Chapter 16: Red Copper 2-Star • Void Trading Ground

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However, for all these, Gu Ran, who was almost hanging by a thread, naturally had no knowledge, and even if he had heard everything, he would have chosen to directly ignore it.

In a situation like this, choosing not to take the initiative to kill various monsters to improve his strength, and instead wallowing in self-pity, he lumped all such people into the category of the useless.

Before the apocalypse, such people might not have been fully exposed, but now, they would only walk towards their demise, step by step, amid their inner weakness and fear.

Gu Ran had always been firm in this belief.

...…

Feeling the booming sounds gradually approaching from behind, suppressing the pounding in his heart, Gu Ran quickly made a decision.

He violently drew the short-handled cleaver from his waist and, turning his body around, he chose to directly confront the Dark Skeletons that were pursuing him.

Raising his right hand high, and timing his move precisely, he threw the short-handled cleaver at the leading Dark Skeleton's left knee.

Bang!

The cleaver hit the Dark Skeleton's left knee precisely, the tremendous impact causing the Dark Skeleton to stagger. Although it did not fall, its speed was significantly reduced, and the other Dark Skeletons crashed directly into its back.

With a series of cracking impacts, the group of Dark Skeletons became entangled in disarray. Ahead, Gu Ran who spotted the opportunity, circled around a small truck, pulled himself out of sight of the group of Dark Skeletons, and then dashed into the residential building where his home was located.

These actions may seem simple, but without the courage to look back, the ability to precisely judge the moment, and the skill to accurately throw, success would have been impossible if any element was lacking.

Fortunately, Gu Ran had all these abilities and seamlessly connected all three in a flash, allowing him to escape the predicament.

Even after locking the iron door behind him, Gu Ran's heavy breathing could still be heard clearly.

...…

"Sigh, that was too risky!"

A sigh of regret escaped from his lips, as if regretting his previous reckless behavior, yet those who knew him well would know that, given another chance, Gu Ran would still make the same decision.

So what if he was down to only 9 card points, and the Chieftain's Whistle card was completely ruined?

At least he had obtained the object of his desire, and moreover, its value far exceeded the price he had paid.

Remember, far exceeded.

Looking at the attributes panel that appeared before his eyes, Gu Ran clenched his fists tightly, and the already heavy breathing from his nose became a few degrees heavier in an instant.

The heartbeat that had slightly calmed down once again began to pound violently.

[Red Copper Card•Void Trading Ground]

[Quality: Red Copper Two Stars (Rare)]

[Passive: Equipping this card, you will automatically gain the title "Trading Master," and receive a ten percent discount when purchasing items in special trading places (including but not limited to mysterious shops, camp markets, etc.) (Note: Passive does not require consumption of card points)]

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[Active 1 (Void Trading Ground): Spend 20/50/100 card points to create a small, independent trading space in the void. Centered on oneself, creatures of the same race within a radius of 1/10/100 kilometers will receive an invitation to the Void Trading Ground and can enter the trading space for free trade. (The trading space exists for one natural day, with a cooldown time of one natural month)

Note: Only those who have successfully awakened and obtained the official Card Master level can receive the invitation.]

[Active 2 (Rule Enforcer): Spend 5 card points to set the entry conditions for the trading space and establish the trading rules within it. You have absolute control over the trading space and the right to expel other creatures that enter it, but if you act arbitrarily, you will be severely punished.]

Gu Ran's gaze swept over the attribute panel in front of him again and again until he had memorized every attribute without missing a single word, and then he closed the card's attribute introduction in his hand.

Without a doubt, this was a card of extremely high quality and equally astonishing value.

As for the quality of cards, Gu Ran currently only knew that the lowest was "Blue Stone," and beyond that was a complete blank.

However, what could be certain was that the Void Trading Ground card in his hand, with its Red Copper quality, was definitely higher than Blue Stone. As for how much higher, and whether or not there were other ranks in between Blue Stone and Red Copper, he was equally unclear.

As for the value of this card, Gu Ran was all too clear about that.

At this moment, he was still pondering over the card's two active abilities, considering how he should utilize the card and how to maximize his own benefits while using it.

The key naturally lay in the card's second active ability, "Rule Enforcer."

As long as he could make reasonable use of the Rule Enforcer's ability, Gu Ran could already imagine himself raking in loads of card points.

For instance, the simplest method was to require card points for entry into the trading space or to impose a corresponding transaction tax on trades within the trading space...

As myriad thoughts raced through his mind,

"Boom!!"

a sudden thunderous boom from outside snapped him back to reality.

No sooner had he turned around than a flash appeared in Gu Ran's eyes, as if he had thought of something. Without further thought, he immediately stowed the Void Trading Ground card in the card album in his mind and rushed upstairs.

On the third floor of his home, Gu Ran, having just locked the door behind him, did not pause but went straight to the living room window and looked down through the drawn curtains.

Previously, the Void Trading Ground card had his full attention until just now when his thoughts were brought back to reality. It was only then that he remembered that until now, he still had not properly seen the full appearance of the gigantic monster that had almost taken his life.

His brows furrowed subconsciously, trying to catch a glimpse of what the giant monster actually looked like, but his efforts told him nothing. He stood before the living room window for quite a while, yet saw not even a hair.

With no other choice, Gu Ran could only try changing his position. But in the end, no matter where he moved, it was useless; all he could hear was the continuous thunderous sounds.

Perhaps another two minutes or so passed, and the giant creature downstairs finally reached a position directly opposite the living room window.

The moment the terrifying creature came into view, Gu Ran froze for a good two seconds. Even with mental preparation, the actual sight was still somewhat hard to accept.

In terms of size, the monster resembled a lizard from before the mutation, but its body had been magnified countless times, and it now sported a layer of gray scales that were visibly impenetrable at a glance.

Whoosh!

Standing on four legs, nearly as tall as a building, and with a body length close to ten meters, it simply flicked its scaly tail, and in the next second, several Dark Skeletons that were attacking it shattered into pieces, their scattered skeletons nearly everywhere to see.