is skilled in medicine. She was able to save Sang Xiao from being nearly killed by a ghost's yin energy. It shouldn't be too difficult for her to save the Feng family members who were severely injured.

Hongyu is a legitimate fox spirit, while Lianxiang is a fox demon who cultivated on her own. Letting Lianxiang cultivate with Hongyu would be far more effective than Lianxiang trying to learn on her own. Upon meeting Hongyu, Lianxiang couldn't wait to acknowledge her as her older sister.

As for Liu Qingyuan, he mainly felt that the two girls were a bit too love-struck. One was giving away money and gifts to help the other person build a happy family, while the other was willing to do anything to find medicine to cure her illness. He thought the two of them should have a lot in common.

After arranging the Feng family's affairs... no, their backup plans, Liu Qingyuan went back to ponder the situation in the East Sea. The other side was able to cripple the Third Prince of the East Sea, even though it was a dirty trick, they were definitely not easy to deal with. The fact that they ran away when they saw Tian Shanzi meant that the most likely reason was that the other side knew Tian Shanzi.

Taking it a step further, it's highly likely that the other party knew about Pili Puppet Show and was aware of the martial arts prowess of the Innate People; otherwise, why would they have run so fast? They almost missed the gusts of wind and waves unleashed by the Heavenly Fan.

Not only did he attack the Third Prince of the East Sea, but he also hid in the sea market and may have even interfered in the transactions. Such an interesting matter! Liu Qingyuan originally planned to go to the East Sea himself, but Jianzi Xianji was much more suitable for negotiation.

However, as soon as the thought came to mind, Tian Shanzi immediately protested. If it were Jian Zi Xian Ji who came, he wouldn't mind using Dao Feng Tian Shanzi to send him back to the mainland.

Liu Qingyuan: ...Alright, I'll take another look.