Standard Time: 07:55
“Splash!”
One person, one turtle, and one wooden board burst out of the water, creating a splash.
After settling back down, Chen Mo didn't waste any time.
He first collected the rewards for his daily and regular tasks, then pulled out the treasure map he had just acquired to examine it.
The treasure map appeared to be a scroll made from the hide of some giant sea beast, with complex shipping routes and blurry islands outlined in dark red, like dried blood. Under a large skull mark in the center, a line of twisted text read:
“Eye of the Storm—”
The rest of the words were torn away with the other half, making them unreadable.
【Incomplete Treasure Map (Purple)】
【Description: ...】
Even the system's item description offered no information.
Seeing that he couldn't decipher anything, Chen Mo tossed it back into his inventory.
He would just have to pay more attention to it later.
He opened the system and glanced at it.
Only a few minutes remained until the Trading House opened.
Chen Mo had already decided what items to sell and buy once the Trading House opened.
He didn't plan to sell the shark meat; it was fresh, and he had a preservation storage box. Even if he couldn't eat it all himself, he could save it for Little Turtle as emergency rations.
He couldn't possibly sell the contents of his medical kit either, unless he had extras. Otherwise, at sea, it was practically his second life.
All the shark teeth could be sold off. Xuanwu wasn't afraid of small sea beasts anyway, so shark teeth were useless to him.
The remaining warehouse full of “fish catches” were not urgent for now. Early-stage overpriced items would definitely focus on core resources like food and water, as well as important materials like coral stone. Anything else could be observed first.
As for the items to buy:
He had picked up a few coral stones on his way back, so he didn't need any for now.
He needed one flint to unlock the campfire, which would make grilled fish a stable food source.
Copper ore and iron ore could unlock new weapons and tools, so he could buy them in moderation if available.
Additionally, with the newly acquired treasure map, he could keep an eye on the Trading House to see if anyone listed the other half.
Little Turtle's 10% hunger value for today had been met, but its current 95% hunger value wasn't enough to last through the night, so he needed to set aside at least 3-4 hours during the day for fishing.
With that thought, Chen Mo calmed himself.
A few minutes quickly turned into a countdown of seconds.
【59】
【58】
...【3】
【2】
【1】
【Trading House function officially open!】
【Participants, please strictly adhere to Trading House rules】
【1. The Trading House only recognizes one currency – shell coin】
【2. Item selling prices cannot be lower than the Trading House's minimum price】
【3. The minimum listing time for items is 72 hours. Once listed, items cannot be withdrawn. For each transaction, whether successful or not, the system will charge a 10% handling fee (deducted in shell coin form)】
【4. The current trading area only supports this region. To unlock the full-region and even full-server trading panel, please strive to increase your Captain Level】
【Special Note: The Trading House does not support bartering! If physical item exchange is needed, Captains, please add friends and trade privately. All risks are borne by the Captains themselves.】
The moment the Trading House opened.
Countless item listings refreshed like a waterfall!
【Wood 1】, 【Dirty Fresh Water 500ml】, 【Damaged Fishing Net】, 【Rusty Iron Nail 3】—
Most were the most basic, scarce “junk.”
Because the function had just opened, no one knew the market, so most of the prices offered were absurd. A few rusty iron nails could be priced anywhere from a few to dozens of shell coins.
The regional chat channel scrolled at an unprecedented speed:
“Are you guys crazy? Can't you see the recommended amount under each item? The recommended amount for nails is 1 coin for 3 nails, so why are you listing 1 nail for 30 coins? Do you think your nails are the Sea-Calming Divine Needle?!”
“Listing high prices early on is suicide. Everyone barely has that many coins. Low-price quick sales to recover funds and then converting them into combat power to get ahead of others is the smartest choice!”
“Those listing high-priced fish, wake up. Fish can't be eaten raw; they need a fire source to be processed. While no one has a campfire, betting that your sashimi won't trigger various strange debuffs is worse than eating a few moldy mini-breads without debuffs! Spending your entire fortune on one fish on the first day? Only an idiot would buy it!”
“Shanhu Ge? Waiting for your coral stone, Shanhu Ge!”
“Waiting for his coral stone to be listed so he can rip you off? Are you actively seeking to be slaughtered?”
