Alice closed her eyes and continued sensing the yellow dog from earlier.
Meanwhile, the main body sitting nearby took out her phone and checked the money in her account.
"Only a little over ten thousand. With so many bodies, this money will probably run out soon."
She began considering how to make money.
Her current condition was not suitable for going out to work, and after gaining power, she had resolved to protect the main body and stay behind the scenes whenever possible.
She truly did not want situations like the recent danger near her home to happen again.
"I should rent a place when I have time. Right, I should also give the clones some Water of Purification to carry..."
That evening, Alice secretly brought the yellow dog some ham sausage and water, then had it monitor the target.
At around six o'clock, the Chief put on sunglasses, draped himself in a robe, and left the building.
He did not take a car. Instead, he strolled slowly along the roadside alone.
Alice and Ye Xin followed from nearly two kilometers away, relying entirely on the Yellow Dog's vision to keep watch on the target.
More than ten minutes later, the man arrived in the nearby suburbs. He put on a mask, then knocked on the door of a mechanical repair shop nearby.
Click!
The door opened.
"Do you repair old televisions here?"
"We do. How old are we talking?"
"Black-and-white."
"Come in." The person at the door stepped aside, and the man walked inside.
Alice sank into thought. "Was that a contact code?"
That person had said during the day that he was going to a trading gathering. If it involved trading special items, they would naturally need to be cautious. Meeting up with a code in such a sparsely populated place was nothing strange.
Taking advantage of the moment, she had the yellow dog run to a slope across the street to observe.
There was nothing there.
From the dog's perspective, the building was actually empty.
"Some kind of illusion?"
At that moment, another stranger arrived. The same process played out a second time.
Alice thought for a while and decided to give it a try herself.
She quickly returned to the street and searched around. Before long, she found a small shop selling masks.
"What do you need, little sister?" The female shop owner's eyes lit up when she saw such an adorable little blonde girl walk in.
"This one."
Alice casually picked up a cat-head mask and took out the five yuan on the price tag.
"Sure thing. Take care, little sister."
Watching the little cutie hurry out, the owner smiled.
After going several hundred meters, Alice handed the mask to Ye Xin.
Putting on the mask, Ye Xin—dressed entirely in black and wearing a felt hat—approached the shop on her own and gently knocked on the door.
"Do you repair old televisions here?" As soon as the person inside opened the door, Ye Xin followed the procedure.
"We do. How old are we talking?"
"Black-and-white."
Without any more nonsense, the door opened.
Ye Xin safely entered and immediately saw quite a few people.
Two rows of people sat facing each other around a coffee table.
"Seems like there are more people today. How many minutes until we start?" a man on the sofa asked.
"One minute." The answer came from a man wearing a pure black mask.
Ye Xin noticed that, including herself, there were three women and six men present.
"Nine people? That's not a small number."
With a quick glance, she spotted the Chief from earlier.
In this setting, he looked no different from anyone else.
"That should be enough. Let's begin."
One minute later, the man in the all-black mask slapped a watch onto the table.
Everyone gathered around it, and Ye Xin sat down beside them as well.
"I'll go first."
A woman took a coin from her pocket.
"A standard item. Throw it at least three meters into the air during battle. If it lands heads-up, any locked-on target within ten meters will feel continuous, agonizing heart pain for three seconds. Price: thirty thousand in real-world currency."
The black-masked man scanned it with a ring, and a flash of light passed across it.
"Appraisal."
Heartache Coin (White) Throw it at least three meters into the air. If it lands heads-up, it has a certain chance to cause the target intense heart pain for three seconds.
Everyone saw the words appear above it.
"Thirty thousand?" Ye Xin raised an eyebrow.
It really was expensive, but if used well in battle, this thing could save one's life.
She had no money, so she could only ignore it.
The room remained silent for over ten seconds before a man took out his phone. "If nobody wants it, I'll transfer the money."
"OK."
The two completed the transaction, and the transfer was made on the spot.
"That was pretty efficient," Ye Xin thought silently.
Next came the second person.
"I'm selling this."
He handed over a very ordinary-looking stone.
Twin Void Stone (White) Release one stone to instantly attack an opponent. If it fails to hit, use the other Void Stone to recall it from the opposite direction, creating a second attack.
It looked much more reliable than the previous item, and even Ye Xin was somewhat tempted.
"An item like this should have come from a mission in Otherspace, right? Or could it be... something that exists in reality?"
As she considered this, the Chief, who had remained silent all along, suddenly straightened up. "I want that. How much?"
The seller smiled. "Three Purple Crystal Coins."
"Three?"
He seemed somewhat hesitant, but in the end, the Chief still placed three purple crystalline coins on the table.
Ye Xin's expression turned strange.
She did not recognize these coins at all. Were they something like the Copper Coins from the Main World?
No, the Main World only had gold, silver, and copper.
That was rather strange.
However, Ye Xin was certain of one thing: the item the Chief had bought was probably meant for dealing with her.
It really was insidious. After throwing it out, it could still be recalled, so the second attack would come from behind, wouldn't it? If she failed to notice it, she might really be caught in a sneak attack.
Two more people sold items afterward, and one of them even sold two.
Seeing everyone exchanging items like this, Ye Xin had an idea and took out a small jar she had brought with her, filled with transparent liquid.
"I'm selling this."
"Hm?" The black-masked man reached out to appraise it.
Water of Purification (White) A potion beneficial to health that can rapidly heal injuries.
"This is... healing medicine?"
"God, this stuff is rare. How much are you planning to sell it for?"
Obviously, several people were interested.
"Purple Crystal Coins or money are both fine. How much do you think it's worth?"
This...
Everyone present fell into deep thought, but no one spoke.
After half a minute, a relatively young woman asked, "How about eight Purple Crystal Coins, or four hundred thousand in real-world currency? I'll take it."
Holy shit, four hundred thousand?
Ye Xin was startled, but she quickly calmed down.
The money would be transferred immediately. Would that expose her identity?
"Purple Crystal Coins."
"Alright."
When the other party handed over eight crystals, Ye Xin pushed the water toward her.
Pure profit without any investment. She had made a killing this time.
The trading gathering ended soon afterward. After announcing the time of the next gathering, everyone took turns leaving the building.
Ye Xin put the Purple Crystal Coins into her pocket and was the first to head out.
Those whose trades were more valuable left first, with each person separated by three minutes. It seemed to be meant to prevent others from robbing them.
After walking out the door, Ye Xin immediately quickened her pace toward home.
Alice left as well.
She was extremely cautious and truly did not want any of the strangers there to latch onto her.
The yellow dog arrived ahead of time at the house where the Chief and his subordinates had been staying.
Unexpectedly, as soon as it arrived, it saw two strange people appear nearby.
Naturally, Alice heard their conversation as well.
"The Chief went out. There are only three lackeys inside. We can wipe out this Insect Blood Society stronghold."
After taking one last drag from the cigarette butt in his hand, the tall, thin man touched his pocket and flicked his wrist. A long blade appeared in his hand.
"Let's go," the woman beside him said.
"Move!"
The two swiftly rushed to the house, climbed in through a window, and immediately launched an attack on the people inside.
Smack!
Smack! Smack!