340: The ultimate martial arts mission is officially launched

Wala Mountain, strictly speaking, isn't a mountain.

It's more accurately described as a mound of earth's surface.

This mound doesn't even have a name; because humans and Stranger trade here every month, it's simply called “Wala.”

When Shen Bei and Zhuang Bifan arrived at the trading spot,

the Stranger team on the opposite side observed from about a hundred meters away.

Both sides lined up in a single file, seemingly wary, cautiously moving forward.

Their movements were light, and their arms were kept at their sides as much as possible, to avoid any misunderstandings that might lead to conflict.

Even though both sides knew it was a trading day where stances were put aside,

it's hard to know what's in people's hearts; who knew if the enemies on the other side would suddenly erupt in an attack?

Fortunately, the scene was harmonious. After both sides approached within three meters,

they began to unpack their bags and display their items.

At this point, the trading day began.

The chattering sounds instantly filled the air.

Whether Stranger or human, everyone started trading for the items they needed along the stalls.

The human stalls were naturally for the Stranger to choose from.

And the Stranger stalls were surrounded by human buyers.

Shen Bei and Zhuang Bifan wandered among the stalls.

They also wanted to see what kind of things the Stranger could offer.

Shen Bei stood in front of a stall and found a kettle.

This kettle was different from the golden one; its exterior was silver-white.

Initially, Shen Bei thought it was an item similar to the golden kettle.

He picked it up and found that the silver-white kettle felt slightly cool to the touch.

It looked like it was made of some kind of jade.

“Do you want to cut it once?” Shen Bei turned and asked Zhuang Bifan.

Zhuang Bifan rolled his eyes, “You think it’s the golden kettle?”

“It looks a bit like it.”

“Did you suffer some after-effects? Can you stop thinking every kettle will spit out money?”

“How can we draw a conclusion without verifying it?”

Zhuang Bifan coughed twice, then turned to ask the Stranger stall owner what the kettle was for.

For the earth's surface's domestic market, kettles are common and cheap.

If it was just an ordinary kettle, it shouldn't be brought out to make a fool of oneself.

The Stranger stall owner enthusiastically explained.

Only then did the two realize that this silver-white kettle was quite interesting.

Although it couldn't spit out banknotes, it was an automatically cooling kettle!

That is, if you put water in it, let it sit for a while, and then pour it out, it would be ice-cold water.

It didn't consume any energy, so it could be considered an odd object.

Taking it back to the earth's surface could also sell for a good amount of money.

“That’s a bit interesting, huh.” Shen Bei held the kettle and examined it for a while.

To say it was useful, it was quite useful.

To say it was useless, it was indeed useless.

In modern human society, refrigerators are already widespread, and even cars have refrigerators.

Shen Bei didn't want it; just seeing something new was enough.

But this item did have buyers; as soon as he put it down, the silver-white kettle was bought by a Martial Artist for some gold.

Shen Bei and Zhuang Bifan wandered for a while longer.

All sorts of strange and wonderful objects truly opened their eyes.

Among them, the most frequent transactions were herbs and Ore.

Herbs, naturally, go without saying; those that could be exchanged or bought were certainly much safer than gathering them in the wild.

These herbs, brought back to the earth's surface and resold, could also earn a profit.

And Ore, being essential Materials for forging weapons, also saw exceptionally brisk trade.

Next were various animal bones, fresh flesh, and so on.

Especially various whips.

Humans were scrambling to buy them, which made Shen Bei secretly click his tongue.

The idea of 'eating to replenish what's lacking' truly runs deep.

“How about I loan you money to buy some whips?” Shen Bei sincerely asked Zhuang Bifan, “You really need to replenish yourself with this stuff. It’s one thing to just go through the motions on the battlefield, but it’s inexcusable to do the same on your wedding night.”

Zhuang Bifan exploded upon hearing this, spitting in disgust, “I’ll really thank you for that!”

“We’re buddies, why are you being so polite?”

“Then buy them. However much you buy, I’ll sell that much.”

“You can’t treat my good intentions like wool to be shorn…”

“Are you buying or not? If not, keep moving forward.”

Shen Bei shrugged, passed the whip stall, and continued to stroll.

The purchasing power of human Martial Artist was quite astonishing.

Many Stranger stalls were just set up and were immediately bought out in bulk.

The Stranger side also had gleaming eyes for various small human items.

Especially clothing, shoes, socks, condiments, and other goods, which were not commodities that could be mass-produced cheaply in the Stranger world.

It was no exaggeration to call it a dimension-reducing strike.

The clothing, shoes, and socks were carried back in whole packages, placed on domesticated pack animals, and taken back to be resold for money.

Here, the items traded by both Stranger and humans were very normal.

No one traded meat strips.

In fact, they didn't dare to trade meat strips in such a setting.

Although these Martial Artist were all here to make money, they had their bottom line.

Listening to other Martial Artist recount the past, this spontaneously formed Wala Mountain trading day initially had Martial Artist trading meat strips, which gradually attracted a group of Stranger.

Eventually, it evolved into trading various items.

And the Martial Artist who traded meat strips were completely eliminated by the reports and suppression from other Martial Artist, and the thunderous punishment from the military.

Now, anyone who dared to trade meat strips at Wala Mountain would be the target of a collective attack, absolutely beaten to death on the spot.

These Martial Artist still had their bottom line.

