【"My name is Stelle," Stelle introduced herself.】

【March 7th gave Stelle a complicated look, marveling inwardly at how innocent and well-behaved she seemed in front of strangers.】

【"Alright, alright, got it. To be honest, I didn't expect to run into folks in the same line of work out here in this freezing wasteland. Business has been tough lately, but don't worry, Sampo here never hogs all the spoils."】

【beaming with enthusiasm and seeing that Stelle seemed to be the easiest to talk to among the three, Sampo proactively extended a hand to her. "How about we team up? I've got reliable intel: the main force of the Silvermane Guards has been deployed to the front lines. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity..."】

【Stelle stared at him blankly. "What business?"】

【"Now you're taking it a bit too far, folks. It's fine if you don't trust me, but there's no need to play dumb to this extent, is there?"】

【Seeing that the expressions on their faces didn't change at all, Sampo's furrowed brows slowly smoothed out. Immediately switching to a fresh attitude, he clapped his hands and laughed. "Ah, forget it. Meeting each other is fate after all! If there's anything you'd like to know, just ask. I'll tell you everything I know, holding nothing back!"】

【Stelle asked a few questions about human settlements and learned that the only city on this planet was called 'Belobog,' which was the only place shielded from the harsh blizzards, and that the Silvermane Guards were essentially the city's police.】

【"Could you lead us into the city? We're not very familiar with the way," March 7th suggested.】

【"Head into the city? Going back already? I haven't even made my first sale today, little sister. Guiding the way is a piece of cake, but—" Sampo shook his head and was about to continue, but when he turned his head, he caught Dan Heng's murderous glare.】

【The oppressive aura from the Cold-Faced Little Azure Dragon!】

【Cold sweat instantly broke out on Sampo's forehead. Being quite adept at reading the room, he promptly changed his tune, doing a full 180-degree flip in attitude.】

【"—but I just love helping others! Haha, kind-heartedness is practically synonymous with Sampo! Follow me, friends. Keep it down so the Silvermane Guards don't spot us."】

——

"Haha, I'm actually starting to like this kid."

Inside an underground base in Zaun, Silco held a wine glass in one hand, watching Sampo's ancestral art of face-changing with great amusement.

As the leader of Zaun's various factions who had grown up in The Lanes, Silco had seen countless flatterers and turncoats; Sampo's performance felt warmly familiar to him.

Lying on a beam high up in the room, Jinx boredly swung her braids while blowing blue Bubbles. "But if he were a little stronger, he wouldn't have to act like that."

"You're right, but that's precisely what I appreciate about him."

Silco tilted his head back, draining the wine in his glass, and followed up on her topic: "Those who survive until the end in harsh environments often aren't the ones with immense power or brilliant wisdom, but rather people like him—who trim their sails to the wind and know how to read the room."

"Even The Strongest person will have days of weakness, and that will be their demise. But those who navigate the space between the strong and the weak... hmm, truly remarkable."

He nodded at Sampo on the light screen with an appreciative expression.

If Sampo ever came to the Undercity, he would certainly find a way to recruit him. People like this were as sly as foxes; you couldn't win them over with genuine sentiment, only with sufficient benefits and profit.

Silco didn't mind that approach at all.

【Led by Sampo, the group swiftly made their way through the snowy plains.】

【"So, why are you hiding from the Silvermane Guards?" March 7th asked curiously along the way.】

【"Uh, just stashed away a few ancient relics, nothing major. Blame those enforcers on duty—they've only got one track in their minds."】

【"Speaking of which, where do you folks really come from? Skills like yours aren't common even in Belobog's barracks. Hey... not that I'm prying, just looking out for friends."】

【Along the way, Sampo laughed and bantered, attempting to pry useful information out of Stelle and March 7th, but Dan Heng promptly shut him down each time.】

【As they came upon a narrow path, several guards clad in blue uniforms and silver visored helms suddenly stepped out, blocking their way.】

【Dan Heng immediately sensed trouble. "What is this?"】

【Sampo scratched his head, an apologetic smile surfacing on his face. "Uh, remember those Silvermane Guards I mentioned? That's them..."】

【Dan Heng let out a sigh, not expecting that despite being so cautious, a battle was still unavoidable.】

【As soon as the fight began, taking advantage of their diverted attention, Sampo greased his soles and bolted, escaping so fast that he practically vaporized into thin air, vanishing into the wind and snow in an instant.】

【Fortunately, the Silvermane Guards weren't very strong. Under the trio's coordinated assault, they couldn't hold their ground at all and fell back repeatedly.】

【Just as March 7th loosed a volley of arrows, a burly, well-built man strode out from behind the guards. With an effortless wave of his hand, he neutralized all of March 7th's arrows. Standing before the three Silvermane Guards, he looked like an indestructible city wall.】

"Strange, why were the arrows completely ineffective against him?"

Inside a dojo in Tokyo, a drenched Retsu Kaioh lowered the spear in his hand and looked toward his teacher, Kaku Kaioh, who was sitting quietly and sipping tea.

After witnessing Dan Heng's spear mastery—one that could hold off a thousand men alone—Retsu Kaioh's passion for the spear was reignited. To that end, he had specially invited his 146-year-old master to Tokyo to personally correct the deficiencies in his spear technique.

Yet he found that no matter how much he practiced, he could never grasp the essence of Dan Heng's spear technique, remaining far from his level.

Even though that young man looked far younger than him...

Retsu Kaioh had arrived at Bailin Temple to practice martial arts at the age of four, hailed from childhood as the number one genius of Chinese martial arts, with sabers, spears, swords, halberds, and staves being his daily lessons since youth. Seeing that Dan Heng's spear attainment far surpassed his own, he felt the humiliating frustration of a frog in a well.

His spear technique was far inferior to his fist technique, simply because he had believed since childhood that human fists were the most powerful and freest weapon. Yet after witnessing Dan Heng's spear mastery, the conviction he had held since youth began to waver.

...It turned out that compared to others, his spear technique was separated by a gulf as vast as clouds and mud.

And today, after witnessing Gepard effortlessly neutralize March 7th's barrage of arrows, he was all the more astonished.

"I understand, Master. These people from the Otherworld not only possess superb martial arts attainments, but they also understand Force Dissipation."

Before Kaku Kaioh could even set down his teacup, Retsu Kaioh asserted to himself, "And it's Force Dissipation of extremely high purity!"

"Pfft... Cough, cough, cough!"

Hearing this, Kaku Kaioh nearly lost his composure on the spot, coughing violently after choking on his tea.