"He probably traded that bear. Smart lad, choosing tangible items over credits."

"The person with him is a senior engineer. The Sixth Military Factory and the Research Institute are like family. Their bond isn't something we can compare to."

"He actually hit it!"

From 500 meters away, Zhou You fired a second arrow. It struck true, bringing down a mid-tier mutated bird from the sky. Pleased with the outcome, especially without using his inner power, he reckoned it would be effective even against high-tier beasts.

"Satisfied now?" teased Shao Qi.

"Absolutely, thank you," Zhou You sincerely expressed his gratitude. Without Shao Qi's connections, he wouldn't have traded a bear for such a satisfying weapon.

"You're welcome. Let me know if you want to trade for another weapon next time. Do you prefer knives or swords?"

"Perhaps I'd be more adept with a sword. I'll need to learn some swordsmanship first." Zhou You discovered that after his inner strength breakthrough, his senses had sharpened and he picked up new skills rapidly. He had easily learned the martial arts techniques he downloaded online.

"For swordsmanship, you might want to seek out the Wan Jian Sect. Their sword techniques are probably the best among the current sword-wielding factions."

"That would be convenient. I suppose young Sect Leader Cheng would be more than willing to offer a sword manual in gratitude for me saving his life." Zhou You said with a cunning smile.

The mid-level mutated birds couldn’t even approach the walls due to the heavy firepower. With the carcasses of the two high-level mutated birds still lying around, after leaving hundreds of their dead behind, the remaining mutated birds retreated, disappearing into the horizon.

As the skies cleared, everyone cheered in jubilation. The crisis was over. Soldiers began opening the city gates to clean up the battlefield. Not to mention the value of the two high-level mutated birds, even the hundreds of mid and low-level mutated birds would yield considerable spoils.

The land outside the city was pockmarked from thunder and artillery fire. Suddenly, a motorcycle approached from behind, zooming past everyone.

Shao Qi rode the motorcycle, helping Zhou You retrieve his iron arrows. They were valuable and shouldn't be wasted.

Zhou You recalled the birds he had shot down. Pointing them out to Shao Qi, he bent down to toss the bird carcasses into the net trailing behind the motorcycle. After making a round on the battlefield, the net was now filled with over a dozen bird carcasses.

Miao Miao stood with her hands on her hips, her foot resting on the carcass of a white eagle, telling the approaching crowd, "This bird belongs to the three of us. Don't even think about laying a finger on it."

A lieutenant approached with a shy smile, "Sir! We're not trying to claim your prey, just offering to help transport it."

"Fine. I'll mark it, and you can transport it back. Later, we'll divide the... spoils," Miao Miao said, scorching a mark on the eagle's leg and nodding in satisfaction.

Zhuo Hao commented disdainfully, "Unnecessary!" He then saluted the major general, "General Huang, since your rank is higher than ours, you should get first pick of the spoils."

The other officer waved it off nonchalantly, "No need, you youngsters take it. You all worked well together; I owe you for this one." Although he could have taken down the high-level mutated bird by himself, it would've been a much tougher battle.

"You flatter us. Taking down mutated beasts is our duty as soldiers!"

General Huang scolded the surrounding soldiers with a stern face, "Look at yourselves, lacking the discipline and bearing of soldiers. Learn from these individuals. Don't disgrace our Jiangnan Base."

"Yes, sir! We appreciate your efforts!" Everyone was in awe today. It's well-known that mutated beasts are hard to kill, and high-level mutated birds are something lower-ranked martial artists wouldn’t even dare to dream of tackling. Yet today, these three young people, younger than most present, had skillfully and seamlessly taken down two high-level mutated birds. Even Zhao Jinghao now approached Miao Miao more respectfully.

Miao Miao intentionally walked past him, nudging him with her shoulder, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "Oh, how the mighty have fallen."

Zhao Jinghao was beyond embarrassed. He wished he could challenge this infuriating woman right there and then. He might even have a chance of winning. But seeing her fresh wounds from the bird, he held back.

Miao Miao's disdain was more out of disappointment than malice. She had known Zhao Jinghao from their younger years and didn’t expect that, after all this time in the military base, his skills hadn’t improved much.

"We'll spar someday," Miao Miao left the challenge in the air. Someone whispered to Zhao Jinghao, "Sir, did you offend her?"

"Nonsense! Why does it have to be me offending her? Maybe I just don’t like her."

"Heh, you not liking her? Your eyes said otherwise just now."

A motorcycle zoomed past them, dragging a net filled with mutated birds. The weight almost caused Zhao Jinghao and his companion to be dragged along.

"Damn, these outsiders are so audacious. What do they take our Jiangnan Military Base for? They got lucky capturing two high-level mutated beasts and made a fortune. Everyone’s green with envy."

"Watch your mouth!" Zhao Jinghao warned, "People who come out of the Yun Lan mountains aren't just lucky. Don’t provoke them." Although Zhao Jinghao didn’t know Shao Qi, he knew Miao Miao and her companions followed his lead. Possibly someone of high rank or importance, he wasn't someone Zhao Jinghao wanted to mess with.

Zhou You directly brought the mutated birds to the Beast Capturing Store and traded them for five thousand points. All of these birds had been killed with a single shot, leaving only tiny wounds that were covered by their feathers. This made the store manager, Mr. Cao, very happy.