Chapter One: A Mysterious Object Falls from the Heavens
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The Rules of Dimensional Trading
At midnight, thirty kilometers west of the Third Ring Road in Chengdu, in a desolate wilderness, two middle-aged men dressed in black searched the ground with flashlights, looking for something. One of them whispered, “Second, are you sure it landed here?” No sooner had he spoken than a sudden “thud” sounded behind him. Turning, he saw that his companion had vanished into thin air...
Startled, the man swept his flashlight over the spot where Second had been standing, only to discover a large hole had appeared there at some point. After a long moment, a voice rose from within, cursing, “Damn it, which son of a gun had nothing better to do and dug a hole here! And not only dug it, but covered it up as well! Now I’ve been split into four pieces from the fall!” Grumbling and swearing, Second crawled out of the hole—it wasn’t deep, likely the work of local children at play.
Grabbing Second’s hand, the man scolded with a laugh, “Who else is to blame but yourself for not watching your step? So, did it really land here?”
Rubbing his backside and grimacing in pain, Second insisted, “I’m sure of it—I saw it with my own eyes. Big Brother, do you think it could be a meteorite?”
As it turned out, Second was a gambler who had lost everything that night and on his way home saw a red streak of light falling from the sky to this wasteland. Too timid to come alone in the dark, he had dragged his cousin out with him.
The man frowned. “Have you been drinking too much? If a meteorite really fell here, there’d be a huge commotion. The whole city would feel it.”
The two of them searched the wasteland for a long time but found nothing. Finally, the man yawned and said, “Forget it, it’s too dark to see anything. I’ll get a few people to help look tomorrow morning.” Second sighed, “Brother, we’re cousins—almost as close as real brothers. If we find something valuable and sell it, I want my share!”
“Yeah, yeah, I know!” the man replied impatiently.
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“Wood, hurry up! If we’re late, I’ll skin you alive!” The one shouting was none other than the portly man from the night before, who had spent half the night searching for treasure in the wasteland. He was short—even less than 1.6 meters tall—and so rotund that from afar he resembled a ball of flesh. The fat on his face nearly obscured his eyes.
“Coming, coming!” At his shout, a sturdy young man with a baby face and standing 1.75 meters tall ducked out of an antique shop, a shoulder bag slung over his back, and hurried to the van parked by the chubby man’s side.
The fat man glared at him. “What’s wrong with you? We’re just going to look for something, yet you insist on bringing your laptop.”
The young man, known as Wood, grinned. “Brother Wang, you know I’m inseparable from my laptop. Besides, it won’t get in the way.”
The chubby man snorted, “You’re addicted! Can’t live without it!”
Just then, two other young men in their twenties joined them, greeting, “Brother Wang,” with deference.
The fat man grunted in reply. As soon as they got in the van, the two sat quietly in the back, not daring to say a word—evidently afraid of Brother Wang.
These two were clerks under the fat man’s employ. Normally, they joked and laughed with Wood, but whenever Brother Wang was present, they were as timid as mice before a cat.
Never underestimate this fat man. His surname was Wang—though even he probably had forgotten his full name—he was renowned in the Chengdu antique market as a “big boss.” Everyone showed him respect, calling him “Brother Wang.” Over time, the name stuck. He was bold enough to deal directly with tomb goods, and his discerning eye could spot genuine antiques from fakes at a glance. Thanks to his skills, he’d amassed several million in assets within a few years, married a beautiful wife, and opened shops all over the city’s antique markets. However, he was notorious for his fiery temper—his apprentices and shop assistants were all terrified of him. Only Wood seemed oblivious, taking his scoldings in stride and often soothing him in return. Gradually, Brother Wang came to see Wood as someone he could talk to.
Wood’s real name was Chen Mu. Honest and mild-mannered, he always wore a smile. In the antiques business, deception of the unwary was commonplace, but Chen Mu never participated, making him the lowest earner among the staff. As a result, everyone teased that he was as dense as wood.
Sensing the tense atmosphere in the van, Wood tried to lighten the mood. “Brother Wang, getting everyone up so early—something good must be happening, right?”
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Brother Wang shot him a look. “Good things, my ass! Last night, Second dragged me out of bed to hunt for treasure, and we found nothing but air!”
“Treasure?” The rest perked up, eyes gleaming. “What treasure?”
“Treasure, my ass!” Brother Wang cursed, then recounted the previous night’s events.