Shen Bei and Zhuang Bifan came to the other side of the trading ground, behind the mound.

They took out the odd object mask.

The two looked at each other, silent for a moment.

Shen Bei suddenly grinned, saying very politely, “The arduous task of infiltrating the Stranger camp is entrusted to you. Please do not fail the military’s expectations of you, and complete it to Perfection—”

Before Shen Bei could finish his sentence, Zhuang Bifan interrupted him, crossing his hands, his face serious, his voice particularly low, “I’ll repeat myself, I’m a man who relies on his looks to make a living. If you smash my rice bowl, it’s like killing my parents.”

“Where’s your awareness?” Shen Bei was choked, but he didn’t show too much embarrassment. He narrowed his eyes, and his tone relaxed instead, “Where’s your loyalty? Now that you’re asked to perform a covert mission, you’re dragging your feet. I think you want to receive re-education.”

“Don’t talk about that.” Zhuang Bifan’s throat choked, and after a while, he said, “This mission was your idea in the first place. You’re responsible for the main force, who else?”

Shen Bei: …

“Besides,” Zhuang Bifan raised an eyebrow, “it’s fine if I go undercover, but how do you ensure I give my all? You can’t supervise me either.”

Shen Bei slapped the mask onto his face with a 'pa' sound, and snorted lightly, “Useless, I have to do it myself.”

Zhuang Bifan shrugged.

The next moment,

as Shen Bei put on the mask, in an instant, a breathtaking transformation quietly unfolded.

The mask seemed to come alive, merging with Shen Bei’s face at an incredible speed, perfectly fitting and gradually becoming one, as if an ancient Spell had been quietly awakened.

In Zhuang Bifan’s frozen gaze, Shen Bei’s facial features began to transform.

Initially, his originally slender eyes incredibly changed into sharp triangles, and deep within his pupils, a profound red light emerged, like the most mysterious and unpredictable gems in the deep night.

Then, his facial lines began subtle yet profound changes: his nostrils flared slightly, his lips reshaped, his brow bones gently rose, and his once typical Han Chinese facial features slowly receded, replaced by an indescribable exotic charm.

Although the faces of Stranger bore some resemblance to Han Chinese on earth's surface, there were still subtle differences.

It was roughly similar to the difference between people from the eastern and western regions of the country.

Of course, changing one’s appearance was only one part of it.

Changing one’s Qi was the most crucial aspect.

However, in the Martial Artist world, there was no shortage of hypnotism and bewitchment Spells that could cause distortions in perception.

It could even be said that if a human Martial Artist mastered hypnotism and charm, he could completely make an Stranger believe, at a conscious level, that the other party was one of their own kind.

But this Spell would only last for a while and would quickly become ineffective.

The main reason for this was the significant difference in the Qi and life magnetic fields between humans and Stranger.

Just like a fragrant cream cake and a durian, the scents they emit are naturally different.

And the miraculous thing about this odd object mask was that it could change the Qi of a human Martial Artist, making it identical to that of an Stranger!

This was also why Fang Han, a human, could thrive in Black Furnace City and even become its City Lord.

Speaking of Fang Han, both Shen Bei and Zhuang Bifan greatly admired him.

Not only did he integrate into the Stranger, but he even became the City Lord.

If they were to start from scratch and become City Lord like Fang Han, it would be an overwhelming task.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say there are always people better than you, and there is always a higher Dao.

At this moment,

Shen Bei's appearance completely transformed into an Stranger.

Shen Bei beckoned.

Zhuang Bifan placed the full-length mirror in front of Shen Bei.

Shen Bei turned his head, examining his new face back and forth.

He couldn't help but make a clicking sound.

“I am an Stranger! Hiss-ha!”

Shen Bei growled, baring his fangs and claws.

Zhuang Bifan held his forehead, saying helplessly, “Don’t hypnotize yourself into thinking you’re an Stranger…”

“If that day comes, just kill me.” Shen Bei said generously.

Zhuang Bifan’s eyelashes trembled, and he seemed to be chewing on something in his mouth. After a while, he said, “Kill you? That would have to be Bai Wei; I might not even be able to defeat you.”

Shen Bei patted Zhuang Bifan’s shoulder, saying earnestly, “Have some confidence in yourself. Overcoming the strong is overcoming yourself.”

“However, it must be said,” Shen Bei tilted his head, his gaze lingering on Zhuang Bifan for a moment, then he continued faintly, “If your trump card is merely limited to stripping sunlight and radiating attacks… then it is indeed a bit difficult.”

Zhuang Bifan just quietly watched Shen Bei boast and show off.

He truly wasn’t humble at all.

Zhuang Bifan didn’t dwell on that issue with Shen Bei, and instead asked, “What’s next?”

“The old routine.”

Shen Bei pointed at the full-length mirror, arranging, “You enter the mirror, I’ll carry the mirror and blend in with the Stranger. After the trade ends, I’ll follow the Stranger, and the rest will be about chatting and gathering information. This process might take a long time; I can’t give a definite timeline.”

“You need to be prepared for not being able to come out for a long time.”

Zhuang Bifan nodded solemnly, “That’s fine; the world inside the mirror isn’t small, it’s enough space for me to move around.”

Shen Bei nodded, waving his hand, “Come on, buddy, the Martial Dao Pinnacle mission officially begins. Let’s… go!”