Xu Mo held the membership card of the "World Fruit Trade Alliance" in his hand. Despite its unremarkable appearance—looking somewhat cheap and gaudy—it was surprisingly light, feeling like he was holding a feather. Moreover, the card's material was unlike ordinary plastic; it was highly flexible, capable of being rolled into a tube like paper, yet it would instantly spring back to its original shape without leaving a single crease.
"This membership card is not just an ordinary card. It is specifically crafted from Doomsday Fragments within the alliance. Each green fragment can only produce a hundred cards, making them extremely valuable and impossible to counterfeit with current technology."
Noticing Xu Mo's interest, Du Zhizhang eagerly pulled out a lighter, took the membership card, and burned one corner. The moment the flame touched the card's surface, an invisible force pushed it away, rendering it completely resistant to fire.
"Do you all have to burn your cards every time you enter the alliance?" Xu Mo chuckled.
"Oh, no, of course not. I just wanted to show you how durable this card is—you don't have to worry about it being damaged."
Du Zhizhang smiled awkwardly, put away the lighter, and held the card in his palm. Without any visible action on his part, the surface of the card suddenly emitted a flowing, mist-like iridescent glow—a miniature version of the apocalyptic aurora itself!
Seeing Xu Mo's astonished expression, Du Zhizhang smugly explained, "This membership card, like Doomsday Fragments, is bound to its owner. It can also be stored in fragment space and will only glow when activated by the user's will. If anyone else gets their hands on it, it's just a regular card—so there's no need to worry about theft."
"So this membership card is just for verifying the identity of Doomsday Fragment ability users?" Xu Mo was quite shocked. Using Doomsday Fragments to create membership cards—the World Fruit Trade Alliance was undoubtedly wealthy beyond imagination.
"Identity verification is only the most basic function of the card," interjected Chang Zitong, who had been relatively quiet. She took out her own membership card and flicked it between her fingers. "This card also serves as electronic currency. With the alliance's specialized machines, you can check and trade in Fruit Coins."
"Fruit Coins? You don't use Huaxia currency?" Xu Mo was getting more and more confused. Why would the alliance create its own virtual currency when there was already a standard currency in place?
"Haha, your question is exactly what I asked back then." Du Zhizhang found Xu Mo's confusion nostalgic and chuckled before explaining, "The alliance originally used a barter system, exchanging Doomsday Fragments directly. However, this quickly led to inequality in value perception. Since different people required different types of fragments, direct trades often made it difficult to obtain the fragments they actually needed. This created an urgent need for a standard equivalent to serve as currency in transactions.
Initially, the alliance did use Huaxia currency for trade, but soon a serious problem arose. A large number of scalpers infiltrated the system, buying fragments for resale. To them, Huaxia currency was far easier to obtain than Doomsday Fragments. As a result, every time a fragment appeared on the market, these scalpers would swoop in with their checkbooks and buy them out. For ordinary members, purchasing fragments at a reasonable price became nearly impossible, and the alliance quickly reverted to bartering again.
To maintain a stable trading environment and ensure sustainable market development, the alliance soon implemented a virtual currency system—the Fruit Coin.
Each unit of Fruit Coin is equivalent to approximately 100 Huaxia Yuan. The alliance allows Fruit Coins to be freely exchanged for Huaxia currency at designated exchange points, but the reverse is not permitted. Furthermore, since the alliance itself is the largest Doomsday Fragment dealer, with nearly ten thousand Doomsday Fragments in its headquarters as credit reserves, Fruit Coins quickly became the standard currency for fragment trading within the alliance.
With this system in place, scalpers vanished overnight. Occasionally, you might still find a few trying to buy Fruit Coins at higher-than-official rates, but they are no longer a significant threat."
Du Zhizhang's background in sales was evident—he had managed to explain such a complex system in a clear and concise manner. At least, Xu Mo knew he wouldn't have been able to do it so smoothly.
From the looks of it, the World Fruit Trade Alliance really was just a commercial organization. If they had any ulterior motives, it was likely nothing more than profiting off Doomsday Fragments—a business practice not much different from normal commerce. At worst, they were merely reselling hazardous materials.
In a world filled with far greater evils, this alliance seemed trivial compared to international arms dealers and other large-scale destructive forces.
"Brother Du, what's the current market price of Doomsday Fragments within the alliance?" Xu Mo had never considered measuring the value of fragments in monetary terms, but if the price was reasonable, buying them outright could be an efficient way to collect more.
Seeing Xu Mo's interest, Du Zhizhang exchanged a pleased glance with Chang Zitong before eagerly continuing, "We just returned from the alliance's trading point in Shang Shan City a few days ago. Here are the current prices: Red Enhancement-type fragments go for 700 Fruit Coins, Orange Chain-type for 400, Yellow Weapon-type and Green Object-type for 300 each, while Cyan Special-type and Blue Intelligence-type fetch 1,000 Fruit Coins apiece."
Xu Mo hesitated for a moment before the numbers finally clicked. Based on the exchange rate, these Doomsday Fragments started at tens of thousands of Huaxia Yuan! The cheapest ones cost at least 30,000 Yuan, while the most expensive ones reached a staggering 100,000 Yuan per fragment!
Even drug trafficking might not yield such high profits—this was outright daylight robbery! Given his family's financial situation, even if he sold everything they owned, they could barely afford a handful of the cheapest Weapon-type or Object-type fragments.
Du Zhizhang, a seasoned salesman, easily read Xu Mo's expression. Pouring him another cup of tea, he offered a bitter smile. "Crazy prices, right? And these are actually quite reasonable now because of stable fragment supplies. A while ago, things were completely out of control—Red Enhancement-type fragments were going for 150,000 each."
"Why are Red Enhancement-type fragments so expensive?" Xu Mo frowned. From what he knew, they were the most abundant type of fragment. By the principle of supply and demand, they shouldn't be fetching such high prices.
"I think it's because Enhancement-type fragments are the foundation of all abilities," Chang Zitong interjected. When it came to discussing fragments, her enthusiasm surpassed Du Zhizhang's. Unlike him, she wasn't just in it for business—she had a deep, almost fanatical passion for Doomsday Fragments. "Enhancement-type fragments improve the four fundamental attributes of the human body. Since people are most familiar with their own physical capabilities, even without any additional abilities, a strengthened body alone grants immense power. You've experienced this yourself, haven't you?"
Xu Mo nodded in agreement. Without the three Red Enhancement-type fragments he had absorbed, he would never have survived the Doomsday Mirage. Even in his recent battle against Baldie's gang, his strength primarily came from his enhanced physique—his "Immovable Mountain" and "Zero Eruption" abilities served more as deterrents than direct combat advantages.
"A house can lack windows, a roof, doors, or even walls, but it cannot lack a foundation. That's why Red Enhancement-type fragments remain in high demand, despite their relative abundance," Chang Zitong continued. "Moreover, I've heard that wealthy elites have been secretly amassing all kinds of Doomsday Fragments. Since Enhancement-type fragments allow them to strengthen their bodies and enjoy life at a higher level, they've become particularly sought after—further driving up their price."