“Oh! It’s probably not a meteorite. Did you two have too much to drink, or are you pulling Brother Wang’s leg?”
“He wouldn’t dare!” the fat man retorted. “Not even if you lent him the guts. But just in case Second saw right, it costs us nothing to look. Who knows, maybe we’ll get lucky!”
The roads were clear so early in the morning, and they soon arrived at the wasteland. As soon as they parked, Second appeared from somewhere.
Brother Wang tossed him a cigarette. “Second, no one else’s been here, right?”
Second grinned, lit the cigarette, and glanced around. “Who’d come to this godforsaken place? I’ve been here since dawn!”
He added slyly, “Brother, if we really find something valuable, you have to count me in!”
Brother Wang glared, “Cut the nonsense. If there are spoils, you won’t be left out.”
He waved them onward, and Second led the group into the wasteland, saying, “I saw it fall here last night, and I remember the direction vaguely, but I just can’t find it. I don’t know why!” As he spoke, he brought them to the hole he’d fallen into the night before.
Brother Wang gestured, “It should be in this area—let’s split up and search!”
No sooner had he spoken than Wood suddenly felt his mind blur and strange sounds filled his ears—like birds softly calling, or insects singing. But after a few seconds, everything returned to normal.
“Seems I really need more sleep! Too many late nights and now I’m hallucinating,” Wood muttered. Suddenly, he heard an eerie voice by his ear:
“Scan complete. System can now attach to object... Classifying... Technological item detected... Low-level computational terminal.
Analyzing plane... Basal material plane.
Searching for dimensional agent... Object holder is agent.
...Replenishing energy... Entering hibernation...”
A flurry of bizarre, synthesized voices left Wood stupefied. He looked around, but nothing seemed amiss. Where was that strange electronic voice coming from?
“Hey! Wood, what are you standing there for? Get searching!” Brother Wang shouted impatiently, seeing him dazed.
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“Oh, right, Brother Wang!” Wood quickly replied, pretending to search while muttering to himself, “Auditory hallucinations! Damn, I really need to sleep earlier—no more all-night web novels for me!”
Under Brother Wang’s supervision, the group searched the wasteland all morning, scouring from east to west and back again. Not a single valuable item turned up. At last, they left, heads hanging in disappointment.
Brother Wang drove them back to the shop, instructed them to be careful, and then disappeared on his own. Such was the antique business—customers were rare, but a single sale could set you up for years. Besides a few regulars and big clients, Brother Wang rarely stayed at the shop; he preferred to wander Sichuan, seeking out deals among his peers.
With Brother Wang gone, the two young clerks sighed in relief. One joked, “He left so early—probably off to enjoy some daytime pleasures!”
He had reason to say so. Not long ago, Brother Wang had married a wife. Though the man himself was unremarkable, his wife was a beauty among beauties—a figure like a model, and her large, sparkling eyes could captivate anyone. She was only twenty-two, a year younger than Wood.
The other clerk smirked, “When I have money, I’ll marry a beautiful wife and do whatever I want!”
As the two bantered about their boss’s wife, Wood kept to himself, opening his laptop to read web novels. But as soon as he powered it on, he froze. The familiar screen dimmed, and points of starlight gradually appeared, swirling until they formed an elliptical galaxy like the Milky Way.
“...System initializing...” The eerie synthetic voice echoed in his mind. Wood realized it wasn’t a hallucination. He glanced at the two clerks, who were engrossed in their conversation, oblivious to him.
“That must be what we were searching for!” A sudden inspiration struck him. “But what is this?”
“This is the Dimensional Trading System... Initialization complete. Insufficient energy. Trading will be possible in six hours!”
“What?!” Wood was stunned—the electronic voice could read his thoughts. This was terrifying!
“The system is now bound to the agent’s brainwaves. This system will endeavor to serve the agent.”
“So... I’ve really found a treasure? Could it be alien technology?”
“Preliminary investigation complete... Basal material plane. Cultural content is extremely diverse, with both essence and dross...
Environmental analysis: Technological level is very low. No magical civilization information detected; rare traces of cultivation civilization... Development potential: Uncertain.
Agent’s body monitoring and analysis... Life structure: carbohydrate-based.
Agent’s physical assessment... Basal material plane agent—Constitution 7 (out of 10); Agility 6 (out of 10); Mental power... Agent’s physical condition is extremely poor. Immediate improvement recommended.”