After hearing what I said, the shopkeeper rolled his eyes: "There are plenty of people in Fengmen Village who want to get rich, but I've never seen anyone like you who tries to pick up bargains! If you're really desperate for money, there's a money exchange in Fengmen Village on the left side of the fork in the road ahead. Go there and pull off a heist; you'll earn much more than picking up bargains!"

Upon hearing the stall owner's reply, I chuckled and responded, "What kind of talk is that? You set up a stall here to sell your goods! In business, there's always a buyer and a seller. If you think the selling price is right and I think the buying price is right, that's what a transaction is, right?"

The stall owner rolled his eyes through his mask: "But judging from your appearance, you don't seem to be here to make a deal in good faith! This item may be damaged, but it's still an imperial artifact, and it even has inscriptions. You're giving me two million? Are you kidding me?"

"Everything can be discussed! If you think my price is too low, then let's renegotiate."

I chuckled and looked at the stall owner: "Your broken sword has no intrinsic value. If sold at market price, it would fetch a staggering five thousand yuan, wouldn't you admit that?"

The stall owner lit a cigarette but said nothing.

"You want to sell it for eight million, mainly because of the inscription on it. If all five characters on the inscription were clear, I wouldn't even haggle over ten million for this. But there are only two characters on it. In Fengmen Village, most experts know its origin, but after leaving Fengmen Village, there aren't many people willing to collect this, are there?"

I continued trying to negotiate the price down: "How about this, I'll add another million, three million to let me take the item, how about that?"

After listening to my words, the stall owner thought for a moment and said, "I got this by chance. It's inconvenient to keep carrying it around. If you really want it, then take it for four million. After all, there are transaction fees for trading goods in Fengmen Village!"

I successfully cut the price in half and readily agreed: "No problem, I'll take this, but it can't be traded right now! I just came from the Zhongle Casino and I've run out of money. Leave this to me, and I'll come back for it after I exchange the money, okay?"

The stall owner replied lazily, "I can wait for you, but I can't guarantee that I'll keep the item. If someone offers a better price before then, or if someone else sells it, I won't let the money slip by."

I nodded: "No problem, we'll proceed according to your plan. I'll come back to you after I get the money!"

As we were talking, I suddenly felt my vision darken, and then all the lanterns around me turned green.

The stall owner's pupils contracted sharply when he saw the lantern suddenly change color, and he immediately began frantically packing up his things: "Damn, why is the light green in the middle of the night!"

When we entered Fengmen Village, the person who explained the rules to us didn't say anything, except that we must pay attention to the lanterns here.

Once the green light turns on, you must get out of the way as quickly as possible; otherwise, if you are still on the street when it turns red, you will only face certain death.

I saw the stall owner hurriedly packing up his things, and he said it was strange that the lights were on at night. I felt that he knew a bit about this place, so I asked him, "Do you know why the lights are green here at night?"

"I'm not a fortune teller, how would I know such things? In Fengmen Village, everyone who has seen the red lanterns is dead!"

The stall owner hastily packed up his things and slung the bundle over his shoulder: "I'll be setting up a stall in front of the pharmacy tomorrow. If you still want to buy this sword then, go find me over there... What are you standing there for? Do you really want to die?"

At this point, the once peaceful street had become chaotic, and everyone was rushing to find cover.

Before we entered Fengmen Village, the person who explained the rules told us that once the green light came on, we should return to our accommodation as soon as possible, and if we didn't have time, we should hide in the room with white couplets pasted on it.

My gaze swept across the room and I spotted a room with white couplets pasted on it. But as soon as I got close, the door slammed shut.

I noticed there were fewer and fewer people on the street, so I went over and knocked on the door: "Hey, friend inside, please open the door for me!"

A middle-aged man passing by saw my appearance and shouted, "The doors here are sensor-activated; the people inside can't open them. Follow me; we need to find another room!"

Thank you!

Hearing the middle-aged man's reminder, I quickened my pace to catch up with him and asked, "You just said that the rooms here are sensor-activated, doesn't that mean that someone always has to be locked outside? Is Fengmen Village reducing its population in this way?"

“Fengmen Village is a black market, and it relies on people like us to generate profits. How could we possibly kill people indiscriminately! I’ve experienced two green lights, each lasting about ten minutes, which is enough time for us to hide!”

As the middle-aged man spoke, he led me into a small alley by the roadside and into a room with white couplets.

There were nine coffins in the room, all with their lids open, presumably because it was the middle of the night and everyone was asleep. Apart from the main street, there were almost no pedestrians anywhere else.

I looked around the room and noticed that the window behind us faced the street, so I went over to look.

The middle-aged man, already lying in his coffin, saw me standing at the window and asked, "Hey, why aren't you hiding? What are you doing there?"

I turned to look at the middle-aged man: "Aren't you curious about what it looks like outside when the light is red?"

"Do you think the people of Fengmen Village are fools? If this room really offered any view, why would they have converted it into a shelter with windows?"

The middle-aged man pointed to the ceiling: "When the red light comes on, the mechanism in this room will activate. If you don't hide in the coffin, you'll die! That's why there are sensors in the other rooms!"

I glanced at the wall and sure enough, I noticed several holes about three centimeters in diameter in the roof: "What kind of mechanism is this?"

"If you're curious, then take a look. The mechanisms here aren't instantaneous and won't kill you."

After the middle-aged man finished speaking, he immediately slammed the coffin lid shut.

I looked out the window and saw that the once bustling main street was now deserted and deathly silent under the green light.

After waiting for about four or five minutes, the row of originally green lanterns suddenly changed color, illuminating the street outside in a fiery red.

Soon after, several figures on horseback appeared on the street, the sound of hooves hitting the ground echoing through the street.

"Clang!"

At that moment, the door behind me suddenly slammed shut, and the sound of a mechanism being activated came from above. Then, one after another, sharp spears emerged and slowly descended.