Cent Trade Market
Upon hearing August's invitation, Gu Ding's expression faltered slightly.
August didn't use telepathy to say these words. Although the Blue Frog Tavern was quite large, it had been completely silent since August entered, so his words clearly reached the ears of everyone present.
"What's going on?" Many people were puzzled.
The Federal Government has occasionally poached talent from powerful factions like the Freedom Alliance, the Medicine God Alliance, and even the Divine Armory Pavilion, but it has never been known to invite Interstellar Pirate to join directly. For those Interstellar Pirate who have already made a name for themselves in the Universe Sea, the Federal Government mostly grants them titles rather than recruits them from within.
After all, Interstellar Pirate are mostly lawless individuals, unlike members of other organizations who at least understand some rules and discipline. Moreover, their ideologies are completely at odds with the Federal Government, making them extremely difficult to manage if recruited into the Federal Government.
Gu Ding paused for a moment, not out of hesitation, but out of surprise, but he quickly gave a matter-of-fact reply, "Thank you for the invitation, Uncle, but I'm not interested."
This answer was actually expected by August; he only asked because he was unwilling to give up.
Gu Ding didn't consider whether his refusal would provoke anger or cause trouble for the team. He always spoke his mind and never thought about such things. To him, if there was trouble, he would just solve it; life was that simple. Most people, however, fear trouble and therefore easily complicate simple matters.
Receiving a straightforward rejection, August was not angry. After a moment of silence, he asked again, "Then why did you choose to attend a military academy in the first place?"
When Gu Ding heard this question, he grinned and said, "It's because the Hai Lan Star Basic Military Academy offered the highest scholarships, and I was very poor at the time."
"Just for the money?" August didn't seem very satisfied with this answer.
"At first I went there for the money," Gu Ding nodded, "But then I found the school to be quite good. It taught basic martial arts and had access to military networks. Later I even discovered that there was a Mecha in the school, although I only touched it once during the semester."
"Didn't you ever think about finishing your basic military academy education, then attending a higher military academy, and finally joining the Federal Army?" August asked, noticing that Gu Ding didn't seem to have any aversion to military academies.
"I never even considered joining the Federal Army," Gu Ding shook his head. "My upbringing was in a small tavern not far from the Interstellar Port. I grew up hanging out with Interstellar Pirate, so I've always wanted to be one. My dream has always been to become the man with the highest bounty in the entire Universe Sea. As for attending a higher military academy, I did think about it before, but back then I thought that even after graduating from a higher military academy, I would still become Interstellar Pirate."
August said nothing more, simply setting down the transparent printed cup in his hand, tossing down three Universe Crystal, and turning to leave. But as he reached the door, he suddenly stopped. "As the guardian of the Great Boundary River, my mission is not to stop Interstellar Pirate from entering the Universe Sea. Therefore, I will not harm you or your companions. But once you enter the Universe Sea, everything will be different. The Universe Sea is a melting pot where all forces converge; anyone can become an enemy, and only those who survive in the end will be the ultimate winners."
After saying this, he stepped out of the Blue Frog Tavern.
His words had no effect on Gu Ding, but they did make a few of the other Interstellar Pirate sitting in the tavern consider leaving.
"The mortality rate in the Universe Sea is indeed very high. The probability of a newcomer dying in the first year is about 80%." The Sea Emperor did not deny this. "The Federal Government will also be much more aggressive in capturing Interstellar Pirate, and they will not care whether the pirates are dead or alive."
Shortly after August left, Gu Ding followed suit. He didn't return to the spaceship but went to the trading market.
With the Sea Emperor present, most valuable items can be easily identified. This place is not far from the Reverse Dragon River Channel, a planet frequented by powerful individuals and with highly developed trade. Therefore, unidentifiable items often appear, brought back from ruins by these powerful individuals. These items, which even appraisers cannot determine, are naturally sold at low prices.
This trading market on Restdat Star Cent Trade Market. It's a huge hub of activity every day, with many people coming here hoping to find treasures, just like Gu Ding. The vast majority rely on luck, but a few have a truly discerning eye and can identify many rare items.
The Sea Emperor quickly spotted four items of decent quality at low prices. He immediately urged Gu Ding to head towards the location of the first item, "Gu Ding, hurry! There's a wristwatch at booth number thirty-two; we have to buy it no matter what!"
"Is there anything special about that watch?" Gu Ding couldn't help but ask.
"This watch was made by an advanced intelligent civilization in the Middle Ancient Era, and it has many functions that modern watches don't have. Moreover, this one is quite expensive, belonging to the high-end luxury goods category. Anyone who can afford this must have been at least High-rank God in the Middle Ancient Era. There might even be some cultivation resources left over in its Storage Space that you can use." The Sea Emperor's words made Gu Ding slightly tempted, and he immediately rushed towards stall number thirty-two.