“China Region people don't rip off China Region people! Brothers, don't worry, I'm still digging for coral stone. This stuff is so hard to dig. I woke up at six this morning and have only dug ten pieces so far. Once I'm out of stamina, I'll list everything at the lowest recommended price. It's life-saving stuff, and I have it everywhere here. I won't rip you all off!”
“Long live Shanhu Ge!”
“Shanhu Ge! Shanhu Ge! Shanhu Ge! 【Panda holding sign, lovelove love love love】”
“Everyone! With initial funds extremely scarce, food is definitely the hardest currency! In short, for the first three days, food should be in the upper-middle range of the recommended price, basic materials at the lowest price, and core production materials will definitely be severely overpriced with no market. If it's not urgently needed, you can wait until food acquisition channels are perfected before considering selling or buying!”
Chen Mo, sitting cross-legged on the turtle shell, wore sunglasses and rested his chin on one hand.
He looked like a wise economist.
Those people in the chat area weren't wrong.
The dazzling array of goods, rapidly increasing in quantity, was ultimately just a false prosperity.
On the first day, everyone simply didn't have that many coins.
Coupled with the rule that listed items could only be actively delisted after 3 days, listing them too high would mean being trapped. At that point, money couldn't be collected, and items couldn't be sold.
While others were rapidly increasing their strength with coins, he could only watch helplessly.
This was why, even though he had caught many useful “fish catches” in the past two days, he wasn't in a hurry to list them.
As he thought this, Chen Mo looked up and suddenly noticed a small circle, similar to a user avatar, in the upper right corner of the Trading House.
The circle's background was the same color as the Trading House background, making it easy to overlook.
Chen Mo reached out and tapped it, and a small box immediately popped up on the interface.
【Breeder Chen Mo; CN-734821】
【Vehicle: Divine Beast Xuanwu】
【Trade Level (Note): Lv.1 (Upgrade by consuming or earning 1000 shell coins through the Trading House; subsequent upgrades can unlock national and full-server Trading Houses)】
Seeing the tiny “Note” after the words “Trade Level,” Chen Mo reached out and tapped it.
A new window immediately popped up on the light screen.
【Increasing your Trade Level will unlock the following trade modules in order (Note): China Region 101 Trade, System Mall Trading House, China General Region Trading House, Global Full-Server Trading House】
【Current shell coins earned: 160】
Another note, it's like a Matryoshka doll.
Chen Mo briefly glanced at the mechanism on the page and tapped the note again.
【On the first day of the Trading House opening, to stimulate consumption, the first participant to unlock the System Mall Trading House will receive one “Extraordinary Item Selection Pack.”】
According to the item rarity classification provided by the system, Extraordinary corresponds to gold items, followed by Legendary (purple), Rare (blue), Fine (green), Common (white), and Junk (gray).
Good heavens.
The first-day event was hidden so secretly?
Were they afraid people would find it?
Chen Mo casually opened the description of the selection pack.
【Extraordinary Item Selection Pack】
【Description: Obtain one specified Extraordinary-grade item, excluding vehicles. Available items include: Siren Core, Powerful Harpoon Net, Ocean Environment Purifier, Contract of the Storm Lord, Tidal Remains, Star Dome Sniper Rifle, Eye of the Sky Rift, Abyssal Body, Powerful Parrot Feed, Powerful Loach Feed, Powerful White Cat Feed, Powerful Sea Turtle Feed—】
Powerful Sea Turtle Feed??!!!
Chen Mo's eyes widened, completely losing his composure.
He looked at the selection pack, then at the Trading House, then at his warehouse, and then at the selection pack again.
What market, what observation, what waiting for an opportunity—compared to the Powerful Sea Turtle Feed, it all turned into nonsense.
At this moment.
Utter madness!!!!
“【Bull shark meat】 【Bull shark tooth】 【Powerful Lighter (Oil-Free Version)】 【Portable Solar Panel】 【Flashing Yo-Yo】 【Starfish for Catching Jellyfish】 【Life-Size Rabbit Pillow】 【Lifelike Poop Doll】 are all listed! Walk by, don't miss out! Everything is available, sell for money!!”
Instantly.
The regional chat channel exploded again.