<h4>Chapter 18: Chapter 18 "ck Market"?</h4>


    Saturday, 2 a.m.


    Shao Zifeng stood in front of the mirror, looking at himself. A baseball cap covered half his face, sunsses hid his eyes, and a disposable surgical mask concealed most of his features.


    He carried a travel bag stuffed with tens of thousands of cash, not daring to bring too much. Based on what he had seen in books and movies, he knew the ck market was awlessnd with no rules.


    Taking a deep breath to suppress his excitement, he turned to look at the little creature on his bed, ying with a ball, or more urately, rolling itself into one.


    "Florence, let''s go," Shao Zifeng called out.


    The little creature heard Shao Zifeng''s call and quickly unrolled from a ball, stretching out into a bald lizard. It wasn''t as bald anymore; after a few days of rest, fine scales had begun to cover its body again, though the new scales were slightly red.


    The little creature ran to Shao Zifeng''s feet, looking up at him expectantly, its tail sweeping the ground back and forth.


    "Got it, then... Qiuqiu, let''s go."


    "Yingyingao~"


    Seeing the little creature crawl onto his shoulder and rub against his mask, Shao Zifeng helplessly shook his head. When he was naming Qiuqiu, he had racked his brain, and with the help of Mr. Qiandu, managed toe up with a few satisfactory names.


    But Qiuqiu wasn''t pleased. It threw a tantrum upon hearing those names, curling into a ball and ignoring him.


    Looking at the soft, round creature in front of him, almost bald from pulling out his own hair, Shao Zifeng had a moment of inspiration and named it "Qiuqiu."


    After learning from Shao Zifeng what the name meant, Qiuqiu joyfully epted it, being particrly fond of curling up into a ball.


    Shao Zifeng had watched Qiuqiu happily rolling around, thinking deeply. He decided it was necessary to give it a proper name because calling it Qiuqiu when it grew up didn''t seem appropriate.


    Maybe by then, it would demand a name change.


    ...


    Shao Zifeng, with Qiuqiu, navigated through various residential areas in the old town. Their destination, an old-sounding ce called "Happiness Sunshine Community," had him feeling a bit uneasy about the dark alleys after the Blood-sucking Tarant incident.


    He always felt that stepping into a dark alley would cause eight blood-red spider eyes to light up in the darkness. Qiuqiu, just over ten centimeters long, gripped Shao Zifeng''s ear, standing up asionally humming, though Shao Zifeng couldn''t understand what it wanted to express, he felt a happy emotion surrounding him.


    "Happiness Sunshine Community" was located on the edge of the old town, and not far west of themunity was a vige. It was said that during the construction of themunity, some children from the vige were identally killed by a construction vehicle, causing the entire project to halt.


    Later, as the city center moved east, themunity was further neglected and abandoned.


    Before reaching themunity, Shao Zifeng saw a bright light overhead from the direction of "Happiness Sunshine Community," proving that Lai Si''er hadn''t been exaggerating; there really were people here. As he approached, he sensed that it wasn''t as simple as it seemed, faint rhythmic country music gradually reached his ears.


    Hmm... the ck market, inhabited by society''s bottom dwellers shunned by mainstream society, low taste could be expected...


    What the heck!!!


    What kind of ck market had scantily d girls on stage trucks, carelessly unting their youth?


    Shao Zifeng, engaging in self-delusion, stood petrified at the sight before him. In the middle of "Happiness Sunshine Community," on an undeveloped plot ofnd, temporary bright lights were erected, each illuminating a small stall.


    Stalls disyed various items, from imitation antiques to junk electronics, and even a young woman with a child picking out shing balloons and bracelets. The rhythmic country music, skimpily dressed girls awkwardly dancing, orderly stalls being advertised through loudspeakers, and buyers joking andughing like ordinary citizens! There were even Abnormal Administration Bureau officers in uniform maintaining order!


    Just this? Just this?


    Was this the legendary ck market where people devoured others without spitting out bones?


    Was this the ck market teeming with business opportunities, even hosting atavistic Bull Demon Kings?


    I don''t believe it! Crooked old man is really devious!


    "Comrade, please show your identification and cooperate with the inspection." As Shao Zifeng mentally ranted, two Abnormal Administration Bureau officers, along with their pet beasts, approached, cautiously eyeing the fully equipped Shao Zifeng.


    Two canine pets stepped forward, sniffing his pants.


    A light blue screen popped up.


    [Name]: Arresting Dog


    [Growth]: Mature stage


    [Status]: Healthy, Alert


    @@novelbin@@


    [Strength]: Tier 3


    ...


    [Potential]: ★★


    [Talent]: Vignce: Always maintaining alertness, they can quickly dodge any ambush.


    [Skills]: Bite, Tackle, Howl, Tearing w Strike, Wind and Lightning


    [Description]: Official pet beast designated by the Abnormal Administration Bureau,pleting final evolution at the Police Dog Academy to be arresting dogs, they are then assigned to various locations as officers'' partners. A dog with credentials, aren''t you afraid?


    This was the first time Shao Zifeng had seen an official pet beast of this kind. The arresting dog stood about 1.2 meters tall, with a robust build, covered in short ck fur, and had long white hair resembling a horse''s mane extending from its ears to its shoulder des.


    The two arresting dogs circled Shao Zifeng, then suddenly noticed Qiuqiu on his shoulder, baring their teeth and growling at it.


    Since killing the Blood-sucking Tarant, Qiuqiu''s confidence had soared. With the arresting dogs so close to Shao Zifeng, sniffing him, Qiuqiu was already unhappy; now they were growling at it? Have they ever seen a spider as big as a millstone?


    "Yingyingao~" Qiuqiu responded to the arresting dogs with a fierce baby growl, its eyes seemingly shing with fire.


    The Abnormal Administration Bureau officer grew more vignt upon seeing this, "Comrade, please have your pet beast cease its threatening behavior, or we will take coercive measures."


    On hearing their master''s words, both arresting dogs lowered their front bodies, baring their teeth, ready to pounce Shao Zifeng to the ground.


    "Comrade,rade, let''s talk this through. I''m not a bad guy." Shao Zifeng raised one hand and slowly removed his mask and sunsses with the other. Realizing it might have caused trouble, Qiuqiu curled into a ball, grumbling in displeasure.


    Now Shao Zifeng was in a panic; private possession of aggressive pet beasts was illegal and could get him into serious trouble. Unexpectedly, the two officers, after checking his identification, simply asked him a few questions and left.


    Shao Zifeng stood there for a while, unsure of what to do as he faced a ce more reminiscent of a rural market.


    "Since I''m here, might as well take a look," he mumbled to himself, walking into the "ck market."