Shata Exchange

In the Shattas Main City, Gu Ding found a small inn to stay in temporarily.

With his size, he would easily attract attention in this world. Small hotels have relatively low foot traffic, so fewer people would see him.

From the time I checked in at the front desk until I saw Gu Ding, there were only seven or eight other people in the hotel.

In his room, Gu Ding kept the door tightly shut.

The hotels here also have simple isolation formations, and since the people here don't have very strong souls, they can still have some effect.

Gu Ding was still uneasy, so he took out a few source stones, inscribed several shielding Dao patterns on them, and then arranged them in a circle, adding another layer of isolation to the entire room. The reason for this caution was that the Crimson Flame Demon Fruit of the Eighth Sequence was priceless; if someone knew he possessed such a thing, it could bring him unnecessary trouble. While Gu Ding wasn't afraid of trouble, it was always better to avoid unnecessary problems if possible.

Having made these preparations, Gu Ding then began to examine his spoils of war.

"The entire Crimson Flame Demon Tree, along with 12 Crimson Flame Demon Fruit."

"There are 97 corpses at the True God level, including 1 at the Ninth Sequence, 18 at the Eighth Sequence, 36 at the Seventh Sequence, 41 at the Sixth Sequence, and 1 at the Third Sequence that Gu Ding killed himself on the way."

"17 corpses of Half-Step True God, 15 corpses of Peak-rank God..."

"A considerable haul!" Sea Emperor laughed after reviewing the report. "What are you planning to do with it?"

"I was thinking of selling some items at the Auction House to get Crimson Blood Crystal for cultivation. But with my physique, even if I wore a human skin mask and changed my face, my body shape would still be the same. People would still be able to see through me at a glance." Gu Ding raised a problem that was bothering him. "Do you have any good suggestions?"

"You don't need to be troubled by this problem at all. I have several solutions," Sea Emperor offered without hesitation.

"My first plan is to teach you an Appearance Alteration Technique. This Transformation Technique is not illusion, but a direct alteration of your bones and muscles. Once you learn it, you can transform into the physique of the local inhabitants without anyone noticing."

"My second option is to teach you a hypnosis technique. With your current soul strength, it will be effective against any True God in this world who is below the Ninth Sequence. After you learn it, you can directly hypnotize a True God of decent strength to help you submit your work for auction."

"There are some other options. But the first two are the most feasible."

"I prefer the first one because using hypnosis would certainly make me safer as I wouldn't have to show myself. However, if someone with ulterior motives traces the hypnotized person back to me, they might still be able to find me. Although the people here aren't skilled in soul-related magic, it's better to be safe than sorry. What if someone happens to be skilled in that area? My identity would be exposed."

"As for changing my appearance, I can handle things myself, firstly because I feel more at ease. Secondly, after obtaining the Crimson Blood Crystal, I can immediately change into another appearance. I can change my face after using it once it's done. It's also less likely that people will be able to trace my true identity."

"However, the Appearance Alteration Technique and hypnosis are both quite practical techniques. You should teach me both."

After stating his choice, Gu Ding still wanted to learn both types of magic. In fact, many in Gu Ding Pirate Crew greatly admired Liliath's powerful hypnotic abilities. Gu Ding, too, was very interested in this type of magic, which he had never encountered before.

"Alright, I'll teach you these two techniques over the next few days," the Sea Emperor agreed.

For the next few days, Gu Ding did not leave the house and studied what the Sea Emperor had taught him.

"Hypnosis is about using actions, sounds, and even eye contact to psychologically suggest things to the other person and bring them directly into a hypnotic state. So, hypnosis is different from direct soul control. It makes the other person willingly accept your commands, and it can be done without them even realizing it."

"There are usually two subjective factors that affect the effectiveness of hypnosis: the strength of the hypnotized person's soul and the strength of their will. Some people, even if their soul is not very strong, can resist the effects of hypnosis if they have strong willpower."

"There are many objective factors that affect the effectiveness of hypnosis, such as the environment, psychological state, and emotions of the person being hypnotized..."

"The Cellular Transformation Technique, just like its name suggests, achieves physical transformation by altering the shape and size of each cell in the body. However, the human body has a vast number of cells, and achieving the desired effect requires numerous training sessions..."

Five days later, a burly man over three meters tall walked out of Gu Ding's room. That burly man was none other than Gu Ding after his transformation.

He wore an ordinary dark green coarse cloth outfit, looking completely unremarkable. In reality, that outfit was a transformation of a set of pseudo-divine armor.

Once outside the hotel, as expected, no one looked at me with the strange eyes they used to have.

Even when someone walks right in front of you, you only glance at them briefly before looking away.

Sea Emperor, however, clearly sensed that Gu Ding seemed somewhat uneasy, and he comforted him, "Don't worry, no one will recognize you. This is just a change in your cell morphology. Even if someone examines your cells at a microscopic level, they won't be able to see anything abnormal. I reckon you can even fool that celestial being."

