Chapter 55: Chapter 49: Making a Trade

When Tang Mo opened her eyes again, it was already evening. The sun had set outside, and twilight washed the world in a hazy hue.

Tang Mo got ready to go out. She hadn’t taken care of the most important task yet, so the day wouldn’t feel complete without it.

She was in the habit of keeping all her belongings with her. She left almost nothing of her own in the room.

But she locked the door as a matter of routine. She had to keep up appearances.

Just as Tang Mo locked the door and was about to leave, she turned and her gaze met a pair of large eyes.

It was a girl in a white nightdress, about fourteen or fifteen years old. She was peeking out from the half-open door of the adjacent room, her large eyes fixed on Tang Mo. In her arms, she clutched a rather tattered teddy bear.

"Hey, I’m your new neighbor," Tang Mo said with a friendly greeting.

The girl visibly shrank back at Tang Mo’s words. She kept her distance, her eyes still fixed on Tang Mo, but she remained silent.

The girl’s eyes were very pure; Tang Mo saw no unfriendliness in them. Not minding the silence, she simply smiled and turned to leave.

"Xiao Mo, why did you open the door in your nightgown? Get back inside, quickly."

A woman carrying a basket suddenly appeared in the hallway. She wasn’t actually old, but she looked to be in her forties or fifties.

Her clothes were tattered yet clean, but the sallow, gaunt look on her face was impossible to hide.

The woman followed her daughter’s gaze and saw Tang Mo.

"I’m so sorry. My daughter has a mild form of autism and doesn’t interact much with people. I hope she didn’t bother you." The woman hurriedly bowed to Tang Mo, her apology sincere.

"It’s no problem. I just moved in. I have somewhere to be, so I’ll get going."

Tang Mo said before taking her leave.

’The woman’s tattered clothes and malnourished appearance didn’t fit someone who could afford to live in the apartments.’

’The child seemed a bit off, too. Tang Mo made a mental note of her new neighbors; they were a puzzle.’

But the most important thing right now was getting to the Alliance Exchange. Tang Mo had always had limited curiosity about things that didn’t concern her.

The Alliance Exchange was located close to Tang Mo’s apartment. All the relatively well-preserved buildings were in this area, forming a stark contrast to the tent city on the other side.

’This Alliance Exchange... as grand as ever.’

Arriving at the entrance of the exchange, even Tang Mo, who had seen it countless times, couldn’t help but feel a sense of awe.

The villa had been converted into a Chinese-style building, giving it a solemn and dignified air. There were even several stone pillars engraved with characters at the entrance.

’To undertake such a cosmetic project in this day and age... the Alliance must have expended an incredible amount of effort and resources.’

However, Tang Mo understood why the Alliance put so much care into renovating the exchange and mission center of every base.

’It gave people a sacred, perfect place in a broken world. It offered them at least a sliver of hope, which was far better than the pervasive desolation.’

’Psychological encouragement was a powerful tool for humanity.’

The exchange was nearly empty in the evening, practically deserted.

Dozens of square, enclosed cubicles lined the perimeter of the first-floor hall. Tang Mo picked one at random and went inside.

Inside the cubicle was just an automated terminal and a chair. Tang Mo pulled out the chair, sat down, and began to pull items from her personal Space.

A few Basic-level Mutant Beast Crystal Cores, the large snake’s hide, and its Poison Fangs.

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’Tang Mo didn’t intend to trade the Crystal Cores. She only took them out to test their current value.’

"Please place the items you wish to trade on the transaction platform. This exchange only accepts items from mutant beasts, Crystal Cores, abnormal treasures, and other special items for trade."

When Tang Mo didn’t make a move, the machine issued a prompt.

First, Tang Mo placed a Crystal Stone on the transaction platform.

A red light swept over the transaction platform.

"Strength Attribute Basic Crystal Core. The following items are available for exchange. The seller may choose one."

A long list of items appeared on the machine’s screen, most of them food.

Twenty-two pounds of rice, five packs of instant noodles, a number of compressed biscuits, snacks, drinks...

There were also some daily necessities like clothing and tents, but the options for those were very limited.

’It all clicked for Tang Mo as she looked at the exchange options.’

’The apartment rent was eleven pounds of rice per week, which came out to forty-four pounds a month.’

’And a single Crystal Core was also enough for a month’s rent.’

’But here at the exchange, a Crystal Core was only worth twenty-two pounds of rice. It seemed the Alliance didn’t value Crystal Cores as much as people thought.’

’That made sense. Many of the current missions at the mission center were for hunting mutant beasts, so a steady stream of Crystal Cores was flowing into the exchange.’

’Food, on the other hand, was finite. Once it was gone, it was gone.’

She removed the Crystal Core from the transaction platform and placed the two Poison Fangs from the Intermediate Beast on it instead.

"Transaction exceeds authorization level. Unable to proceed. Please take the transaction tag and proceed to the second floor for a manual transaction. We apologize for the inconvenience."

After scanning the items Tang Mo had placed, the machine issued the alert. A black, card-like transaction tag emerged from a slot below, printed with the words "Alliance Exchange."

’Exceeds authorization? Items from an Intermediate Beast can’t be traded on the first floor?’

Having only been to the exchange a few times, Tang Mo didn’t understand what was happening. In the past, her team captain had always handled trading the spoils of battle before distributing the shares. She had almost never been involved in that part of the process.

She took the transaction tag, gathered her things, and headed for the second floor.

Not just anyone could access the second floor; it required swiping the transaction tag.

The layout of the second floor was vastly different from the first. If the first floor was designed for high-traffic, quick, and convenient service, the second floor was small and refined.

The second floor had about five rooms, each with its door open. Inside every room sat a smiling, suit-clad staff member.

This was Tang Mo’s first time on the second floor of the exchange. She chose a room at random, walked in, closed the door, and sat down in front of the staff member.

She placed both the transaction tag and the giant snake’s Poison Fangs on the desk in front of her.

"This is what I’d like to sell," Tang Mo stated plainly.

The man sitting across from Tang Mo was middle-aged and wore gold-rimmed glasses. He took the Poison Fangs, placed them in an instrument behind him, and pressed several special buttons.

Soon, some text appeared on the instrument’s display. The man printed it out, read it carefully, then returned the Poison Fangs to the desk in front of Tang Mo.

’The ID Watch also had an appraisal function, but it clearly wasn’t as comprehensive or powerful as the instrument at the exchange.’

"So, what would you like to exchange these for, Miss? Crystal Cores? Food? Or perhaps... access privileges?"

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