157: Beast World

In the abyss, Ye Chen was currently studying a new building—the Devil Exchange.

This was a type of building exclusive to devils, allowing them to trade with intelligent species from other worlds through the exchange.

Of course, in the barren abyss, one could hardly find any decent trade goods.

Only the few worlds that had sunk into the abyss still had some supplies, and the technological items of the gnomes could be considered of some value.

However, when it comes to trading... it's not about what you need, but what I have!

This exchange could search for potential clients across the myriad worlds who had a strong desire to trade, and after obtaining their consent, it could connect to the exchange to conduct business with them.

The trades here were all barter-based; as for value, it depended on the needs of both parties. As long as both were satisfied, the trade could proceed.

Of course, Ye Chen didn't care for ordinary things; his main hope was to lure these clients into surrendering their worlds step by step.

Soon, the devils in the abyss were summoned by Ye Chen to the vicinity of the exchange.

Upon learning of the exchange's magical functions and their own tasks, the devils rubbed their hands together, ready to do something big.

After some simple training from Ye Chen, they went directly into the exchange to start their shifts.

And the exchange did not disappoint; it wasn't long before a trade request appeared before the devils.

One of the devils was quick-eyed and nimble-handed, impatiently clicking "accept."

...

Beast Taming World, Fengling Academy.

It was deep in the night. In the back hills of the academy, a youth with hands covered in dirt leaned listlessly against a withered banyan tree, his face filled with bewilderment.

Beneath the large banyan tree was a small, fresh mound of dirt.

Just moments ago, he had buried with his own hands his battle pet that had been with him since childhood—a Kachi Dog.

This Kachi Dog was his partner, and more than that, his family.

Ever since his parents were killed by enemies, it was this Kachi Dog that had accompanied him through these years, but now, it was all over.

The youth knew that he had no money or power, and now that even his only battle pet had died, he feared he would find it hard to stay any longer.

Should he go home?

But... where do I still have a home?

The boy lowered his head dejectedly, tears falling onto the mound of dirt.

Just then, a voice rang out in his ear.

"Young man, want to top up some Q-coins?"

The boy looked up in panic; all around was darkness, and he could only hear the pounding of his own heart.

"Who? Who is speaking!"

"I am the God of Trade who walks among the myriad worlds. Sensing your hesitation and longing, I have come specifically to save you."

The strange voice, carrying a bewitching tone, rang in his ear once more.

"No... no need. I don't have anything I can trade."

The boy gathered his courage to refuse the voice in his mind. He had nothing now; how could he dare to trade with this godlike God of Trade?

"No matter. The God of Trade is benevolent. Although you have nothing now, you can use your soul as collateral and repay it in the future."

The boy hesitated after hearing this; he did not know what the consequences of mortgaging his soul would be.

After thinking for a moment, he made a decision.

His life was worthless now; how much worse could things get?

If he could trade with this powerful entity, perhaps he could completely change his destiny.

This was a chance for him!

Thinking of this, he replied firmly:

"Great God of Trade, I wish to mortgage my soul to trade with you. I hope you can resurrect my partner, the Kachi Dog. When I have the ability in the future, I will certainly repay you double."

The "God of Trade" was silent for a moment.

"Your Kachi Dog has completely died. I can resurrect it and strengthen its power, but it will lose all its memories, including those of you. Are you... willing?"

The boy hadn't expected that he could really resurrect his partner, and he hurriedly nodded excitedly:

"I am willing! As long as it can be resurrected, it doesn't matter if it loses its memories!"

The moment the boy agreed, a spatial tunnel formed before him. Then, the small mound of dirt in front of him collapsed rapidly, and the corpse of the Kachi Dog flew into the tunnel through the air.

Inside the abyss, the moment the spatial tunnel formed, Ye Chen was quick-eyed and nimble-handed, throwing a stone inscribed with a magic circle toward the tunnel.

This stone was a beacon; if it could successfully pass through the tunnel to reach the Otherworld, he could obtain the coordinates of the Otherworld.

Then there would be no need for any trading; the Abyssal Army could directly knock open the gates of the Otherworld.

Unfortunately, how could the exchange fail to identify such a petty trick? The stone was repelled the moment it approached the trade tunnel.

Ye Chen was unwilling to give up and threw in a Worm, but it was still repelled.

Ye Chen stretched out his arm to probe, but an invisible barrier blocked his movement.

He channeled divine power into his arm, wanting to force his way in, but unfortunately, his arm was still firmly blocked outside.

Ye Chen shook his head regretfully; it seemed the fairness of the exchange was quite high.

However, he was not discouraged. After that Kachi Dog was resurrected by the abyss, it had already been marked with the brand of the abyss. When it was transported to the Otherworld...

Soon, the body and soul of the Kachi Dog were transported back to the abyss by the exchange, and Ye Chen resurrected it directly.

This Kachi Dog was very weak; even after resurrection and strengthening, it was only a Tier 2 Elite. However, it came with the "Accelerated Growth" and "Bond Evolution" talents, so it actually possessed decent potential.

Especially "Bond Evolution"—looking at it, several images flashed through Ye Chen's mind.

"Don't underestimate our bond, you bastard!"

"Go! Greninja, full power!"

"Agumon, Ultimate Evolution—WarGreymon!"

...

Ye Chen shook his head, shaking the messy images out of his mind.

After resurrecting the Kachi Dog, he finished inscribing the sacrifice magic circle and beacon magic circle on it, and then bound its soul to the Soul Returning Tower, letting it go only after giving it instructions.

Standing at the spatial tunnel, the Kachi Dog passed through without any hindrance.

Ye Chen waited for its figure to disappear completely, quietly waiting for news.

He had instructed the Kachi Dog to sacrifice a stone back immediately upon arriving in the Otherworld, to transmit the coordinates.

Unfortunately, after waiting for a moment, the abyss still hadn't received the coordinates, and the beacon on it showed no activity.

It seemed it had failed.

The exchange had stripped the abyss of its ownership over this Kachi Dog.

Ye Chen felt some regret; world coordinates were indeed not so easy to obtain.

Although this exchange was located within the abyss, it had no characteristics of the abyss at all. On the contrary, it was unexpectedly fair and just, and its level of confidentiality for clients was extremely high.

He gave separate instructions to the "customer service" devil who was in contact with the boy; the little boy's soul was still collateral for the abyss, so he wasn't worried that the boy wouldn't trade in the future.

Human nature is greedy, and for the boy, the trade was no less than a heaven-sent opportunity. As long as he had needs, there would be a chance to obtain the world coordinates.

One day, he would willingly surrender his world.