"I feel a bit uncomfortable with the height of this body." Although Gu Ding had done some coordination training after transforming, this was the first time he had gone out like this, and he felt a little unaccustomed to it.

They walked all the way to the exchange. Gu Ding looked up at the sign and then strode in with a nonchalant air.

The Shata Exchange is the largest exchange in the entire Shattas Main City.

At the entrance of the exchange, the two guards possessed the strength of True Gods. Although they were only First Sequence True Gods, it was enough to show that this exchange was definitely not simple.

Upon entering the exchange, the lobby was bustling with activity.

As Gu Ding walked in, a tall young woman, not much shorter than Gu Ding, came forward to greet him. "Sir, what do you need?"

"I'm here to consign items," Gu Ding stated his purpose directly.

"Consignment items? What items are you consigning?" The Shata Exchange is always very polite to sellers, because sellers often represent the source of goods.

"Crimson Flame Demon Fruit!" Gu Ding transmitted these four words to the other party telepathically.

The girl was taken aback and asked telepathically, somewhat uncertainly, "I can help you notify my superior, but do you really have the Crimson Flame Demon Fruit? If not, I will be punished, and you will also be fined."

"Go and inform your superior. Tell him that the quality of this Crimson Flame Demon Fruit will definitely not disappoint him," Gu Ding transmitted back again.

Hearing this, the girl nodded. "Alright then, please wait a moment."

Gu Ding nodded, standing there patiently waiting, while the Sea Emperor's voice echoed in his mind, "This Shata Exchange is probably one of the largest organizations in this world, with more than three thousand branches. And it has one in almost every major city. With their strength, the Crimson Flame Demon Fruit should fetch a good price."

Not long after, the girl returned, followed by a Red Skirt Woman and high heels.

The woman's appearance immediately attracted the attention of many men in the hall.

However, those people's gazes were fixed on the woman not just because she was beautiful. It was also because they knew she was of prominent status—the owner of the Shata Exchange.

Upon seeing the woman, Gu Ding's pupils contracted sharply. It wasn't because she was beautiful, but because her aura was terrifying; she was already at the level of a True God in the Eighth Sequence.

"This is the gentleman..." The girl led the woman to Gu Ding.

"I understand." The Red Skirt Woman looked Gu Ding up and down, and immediately saw that Gu Ding's blood energy strength was only at the level of One-Star Half-Step True God. Her expression immediately turned cold. "Did you trick me into coming here because you thought I was easy to fool?"

Her question was quite understandable, given that Gu Ding's aura was only at the level of One-Star Half-Step True God. The weakest member of the Crimson Flame Demon Tree, however, was a powerful True God-level being. The difference between them was an immeasurable chasm, impossible to bridge. She believed Gu Ding had tricked her into coming out for ulterior motives.

"Trick you into coming here? Why would I do that? I had this young lady invite her boss here for the consignment of items. If the Shata Exchange isn't interested, I can go to other exchanges." Gu Ding said, turning to leave.

The Red Skirt Woman frowned slightly and transmitted her Way of Sound to Gu Ding, "Wait a minute, do you really have the Crimson Flame Demon Fruit?!"

"I not only have the Crimson Flame Demon Fruit, but also other things." Gu Ding stopped and turned back to transmit his voice.

"Come with me!" The Red Skirt Woman swayed and suddenly appeared beside Gu Ding, placing her hand on his shoulder. In the next instant, the two of them appeared in another space.

Gu Ding knew that he had entered the other person's Miniature World.

Her Miniature World was quite unique, even featuring a small pavilion, stone table, and stone chairs.

"Sit down," the Red Skirt Woman said, pointing to a stone bench.

Gu Ding sat down without any hesitation, and the Red Skirt Woman sat down opposite Gu Ding.

"My name is Urdia, and I am the owner of the Shata Exchange. Do you really have the Crimson Flame Demon Fruit?" The Red Skirt Woman looked at Gu Ding with some anticipation.

With a flick of his wrist, Gu Ding revealed a Blood-colored Fruit that pulsated like a heart in his palm. Even when shrunk to its smallest size, the Blood-colored Fruit was still the size of a human head, and its surface was covered with eight strange golden lines, resembling protruding blood vessels.

"Eight stripes... This is Eighth Sequence Crimson Flame Demon Fruit?" Upon seeing this fruit, Urdia was practically stunned. "It's actually Eighth Sequence Crimson Flame Demon Fruit!!!"

Gu Ding raised an eyebrow; this reaction was exactly what he wanted. The fact that even a True God-level expert from the Eighth Sequence could lose his composure like this proved the immense value of the item in his possession.

After a long while, Urdia finally came to her senses and looked at Gu Ding with hopeful eyes, "Sir, could you sell me this Crimson Flame Demon Fruit?"

~~~

[I can only squeeze out one chapter today. I had terrible writer's block during this transitional chapter, and I wrote from 6 PM to 11 PM. I counted, and including today, I owe you all four chapters in January. It's mainly because I haven't been working hard this week. I'll try my best to make up for it next week.] (To be continued~^~)