When he arrived at the stall, Gu Ding glanced around but didn't see any watches.
"That bracelet-like thing is it!" Sea Emperor reminded him.
Gu Ding then noticed that there was indeed a purple bracelet on the stall, which looked like it was for women. He then calmly asked, "Uncle, how much is this bracelet?"
The stall owner, a thin man, glanced up at Gu Ding and said impatiently, "One million Universe Crystal!"
"This is too expensive!" Gu Ding wanted to bargain.
Unexpectedly, the skinny man wasn't buying it at all. "I got this from Ancient Civilization site. Although even the appraiser can't identify it, things from Ancient Civilization sites can't be ordinary. One million Universe Crystal is only the price of a demigod item. If you buy it and find out it's a Four-Star Divine Object, wouldn't you be making a profit?"
"Hey sir, stop ripping people off." At this moment, a chubby guy next to him couldn't help but speak up. "According to your logic, you could sell any random stone you pick up in the Ancient Civilization Ruins for a million Universe Crystal, because you might find out that it's actually a Four-Star Divine Object disguised as a stone."
The thin man was speechless for a moment, unable to think of anything to refute the other party.
"That's right, uncle, just sell it to me for a lower price." Gu Ding didn't expect someone to help him out.
"100,000 Universe Crystal. If you're not buying, stop arguing." The skinny man glared at the chubby boy with some resentment, then impatiently flicked his sleeve at Gu Ding.
"Hey, I advise you not to buy it. He probably just bought this thing for a few Universe Coin and then lied that he got it from an ancient ruin so he could resell it at a high price and cheat people like you who don't know any better." The chubby guy couldn't bear to see Gu Ding being cheated, so he lowered his voice and said to Gu Ding.
"You fatso!" The skinny man suddenly became angry. "I got this from ancient ruins. If you keep slandering me, I'll beat you up!"
"Selling counterfeit goods and not letting people talk about it..." Little Fatty muttered under his breath, but seemingly afraid that the other party would make a move, he warned Gu Ding again, "Don't buy it," before quickly disappearing into the crowd.
Gu Ding smiled wryly. The chubby boy was kind-hearted, warning him several times to avoid being fooled. However, the Sea Emperor's appraisal confirmed that the item was indeed comparable to Four-Star Divine Object from the Middle Ancient Era, proving the stall owner was right.
"100,000 Universe Crystal. Buy it now if you want, or don't try to do business with me." The skinny man saw that Gu Ding was standing there and wouldn't leave. He knew that Gu Ding still couldn't part with the bracelet, so he insisted on 100,000 Universe Crystal and refused to lower the price.
"Ten thousand it is, I'll take it!" Gu Ding didn't intend to continue the stalemate; it wasn't worth it. Besides, there were three other items waiting for him to buy, and if he was too late, they might be snapped up by someone else.
The skinny man was taken aback. He hadn't expected Gu Ding to actually accept the price. But then he thought that if Gu Ding was a child from a big family, 100,000 Universe Crystal wasn't a very high price. He immediately projected the payment page.
Gu Ding swiped the payment page with his wristwatch, and the payment was completed quickly.
After storing the bracelet in his Storage Space, Gu Ding headed towards the second stall.
At the second stall, Gu Ding found a finger bone several tens of centimeters long, resembling a piece of white jade crystal. The stall owner, mistaking it for some kind of crystal, sold it to Gu Ding for 200,000 Universe Crystal. In reality, it was the finger bone of a four-star demon beast called the Jin Gang Giant Ape, a being comparable to Peak-rank God.
At the third stall, Gu Ding was a step too late; someone else beat him to it. Sea Emperor also saw it; the one who bought the items before Gu Ding was none other than the chubby little boy from before.
Upon arriving at the fourth stall, Gu Ding's gaze settled on a golden beast egg no bigger than an egg. According to the Sea Emperor, this was an Ancient Era Gold-type Devouring Beast, though its exact species was still unknown. This beast was quite peculiar; it loved to devour various ores, and the more it consumed, the faster it evolved and the stronger it became.
"Uncle, how much is this beast egg?" Gu Ding asked.
"One million source stones, no bargaining." The stall owner, an old man, looked at Gu Ding with a smile.
This offer surprised Gu Ding slightly. It was one million Origin Stones, not one million Universe Crystal. One Origin Stone is equivalent to ten thousand Universe Crystal, so one million Origin Stones is equivalent to ten billion Universe Crystal. This price is comparable to Four-Star Divine Object artifact.
"Hey, old man, it's just a Gold-type Devouring Beast. If it's fed properly, it might reach the Combat Strength of Peak-rank God. If it's not fed properly, it might not even be as good as a Mid-rank God. The price you're offering is comparable to Four-Star Divine Object. Isn't that a bit too high?" The chubby boy reappeared beside Gu Ding and directly revealed the origin of the beast egg.